Why do distributors reject tracks for metadata?

DistroKid, TuneCore, RouteNote, Amuse and Ditto reject tracks for missing ISRCs, mis-formatted titles (e.g. ALL CAPS or featured artists in the title instead of the feature field), missing composer or songwriter info, artwork below 3000×3000, artwork containing logos or URLs, missing language tag and missing explicit flag.

What is an ISRC and do I need one?

An ISRC (International Standard Recording Code) is a unique 12-character code for every recording. Yes — you need one for every track, every version (radio edit, instrumental, remix). Most distributors auto-generate one if you do not supply your own. MetaAid flags missing ISRCs.

How does Spotify treat featured artists?

Spotify expects featured artists in a separate field, not in the title. Correct: title "Cul de Sac", primary "Houndtrack", featured "Mae Stephens". Wrong: title "Cul de Sac (feat. Mae Stephens)" with no featured field. MetaAid auto-detects and flags this.

Is MetaAid really free and private?

Yes. MetaAid runs entirely in your browser — your audio file is never uploaded to any server, never stored, never logged. There is no account, no email gate and no paywall.

Which file types does MetaAid read?

MP3 (ID3v2 tags), M4A and AAC (iTunes MP4 atoms), FLAC (Vorbis comments) and WAV (RIFF INFO chunks). Embedded artwork is extracted from all four.

Does metadata affect Spotify editorial pitching?

Massively. Spotify's editorial team filters incoming pitches by genre, mood, language and release date — all metadata. A track with broken or missing metadata is invisible to the algorithm and to the editors. Pair MetaAid with our Pitch500 tool for a full pre-release check.

Music Metadata Checker · Grader · Fixer

Metadata doesn't have to be boring.
It just has to be right.

MetaAid reads the ID3, MP4, FLAC and WAV tags inside your audio file — directly in your browser — then grades them against the rules used by Spotify, Apple Music, DistroKid, TuneCore, RouteNote, Amuse, Ditto, TikTok and YouTube Content ID. You get a 0–100 score, a fix-this checklist, and a clean metadata sheet you can paste straight into your distributor. No uploads. No tracking. No account.

24+

Fields Checked

DSPs & Distros

3000²

Min Artwork px

100%

Browser-Side

Drop your mastered audio file

Supports MP3, WAV, FLAC, M4A and AAC. Your file never leaves your browser — every tag is parsed locally and discarded as soon as you close the tab. Drop your final master, the file you'd send to your distributor.

Audio file

Drop your track or click to browse

MP3 · WAV · FLAC · M4A · AAC • up to 100 MB • 100% private

Reading tags…

Cover artwork — optional, only needed if not already embedded

Drop artwork or click — JPG / PNG, 3000×3000 sRGB

Your metadata report

A 0–100 grade across 24 fields. Higher = closer to label-grade delivery. Anything below 70 will get rejected, throttled or mis-categorised by at least one DSP.

0Metadata Score

★★★★★

Analysing…

—

No art

—

From file tags

Fix this checklist — 0 issues found

Fix & complete your metadata

Every field below maps to a real distributor / DSP requirement. Yellow borders = MetaAid flagged this for you. Fill them in once — we'll bake the lot into a clean export at the end.

Core

Track essentials

Track title required Title case. No "(feat. …)" — featured artists go in their own field.

Version DSPs surface "Sped Up", "Acoustic" etc. as separate playlist categories.

Primary artist required

Featured artists Spotify treats features as full artist credits — they get the play counted on their profile too.

Album / Release title

Label / P-line owner

Codes

ISRC, UPC & rights

ISRC 12 chars — Country-Registrant-Year-Designation. Distributor will auto-fill if blank.

UPC / EAN Per-release barcode. 12 (UPC) or 13 (EAN) digits.

Phonographic (P-line)

Release date

Recording year

Credits

Songwriters & producers

Composer / Songwriter PRS / ASCAP / BMI registration name. Royalties depend on this.

Lyricist

Producer

Sonics

Genre, mood, key & BPM

Genre required

Sub-genre

Mood

Language required

BPM

Musical key

This track contains explicit language

Export your metadata

Your final, label-grade metadata sheet — ready to paste into DistroKid, TuneCore, RouteNote, Amuse, Ditto, AWAL, CD Baby or hand off to your label.

