Metadata in digital music distribution
When you upload a recording for distribution, you are not just uploading an audio file. You are entering a whole set of information – metadata – that tells the world who you are, what you have created and how the platforms should handle it. Bad or incomplete metadata does not just cause a cosmetic problem. It can mean that you do not get paid, that the recording is not displayed correctly, or that the system rejects it altogether.
Metadata is structured data describing your recording and release. It is not just the title and the artist – it includes identifiers, copyright, genre, language, explicit content and more. Every platform (Spotify, Apple Music, Deezer…) receives, stores and displays this data – or pays out royalties based on it.
Three levels of metadata:
Artist, release, recording
Metadata is divided into three groups. It is important to understand the difference – each group works differently, is filled in in a different place and has different rules.
(profile)
Filled in once at registration. Artist name, Spotify URI, Apple Music ID. This data is stored in your account profile (1 account = 1 artist).
(album / single / EP)
Belongs to a specific release. Release title, UPC, release date, cover art, genre, language, C-line, P-line. It can differ from release to release.
(track)
Belongs to a specific sound recording. It is fixed – it does not change even on re-release. Title, ISRC, songwriters, producer, track language, explicit content.
For example, if you release the same recording both as a single and on an album, the recording metadata (title, ISRC, songwriters, producer) must be absolutely identical in both releases. More in the article Re-releasing a recording on another release →
Overview of all metadata
| Field | Importance | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Level: Artist (profile) – filled in at registration | ||
| Artist name | Required | Your artist name is tied to your account – 1 account = 1 artist. The artist name is filled in automatically for each release and can only be changed in exceptional cases. If you need more primary artists on a release (e.g. a joint project of two artists), add them in the Additional primary artist section directly in the release form. |
| Spotify URI | Optional | Links you to an existing Spotify profile. It is entered at registration or in your profile settings. Without it, Spotify may create a new (duplicate) profile. Leave it empty if you are a new artist. |
| Apple Music ID | Optional | Links you to an existing Apple Music profile. It is entered at registration or in your profile settings. Leave it empty if you are a new artist. |
| Level: Release (album / single / EP) | ||
| Primary artist | Automatic | Primary artist = you. It comes straight from your account – you do not need to (and must not) enter yourself as the primary artist anywhere else. |
| Release title | Required | The title of the single, album or EP. (For a single, it must be the same as the track title.) Do not put the artist's or producer's name here. (More on the rules for release titles here.) |
| UPC/EAN code | Automatic | The release identifier – each release (single, album, EP) has its own. If you leave the field empty, we assign one automatically. You can enter your own valid UPC/EAN directly in the field in the release form. It cannot be changed after the first submission for distribution. |
| Release date on platforms | Required | The date on which the release should come out on the platforms. Submit the release at least 14 days before the release date, ideally a month in advance. |
| Original release date | Required | The day the release came out for the very first time (anywhere). For a brand-new release it is the same as the release date on platforms; it must never be later. |
| Pre-order start date | Optional | Only for stores with pre-sales (such as iTunes). It must be earlier than the release date on platforms. |
| Release genre | Required | The primary genre of the release and optionally one secondary genre. It affects placement in playlists and in the platforms' recommendation algorithms. |
| Metadata language | Required | The language in which the release and track titles are written (the predominant language of the titles). It is not the language of the vocals – you fill that in for each recording separately. |
| Release artwork | Required | An image in JPG/JPEG/PNG format, exactly 3000×3000 px to 6000×6000 px (max. 50 MB, RGB). You don't have to upload it when creating the release – you can add it later when editing the release. It must not contain third-party logos, contact details, URLs or calls to action. |
| © C-line | Required | Copyright in the artistic works associated with the release (cover art, lyrics, etc.). Format: 2025 Name (without the © symbol, which is added automatically). Usually your name or the name of your project. The difference between the C-line and the P-line is explained here. |
| ℗ P-line | Required | Copyright in the sound recording – the owner of the rights to the recording (the producer of the recording). Format: 2025 Name (without the ℗ symbol, which is added automatically). Usually your name or the name of your project. The difference between the C-line and the P-line is explained here. |
| Featured artist (release) | Optional | Featured artists at the level of the entire release (album). If a featured artist appears on only one recording, fill them in at the recording level. There is often no featured artist at album level. If there is one, you must fill in their Spotify URI and Apple Music ID (if they have no profile on a platform, write NEW instead of the identifier). For a single with one recording, the featured artists and additional primary artists must be the same on the release and on the recording, otherwise distribution cannot be started. |
| Additional primary artist (release) | Optional | If you need more primary artists on the release (another primary artist), add them in the Additional primary artist section in the release form. Every artist listed on the release must appear in the same role on at least one recording, and anyone who is on all the recordings must also be on the release – otherwise distribution cannot be started. If an artist has no profile on a platform, write NEW instead of the identifier. |
| Level: Recording (track) | ||
| Track origin | Required | Three questions before filling in each recording: Is it AI-generated? Did you use a beat from the internet? Is it a cover? Both distribution and playlist placement depend on your answers. Answer truthfully – a YES answer cannot be taken back. |
| Track title | Required | The exact title – without adding “(Official)”, “(prod. XYZ)” or other extras unless they are part of the title. You can state the version in brackets or after a dash (e.g. Remastered, Instrumental). (More on the rules for track titles here.) |
| ISRC code | Automatic | The international identifier of a sound recording. Each recording has one ISRC – forever. We assign it automatically (leave the field empty), or you can enter your own if you have one. When re-releasing the same recording, always fill in its original ISRC. The ISRC cannot be changed after the first submission for distribution. |
