Why am I being asked to make edits for metadata for my release?

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 helpful article will provide additional context into all of the potential edit requests related to Metadata that a release could encounter through the submission process. Metadata is the text information that is associated with your release that we send to music services, which can include the primary artist name, track title, release title, producer name, etc. Think of Metadata as the “text” of your release that gets displayed to your fans when they’re viewing your album on Spotify or Apple Music. It’s crucial that your metadata matches your release information exactly or it 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 “Metadata”:

#### Featured Artist / Producer / Songwriter: Extra Info

• The featured artist/producer / songwriter fields, "Featured Artist / Producer / Songwriter Name", should only contain songwriter names.  It should not contain roles or other extra information (such as prod by, remixer, songwriter, pianist).
• Why are we requesting this edit?
  • This edit request will occur when the “featured artist”, “producer” or “songwriter” text fields contain any extra information other than the featured artist name, producer name, or songwriter name in each respective field.
• How do I fix this?
  • Make sure that you edit each field (“featured artist” / “producer” / “songwriter”) to only contain the name for that specific role with no extra information. 
  • Once the edits are made, you can resubmit your release for review and approval.

#### Featured Artist / Producer / Songwriter: Compound Name

• For the featured artist / producer / songwriter fields, "Featured Artist / Producer / Songwriter Name", ensure songwriters on this release have been entered on separate lines.
• Why are we requesting this edit?
  • This edit request will occur when the “featured artist”, “producer” or “songwriter” fields contain multiple names within a single field. 
• How do I fix this?
  • Make sure that you edit each field (“featured artist” / “producer” / “songwriter”) to only contain one name for that specific role. If you have multiple names for any of these roles, you can enter them in separate lines during the submission flow. 
  • Once the edits are made, you can resubmit your release for review.

#### Featured Artist / Producer / Songwriter: Misleading

• The featured artist / producer / songwriter field, "Featured Artist / Producer / Songwriter Name", must not be deceptive or misleading. Do not use genres, popular song lyrics, or popular artist names as a songwriter.
• Why are we requesting this edit?
  • This edit request will occur when the “featured artist”, “producer” or “songwriter” fields contain any misleading information such as genres, popular song lyrics, or popular artist names as a songwriter.
• How do I fix this?
  • Remove any genres, popular artist names, popular artist legal names, or popular song lyrics.
  • Once the misleading information is removed from the metadata, you can resubmit your release for review.
  • *If you have a valid, executed license providing your rights to include a popular artist name in your release, please write in to support@unitedmasters.com so we may override this edit request.

#### Release Title

• For the release title field, "Release Title", should not contain any artist information. No primary or featured artist names, producer credits, or any extra information like: "Single", "Official Audio", "Clean", "EP". Version information such as (Remix), (Bonus), (Deluxe), etc... should be in parenthesis. Do not censor release titles, for example, F**k, "S**t", etc.
• Why are we requesting this edit?
  • This edit request will happen when your release title contains any artist names or any of the other terms listed above in the note.
• How do I fix this?
  • Make sure you remove any artist names from your release title.
  • Please remove any terms such as “Single”, "Official Audio", "Clean", or "EP" from your release title.
  • If your release title contains any censored words, please spell out the whole word without any special characters or asterisks.
  • Please only use standard fonts in your release title. 
  • Once these edits are made, resubmit your release for review.

#### Track Title

• For the track title field, "Track Title", track titles should not contain any artist information. No primary or featured artist names, producer credits, or any extra information like: "Single", "Official Audio", "Clean", "EP". Version information such as (Remix), (Bonus), (Deluxe), etc... should be in parenthesis. Do not censor release titles, for example, F**k, "S**t", etc.
• Why are we requesting this edit?
  • This edit request will happen when your track title contains any artist names or any of the other terms listed above in the rejection note.
• How do I fix this?
  • Make sure you remove any artist names from your track title.
  • Please remove any terms such as “Single”, "Official Audio", "Clean", or "EP" from your track title.
  • If your track title contains any censored words, please spell out the whole word without any special characters or asterisks.
  • Please only use standard fonts in your track title. 
  • If your track title contains any censored words, please spell out the whole word without any special characters or asterisks.
  • Once these edits are made, resubmit your release for review.

#### Label

• Label names must not be deceptive or misleading. Do not use existing label names, genres, popular song lyrics, or reference popular artist names, in the label name field.
• Why are we requesting this edit?
  • This edit request will happen if you enter any major-label names, existing label names or misleading information in the “Label” field.
  • Additionally, please do not list “United Masters” as your label. 
• How do I fix this?
  • Only enter a label name that you have the full rights to use on your release.
  • Alternatively, use your artist name as the label name if you do not have a label name to use.
  • Once these edits are made, resubmit your release for review.

If you have any other questions or need additional assistance with a rejected release, please let us know by submitting a request for support.