Final score: — — Pair with Pitch500 to send a 480–500 char editorial pitch.

Copy to clipboard

One-click copy of your full metadata sheet — clean, distributor-ready, no junk.

Download files

Save as JSON for programmatic delivery, or CSV to drop into a label spreadsheet / DDEX prep.

{}

Why music metadata is the most important thing you'll do this week

Metadata is the structured information attached to your audio file — title, artist, ISRC, composer, BPM, key, language, explicit flag, release date, genre, sub-genre, mood, embedded artwork. It's what Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, Tidal, Deezer, YouTube Music, TikTok and every other DSP read first, long before they listen to a single bar of audio.

Bad metadata is the #1 reason DistroKid, TuneCore, RouteNote, Amuse and Ditto reject independent releases. It's the #1 reason a track gets mis-categorised, mis-credited, mis-paid or quietly buried by the algorithm. And it's the #1 silent killer of editorial pitches — a Spotify editor can't pitch a track that has no language, no mood, no version, no proper genre or no clean title.

Distributors require it. Every field MetaAid checks maps to a real upload form on DistroKid, TuneCore, RouteNote, Amuse or Ditto.
Labels obsess over it. A label running its own catalogue can't account for a track without ISRC, UPC, composer splits and P-line.
DSPs reject for it. Spotify rejects artwork below 3000×3000, with logos, with URLs, or with social handles. Apple rejects ALL CAPS titles and "(feat.)" stuffed into the title field.
Royalties depend on it. No composer = no PRS / ASCAP / BMI payout. No ISRC = no neighbouring rights through PPL.

The 24 metadata fields a label-grade release needs

MetaAid grades you across these. Each one is worth points; missing or invalid fields drag your score down with a tooltip explaining exactly what to fix.

Track essentials

Title, version, artist, features, album, label

The "what is this" block. Title in title case, no "(feat. …)" stuffing, primary artist exactly as it appears on your Spotify for Artists profile, features in their own field, label as you'd want the P-line to read.

Codes & rights

ISRC, UPC, C-line, P-line, release date, recording year

ISRC is a 12-char per-recording fingerprint (every remix, every version, gets its own). UPC is a per-release barcode. C-line is composition copyright, P-line is the master recording.

Credits

Composer, lyricist, producer

This is where your publishing royalties live. PRS, ASCAP, BMI and SOCAN all pay against composer/lyricist credits. Missing this is leaving real money on the table forever.

Sonics

Genre, sub-genre, mood, language, BPM, key, explicit

This is the algorithmic fuel. Spotify's editorial filters, Apple's Mood & Activity playlists, TikTok's Sound recommender and YouTube's Music Topic clustering all run on these tags.

Artwork

Dimensions, file size, colour space, content rules

3000×3000 px minimum, perfect square, sRGB, JPG or PNG, under 10 MB. No logos, no URLs, no social handles, no release dates, no third-party trademarks. MetaAid measures and flags all of this.

Tech (auto-detected)

Duration, sample rate, bit depth, channels, codec

Pulled directly from your file. WAV at 44.1 kHz / 16-bit is the safe baseline; 24-bit / 48 kHz is fine. Spotify HiFi and Apple Lossless reward higher fidelity here.

Distributor & DSP rules MetaAid checks against

The same field can be required, forbidden or "auto-generated if blank" depending on the distributor. MetaAid uses the strictest rule, so your metadata passes everywhere.

Field	Spotify	Apple Music	DistroKid	TuneCore	RouteNote / Amuse / Ditto
ISRC	Required	Required	Auto-gen	Required	Auto-gen
UPC / EAN	Required	Required	Auto-gen	Auto-gen	Auto-gen
Composer	Required	Required	Required	Required	Required
Featured artist (separate field)	Required	Required	Required	Required	Required
Language	Required	Required	Required	Required	Required
Explicit flag	Required	Required	Required	Required	Required
Artwork ≥ 3000×3000	Required	Required	Required	Required	Required
Artwork sRGB colour space	Required	Required	Required	Required	Required
No logos / URLs / handles in art	Forbidden	Forbidden	Forbidden	Forbidden	Forbidden
"(feat. …)" in title	Forbidden	Forbidden	Forbidden	Forbidden	Forbidden
ALL CAPS title	Forbidden	Forbidden	Discouraged	Discouraged	Discouraged

Frequently asked questions about music metadata

What is music metadata, in plain English?