| Featured artist (recording) | Optional | A featured artist on a specific recording. Their name is automatically displayed after “feat.” in the title. Do not enter regular performers, band members, songwriters or producers here. |
| Additional primary artist (recording) | Optional | If you need more primary artists on a recording, add them in the Additional primary artist section in the recording form. |
| Songwriter (composer/lyricist) | Required | The names of the authors of the music and lyrics in the First name Last name format (as on your ID card), or an officially registered pseudonym verified in the Requests section (Songwriter pseudonym). Key for the payout of author royalties through OSA. The composer is required, the lyricist is optional. Always specific people – never a band or a company. If AI was involved in the creation, list it according to the article How to credit AI as an author correctly. |
| Producer | Required | The person who gave the recording its final sound (created the beat, recorded and edited it in a DAW) or oversaw the whole production. It can be a pseudonym – it does not have to be in the First name Last name format. Mix, mastering and remix have their own fields. Further roles (instruments, vocals, co-producer…) are available on request (write to support) as extended credits. |
| Track language | Required | The language of the lyrics of the specific recording; for an instrumental recording, choose “None”. It can differ from the metadata language of the release (e.g. an album with Czech titles and one recording sung in English). |
| Explicit content | Required | We must always pass this information on to the platforms – for each recording you choose one of three options: Not Explicit (contains no profanity, violence, drugs or sexual content), Explicit (does contain them) or Clean (a cleaned-up version of an otherwise explicit recording). Incorrect labelling can lead to the recording being deleted from the platforms. More in the article When to mark content as explicit. |
| WAV file | Required | The audio file of the recording. WAV format only – MP3, FLAC, AIFF and OGG are not accepted (not even when renamed to .wav). The minimum is 44.1 kHz / 16-bit; 48 kHz / 24-bit is recommended. You can check your master in advance with the Master check tool. |
| Lyrics (song text) | Optional | The words of the song (not a verbal description of it). Platforms that display lyrics take them from us or from specialised providers – on Spotify, lyrics get there via Musixmatch (see Song lyrics: Everything you need to know). Leave empty for instrumental recordings. |
The most common metadata mistakes
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A typo or an inconsistent artist name “Jan Novák” vs. “jan novak” vs. “Jan Novák ” (with a space at the end) – to the systems, these are three different artists. The platform will then create duplicate profiles.
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Missing or wrong songwriters If the songwriters are not listed correctly, OSA and other collecting societies have no way of assigning the royalties to the right person. The money then ends up in unclaimed funds and is eventually paid out to other artists. You cannot use an unregistered pseudonym!
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A new ISRC for the same recording on re-release The same recording must always have the same ISRC. A new ISRC = a new recording in the system. The result is duplicates and conflicts on the platforms.
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Titles with extras such as “(Official Audio)” or “(prod. XYZ)” These extras belong in YouTube titles, not in recording metadata. Platforms display them literally – and it looks unprofessional. On top of that, it will almost certainly get the release rejected. The form will not even save a title containing “prod.” or “feat.”, and terms such as “Official” will be flagged before submission by the Metadata check in the release detail.
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Explicit content left blank or marked incorrectly This information must always be delivered to the platforms – Not Explicit, Explicit or Clean. If a recording contains profanity and is not marked as such, platforms may remove it or penalise the artist.
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Low-quality cover art or cover art with well-known brand logos The cover art must be an exact square of 3000×3000 px to 6000×6000 px in JPG or PNG format. It must not contain logos of Spotify, Apple Music or other platforms or companies, contact details, URLs or calls to action.
Once a recording has been distributed to DSPs, simply editing the metadata in our system changes nothing there. The change has to be sent to the platforms again – otherwise it will not show up on the DSPs. Many artists think it is enough to change a detail and save – but without redistribution, the original version stays on the platforms. Some details (UPC/EAN, ISRC, track order, audio file) cannot be changed at all after submission for distribution – see What can still be changed after distribution and what cannot. Always check your metadata thoroughly before submitting for distribution. After saving a change, send the release again from its detail page: Tick the platforms and click “Distribute Selected” (more in the article Saving a change does not mean republishing). Before making bigger changes, it is better to contact us first.
Why your money depends on metadata
Platforms pay out royalties based on the ISRC and the artist name. Bad data = the money goes elsewhere or nowhere.
OSA assigns royalties according to the songwriters' names in the metadata. A missing or wrong name = money that never gets paid out.
Content platforms (YouTube, Meta and others) identify your content based on the ISRC and metadata. Without correct data, you cannot protect your content or claim revenue.
Spotify, Apple Music and others rank search results and recommendations based on metadata – genre, language, artist. Bad metadata = less reach.
Editorial playlists and algorithms work with genre, language and other metadata. Correct metadata increases your chances of being included.
Consistent metadata across releases builds one strong artist profile – rather than scattered duplicates under different variants of your name.
Don't confuse distribution metadata with audio file metadata. Audio files can have all sorts of information stored inside them. If you want to know what metadata is stored directly in your audio file, use our Audio file metadata viewer – it shows you the tags, production details and measured loudness from WAV, FLAC, AIFF, MP3 and M4A files without changing the file in any way. If you want or need to, use our WAV file metadata cleaner – it removes unnecessary metadata.
→ What is an ISRC code – how the recording identifier works and how to get one
→ Re-releasing a recording on another release – what must be identical when a single goes on an album
→ Automatic checks in the release and recording forms – what the forms keep an eye on for you
→ What can still be changed after distribution and what cannot – what you can edit even after submission