At UnitedMasters, every release that is distributed and sent to music services is required to go through a review process to ensure that certain guidelines are met. These guidelines are set in place by the music services we’re partnered with, so it’s important that each release we approve and deliver meets these standards. This can include but is not limited to, ensuring all metadata of the release is accurate, that there are no violations of copyright for any content used for the release, and that cover art meets quality standards.
In order to meet these requirements, our team's employees perform a manual review process while using specialized tools so that every release submitted by artists for distribution through our platform is evaluated. During this process, you may receive a notification that “edits'' are being requested by our team if we identify any potential issues with your release.
Please note that if you do not make the requested edits, we will be unable to approve your release which may delay your release date. We typically recommend that you submit your release for approval at least 3 weeks in advance so that you have ample time in case edits are requested. Submitting early for approval also ensures you have the time you need to tell your fans about your upcoming release to get them excited through social media engagement or sharing your MasterLink for promotion!
This help article will provide additional context into all of the potential edit requests related to Sound Recordings that a release could encounter through the submission process. Sound Recordings are all the audio files associated with the tracks on your release that we send to music services. It’s crucial that your Sound Recordings do not contain any unlicensed copyrighted material and meet all standards set by music services, otherwise, this puts your release at risk of being removed from music services.
Don’t worry though, we’re here to help you understand exactly why we’re requesting edits to be made and how to fix it! We want to make sure you have all the necessary information to correctly submit your releases so your music can reach your fans without any issues or delay.
Here are some of the edit requests you may be asked to make that are related to “Audio”:
#### Audio Tracks
The audio file, "Track Title", should not contain:
- Music samples or sampled audio from tv, movies, games, etc
- Instrumental "freestyles", or "remixes", from major label content for which you are not the exclusive rights holder
- Audio content that are speeches (including motivational), podcasts, children's music, meditation/"relaxation", music, ASMR, etc.
If you have explicit permission to use a music sample or sampled audio, please send documentation of the permission to support@unitedmasters.com.
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Why are we requesting this edit?
- This edit request will occur when we detect unlicensed audio samples or copyrighted material on a track. Please note that a license for the purchase of a beat will not be accepted if the instrumental contains any sampled audio or uses an instrumental from a major-label release. We would need a license from the copyright holders of the sampled audio.
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How do I fix this?
- Make sure that you have full rights to use all elements in your sound recording. This includes the instrumental and any vocals/sound clips present on the recording.
- If you have a license to distribute the content, you can send it to support@unitedmasters.com. Otherwise, please remove any copyrighted content from your recording or remove the track and resubmit your release for review.
#### Audio: Snippet
For the audio file, "Track Title", make sure your audio file is not under a minute in length unless it is an Intro, Outro, or Interlude.
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Why are we requesting this edit?
- This edit request will occur when a track is under 60 seconds in length and is not marked as an Intro, Outro or Interlude.
- Additionally, the average track length for a release should be a minimum of 1 minute in length. Singles under a minute in length cannot be accepted by streaming platforms.
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How do I fix this?
- If the track is an Intro, Outro, or Interlude - please add this to the track title (i.e “Track Title - Intro”)
- If the track is not an Intro, Outro, or Interlude - please edit the length of the track to be greater than 60 seconds and resubmit your release for review.
- If the average track length is not over a minute in length (you may calculate this by adding the length of all tracks together and dividing this by the number of tracks on the release) - please edit the length of the track(s) to be greater than 60-seconds and resubmit your release for review.
#### Audio: Blank Audio
Audio file "Track Title" contains blank audio. Please remove the extended silence from the beginning and/or end of the track.
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Why are we requesting this edit?
- This edit request will occur when we detect empty audio of more than 15 seconds within your sound recording.
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How do I fix this?
- Edit and remove the blank audio from the sound recording and resubmit the release for review.
#### Audio: Duplicate Audio
This track has already been distributed under a different artist name and/or title. In order to distribute this release, please ensure the release is not already live on streaming platforms OR please ensure that the title and artist name match the original version exactly (this includes spelling and punctuation).
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Why are we requesting this edit?
- This edit request will occur when we identify that the track has already been distributed with a different artist name/song title and is still currently live on music services.
- A few examples of this:
- Name changes - You’ve previously distributed this track with an old artist name and have now resubmitted the track with your new artist name while the original version is still live on music platforms.
- Artist roles - The track is distributed by “Artist A” featuring “Artist B”. Then, the track is attempted to redistribute as “Artist B” featuring “Artist A” while the original version is still live on music platforms.
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How do I fix this?
- If you still want to redistribute the track as you’ve submitted it, please make sure any other versions of the track have been taken down from all music services. Once taken down, resubmit your release for review.
#### Audio: Not Explicit/Explicit/Clean
The "not explicit" rating associated with "Track Title" does not seem to match the lyrical content. If this audio file contains explicit material please mark it as explicit. If this is a clean version of an explicit track, mark it as clean. If this audio file contains no lyrics, mark it as instrumental.
OR
The "explicit" rating associated with audio file, "Track title", does not seem to match the lyrical content. If this audio file does not contain explicit material (such as swear words), do not mark it as explicit.
OR
The "clean" rating associated with "Track title" does not seem to match the lyrical content. If this audio file contains explicit material, mark it as explicit. If this track does not have an explicit version, and does not contain explicit material, mark it as Not Explicit. If this audio file contains no lyrics, mark it as instrumental.
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Why are we requesting this edit?
- This edit request will occur when the incorrect Not Explicit/Explicit/Clean label is used in your track(s).
- Explicit should be used if a track contains any profanity.
- Not-Explicit should be used for tracks that do not contain any profanity, and have never contained any profanity.
- Clean should be used for tracks where the profanity has been edited out and where an Explicit version of the release exists on streaming platforms.
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How do I fix this?
- Under the "Explicit Content" dropdown for the track, select the correct Not Explicit/Explicit/Clean designation:
- For "Explicit" tracks select "Explicit".
- For "Not Explicit" select "Not Explicit/Clean" then select "No" under the question "Is this a radio edit?"
- For "Clean" select "Not Explicit/Clean" then select "Yes" under the question "Is this a radio edit?"
- Under the "Explicit Content" dropdown for the track, select the correct Not Explicit/Explicit/Clean designation:
#### Audio: Instrumental
The instrumental rating associated with "Track title" does not seem to match the lyrical content. If this audio file contains lyrics, do not mark it as instrumental
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Why are we requesting this edit?
- This edit request will occur when we identify that the track is incorrectly labeled as instrumental.
- If the release contains any lyrics, it should not be labeled as instrumental.
- If the release does not contain any lyrics, it should be labeled as instrumental.
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How do I fix this?
- If the track contains lyrics, select "No, this track is not an instrumental" under the "Instrumental" dropdown for the track.
- If the track does not contain lyrics, select "Yes, this track is an instrumental" under the "Instrumental" dropdown for the track.
Metadata Watchlist:
- Our Metadata Watchlist flags any names that may be connected to popular artists. During the release submission flow, you will be unable to enter any artist names or terms from our watchlist as a contributor to your release or include them in any fields of your release metadata.
- In order to distribute a release with the addition of a watchlisted artist name, please send us your contract with the artist enabling you to distribute content on their behalf. Once we receive this, we will be happy to proceed with approving the release!
If you have any other questions or need additional assistance with a rejected release, please let us know by submitting a request for support.
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