Metadata is the label on the tin. It's everything about your track that isn't the audio itself — title, artist, ISRC, composer, year, genre, mood, BPM, language, explicit flag, embedded artwork. Streaming services read metadata before they read the file, and they use it to display, route, recommend and pay for your music.

Why is metadata so important for independent artists?

Because labels have an A&R team and a release coordinator obsessing over it. You don't. Bad metadata gets you rejected by your distributor, mis-categorised by Spotify's algorithm, ignored by editorial, mis-credited on Shazam, and — worst — under-paid by your publishing society. MetaAid replaces that release coordinator for free.

What is an ISRC and where do I get one?

An ISRC (International Standard Recording Code) is a unique 12-character ID for each recording. Every remix, every version, every re-master needs its own. You can get them free from your distributor (DistroKid, TuneCore, RouteNote, Amuse, Ditto) or from PPL / RIN if you have a label code. MetaAid flags any track without one.

What artwork specs do Spotify and Apple Music require?

Minimum 3000×3000 pixels, perfect square, sRGB colour space, JPG or PNG, under 10 MB, with no logos, URLs, social-media handles, release dates, "out now" stickers or third-party trademarks. MetaAid checks every one of these automatically when you drop your artwork.

Why does Spotify hate "(feat. …)" in track titles?

Because Spotify treats featured artists as full artist credits — the play counts on their profile, they appear in collaboration playlists, and their followers can be served the track. If "feat." is stuffed inside the title field instead of the dedicated featured-artist field, none of that happens. MetaAid auto-detects it and moves it across.

Do I need to set BPM and key, or is that just for DJs?

You need it. Spotify uses BPM and key to power "Workout", "Running", "Focus" and harmonic-mixing playlists. TikTok's Sound recommender uses BPM to match audio to dance trends. Even YouTube Music Topic clusters lean on BPM. Setting it accurately costs you nothing and unlocks discovery you can't unlock any other way.

Is MetaAid actually free? What's the catch?

It's free. There's no catch. MetaAid runs entirely in your browser — your audio file is never uploaded, never stored, never logged. We built it as a free artist tool because we run a music promotion company and an indie label, and we'd rather you spend your money on a great record than on tools to fix the metadata of one.

Does MetaAid edit my file's tags directly?

Not yet — MetaAid currently exports a clean metadata sheet (JSON / CSV / readable) that you paste into your distributor's upload form, which is the source of truth for every DSP. Direct ID3 / MP4 atom rewriting is on the roadmap for v2.

Keep going — more free artist tools & guides on HarmENT

Built by the team behind HarmENT music promotion and the HarmENT 80/20 record label.

Free toolPitch500 — Spotify Editorial Pitch Generator Free toolReleaseAid — Pre-release Checklist Free toolAI Song Checker Free toolAudio Analyzer — BPM, Key, Loudness Free toolAudio Cutter Free toolRoyalty Calculator ServiceMusic Promotion UK ServicePromotion Packages LabelHarmENT LAB — 80/20 Record Label ApplyApply to HarmENT LAB ResultsArtist Case Studies HelpMusic Promotion FAQ CompanyAbout HarmENT TalkContact — 24h Reply IndexFull Sitemap

Metadata doesn't have to be boring.It just has to be right.

Drop your mastered audio file

Your metadata report

Fix this checklist — 0 issues found

Fix & complete your metadata

Track essentials

ISRC, UPC & rights

Songwriters & producers

Genre, mood, key & BPM

Export your metadata

Copy to clipboard

Download files

Why music metadata is the most important thing you'll do this week

The 24 metadata fields a label-grade release needs

Title, version, artist, features, album, label

ISRC, UPC, C-line, P-line, release date, recording year

Composer, lyricist, producer

Genre, sub-genre, mood, language, BPM, key, explicit

Dimensions, file size, colour space, content rules

Duration, sample rate, bit depth, channels, codec

Distributor & DSP rules MetaAid checks against

Frequently asked questions about music metadata

Keep going — more free artist tools & guides on HarmENT

Ready to release louder?

Metadata doesn't have to be boring.
It just has to be right.