Before you start creating your release, make sure you have everything you need for the upload:
- Artwork has to be a perfect square with a size between 3000x3000px and 6000x6000px in .png or .jpeg
- Audio file(s) have to be wav-file, sample rate at 44,1 kHz, stereo and 16bit. The file name must end with .wav
- Have both the artwork and audio files available on Dropbox, iCloud or Google Drive.
The uploading process
- Name your release: If you are uploading a single track, the release name will be the same as the track title. The release name cannot hold featured artists or versions. There are special fields for those later in the upload process. You can read more about what’s important when it comes to titles here and get information on languages and capitalization here.
- Fill in the name of your Record Label. Note: The label name field is optional (in case you are 100% independent) and if left empty the artist name from the Amuse account will be added automatically. Adding a custom label name is a Pro feature. If you’re a Start or Boost user your primary artist name will be set as the label by default.
- Upload your artwork: Make sure that you have artwork of high quality in the right format (at least 3000x3000px). We try not to interfere with the artist's artistic freedom but the stores have rules that are important to follow. You can read more about artwork guidelines here.
- Select your Track Listing: How many tracks are you uploading? You can add tracks and remove as you go through the uploading process.
- 1-3 tracks is classified as a single
- 4-6 tracks is classified as an EP
- 7 tracks and more is classified as an album
- You can read more here: tracklisting tips for singles, EPs and albums here.
- Now it’s time to upload your music. Remember to have your audio files available on Dropbox, iCloud or Google Drive.
- Choose a title for your track/s. Read more about titles here.
- Add the track version: This is where you state what version this track is. For example: instrumental, live or a remix.
- Add a track origin: What type of song is it? Is it an original recording, a remix or a cover? The reason we want to know this is so we can protect all of our artists from any potential copyright infringements.
- Mark your song as explicit or not explicit (depending on the nature of the song’s lyrics). The streaming services want you to ONLY mark as explicit if there is explicit language in the song, or else your release may be rejected. You can read more here: Parental Advisory/Explicit Language guidelines here.
- Add the song’s recording year: The current year will be added automatically if nothing is filled in. The recording year date may differ from the song’s release year and its original release date. In Spotify, your songs are sorted after Release date/Original release date. If you have already released the material, please use the request form My Releases > Changes in my release to add the original release date.
- Add music style/genre: Choose from the list supplied. There are some genres that are more tricky. For example, soundtrack and inspiration are added as religious in some stores.
- Add ISRC (optional). Do you have an ISRC? Please add it when uploading the track. This is important if the track with the same recording has been released before. Be sure to enter the letters and numbers exactly. You do not want different tracks to be mixed up. If you haven’t released the track before, you will get a brand new ISRC code from us.
- YouTube Content ID: This is an Amuse Pro/Boost feature, meaning it's only available if you have an upgraded Pro or Boost subscription. For Pro users, it's available for no extra charge. For Boost users, there's a 15% fee for Content ID royalties. YouTube Content ID is a fingerprinting tool that can identify when your original recordings are played in other peoples' ad revenue-generating videos. This is only available if you have 100% original content, so not if you are using samples, beat packs etc. Before choosing YouTube Content ID, read more about it means here.
- Do you have a featured artist on this track? If yes, you can add them here. If you want the featured artists to be primary artist like you, you can choose that option in the app. Keep in mind that you can have a maximum of three Primary artists or Remixers in total on a release. You can read more about adding another artist (primary or featured) here.
- Do you want to credit contributors on the track? If yes, you can add them here. This includes writer, producer, mixer and remixer. The order the contributors are displayed in most stores is purely random. Spotify displays the contributors based on alphabetical order.
- Click ‘save’!
- Got more tracks to add to this release? If yes, go ahead and repeat above for each one. They will be released together as one product.
- Choose the stores you want us to deliver your music to. Amuse Start users can release to all major stores: Apple Music, Spotify, YouTube Music, Deezer, Claro Música, Amazon, Audiomack, Boomplay*, KKBox, Pandora, iHeart Radio, Tencent, Resso, NetEase Cloud Music, 7Digital, Google Music and Tidal. Amuse Pro and Boost subscribers can also distribute to Anghami, TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, Soundtrack by Twitch and apply for YouTube Content ID**.
*Only available in African regions
**For qualified original content only. When YouTube Content ID is added, YouTube Music is automatically included as well.
- Choose countries/regions: In which regions do you want to release the product? We suggest all regions unless there is a particular reason not to. For example, if your release has a cover song on it, you need a license for some markets. If you don't have the license, we will skip distributing your release to the following countries: The US, Canada, Mexico, India, and Pakistan. Read more about cover licenses here.
- Review the release: Double-check the information listed and go back and correct it if needed.
- Add the release date: Please note that the release date you’ve listed is not guaranteed until your release has been approved by our team. With Amuse Pro you can choose to "Release as soon as possible" or pick a custom release date as early as 10 days into the future. With Boost you can pick a release date starting from 14 days into the future. Amuse Start users get a default release date in 4 weeks from upload.
- Click on ‘Submit Release’ and you are done!
- On release day, you will be able to claim your Spotify profile from the Amuse app directly. Simply go to the Artist page and click the Spotify button to connect. You can read more about it here.