The DistroKid upload form is the page you'll use to add all important information for a release, along with its audio file(s) and artwork. The upload form has several sections you can use to make sure your release appears exactly how you'd like it to when it goes live. In addition, you can use the upload form to set specific artist pages for your release to appear on in services, and opt into any of several optional DistroKid album extras.

 

Sections of the Upload Form

Services

The services section is where you can select the services to deliver your release to – check the boxes next to your desired services and uncheck the boxes of the services you wish to omit.

Click here for more information on which services your music can be delivered to.

Number of Songs

In the "Number of songs" section, you can choose the number of songs you wish to include in your upload.

Check out this article for more information on the differences between Singles, EPs, and Albums.

Previously Released?

In the "Has this single been previously released?" section, you indicate whether or not the release has been previously distributed. Your choice on this question will dictate whether you can choose a past or a future release date.

If you selected Yes under “Previously Released?”, you can indicate the original release date for the project.

If you select that your upload has not been previously released and you have a Musician Plus plan or higher, you will also be able to set a Pre-Order date for services that offer it.

Check out this article for more info.

Artist/Band Name

The "Artist/band name section is where you can select the name of the Main artist(s) of the release. The Main artist or "performer" is the artist that is credited at the album level. The main artist(s) will be listed on every track on the album.

If you have available artist slots on your account, you can enter any artist name here. If your artist names are full, you'll instead see a dropdown menu to select one of the artists already on your account.

To learn more about Artist Roles, check out this FAQ article here.

Artist Already in Spotify / Apple Music / YouTube Music / Instagram / Facebook

In the "Artist already in Spotify / Apple Music / YouTube Music / Instagram / Facebook" section, you can indicate to DistroKid whether or not you already have pre-existing artist profiles in any or all of the services listed for your main artist/band name. If you do have a pre-existing artist profile for any of these services, you can use this section to indicate that artist page.

If you do not have a pre-existing artist name in Spotify, Apple, or YouTube Music, selecting "No" will create a new artist page for your release in that service. When selecting "No" for Instagram or Facebook, a new page is not created in those services.

Release date

The release date section of the upload form is where you indicate when you would like your release to go live in services, including a future release date if you are subscribed at the Musician Plus or Ultimate plan. If you are on the Musician plan, you can visit https://distrokid.com/plan to upgrade to a higher plan for access to future release dates.

If you select a future release date, you can also select a specific release time and release synchronization for Spotify only, and choose to set up a Preorder period for iTunes and Amazon.

For more information on choosing your release date, check out this article. For information on specific time releases in Spotify, check out this article. See this article for more information on Preorders.

Record label

The "Record label" section can be used to enter a custom record label name if you have a Musician Plus or Ultimate plan.

Album cover

In the "Album cover" section, you can select the artwork you wish to upload. In general, a 3000x3000 pixel .jpg file works best.

Check out this article for more information on getting your album artwork just right.

Album title

The "Album title" section is used to enter a title for the release if it has more than 1 song. If it's a single, the album title will default to the song title.

Album price

If you have a Musician Plus or Ultimate plan and are uploading a release with more than 1 song, you can use the "Album price" section to indicate a specific album price for iTunes and Amazon. If the price of buying all tracks individually is less than the album-price specified here, stores will use the sum of the track prices as the album price.

Language

In the "Language" section, you can select the primary language used on the release. The language selected here must match the language used for the track titles.

Primary genre

In the "Primary genre" section, you can select the main genre of your release. Our genre list is comprised of all genres accepted by all services we distribute to, and your specific sub-genre may not be available. Just select the genre that is closest to your release. Services tend to do their own genre sorting anyway.

Secondary genre

If one genre is not descriptive enough for you, good news! You can add a whole other one! This genre list is the same as the primary genre list, so just select another genre that also fits your project.

Track

The "Track" section is where you'll enter all of the required information for each track on your upload.

For more details on entering track information on the upload form, check out this article.

Artist Mapping

The"Artist Mapping" section will appear if you've added additional featured artists or collaborators to any individual tracks on your upload, or if your upload is a collaboration between multiple artists. In this section, you can ensure all additional artists are linked correctly in streaming services.

If your artists do not have pre-existing artist pages, you can select "No - "artist name" doesn't yet have artist profiles on streaming services." If your artists do have existing artist pages in Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube Music, you can submit them by selecting “[Artist Name]” has an existing page on services that I’d like to specify…” and entering the Spotify URI, Apple Artist URL, and YouTube Music Artist URL for your artists.

Apple Music Additional Requirements

If you're sending your music to Apple Music or iTunes, use the "Apple Music Additional Requirements" section to add all necessary credits to the release in order to send it to Apple. These necessary credits are at least one performer credit, and a producer credit.

Extras

The "Extras" section allows you to add optional extras to your release.

For more info on the individual extras that are available, click here.

Important Checkboxes

The last section is Important Checkboxes (Mandatory). You’re required to complete this section in order to send your release off to services.

You can check out the DistroKid Terms of Service and Distribution Agreement here.