Metadata Matters: The Final 22-Point Checklist Before You Distribute

Why Metadata Quality Matters More Than Ever

In 2026, metadata is the single most important factor in whether a release gets accepted, correctly routed, and discovered on DSPs. Algorithmic editorial systems at Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube Music surface tracks based on metadata quality as much as acoustic quality.

Run through this 22-point checklist before every submission.

Release-Level Metadata

1. Release title — No trailing spaces, no erroneous capitalisation, no symbols in lieu of excluded characters.
2. UPC barcode — Unique to this release. Never reuse a UPC across multiple releases.
3. Release date — Set with sufficient lead time for DSP processing (minimum 5 working days; 3 weeks for featured editorial consideration).
4. Release type — Single, EP, or Album correctly classified. Spotify applies different algorithmic treatment to each.
5. Label name — Exactly as registered with your PRO and neighbouring rights society.
6. Genre / subgenre — Use the primary genre that best fits the release, not the most commercially appealing. DSPs algorithmically verify genre accuracy.
7. Language — ISO 639-2 language code for the primary language of lyrics.
8. Parental advisory — Correctly set. Applies to the release and individual tracks independently.

Track-Level Metadata

1. ISRC — Unique per recording. Never shared across different recordings.
2. Track title — No leading/trailing spaces. Matches the audio file exactly.
3. Track number / disc number — Set correctly for multi-disc releases.
4. Track duration — Audio file duration must be within 2 seconds of declared track duration.
5. Primary artist — Exact legal name or professional name as registered.
6. Featured artists — Credited correctly using 'feat.' not 'ft.' or 'featuring' (DSP dependent — check destination requirements).
7. Composers / writers — Full legal names. Required for sync licensing and mechanical royalty collection.
8. Publishers — Publisher name and IPI number for each writer.
9. Producers — Producer credits increasingly surfaced by DSPs in artist bios and track details.

Audio File Quality

1. WAV 44.1kHz / 24-bit minimum — Most DSPs now reject files below this specification.
2. No clipping — Peak levels must not exceed 0 dBFS. Preferred -1 dBFS.
3. LUFS normalisation — Integrated loudness between -14 and -16 LUFS matches DSP normalisation targets and protects dynamic range.
4. No silence — Track should not begin or end with more than 0.1 seconds of silence unless intentional.
5. File naming — Use the format: ArtistNameTrackTitleISRC.wav — no spaces, no special characters.