Release Checklist for Indie Musicians — Free MegaMix Trial
Lock the final audio
Confirm the final approved master, an instrumental if you need it for video, and clean/explicit versions where relevant. Listen for clicks, abrupt fades, and clipping in final exports. Play the first second and the last four bars. A lot of independent delays are a missed fade, not a mysterious codec.
Keep a 24-bit WAV archive. Do not upload the only copy as an MP3 you cannot find two years later. If you pitched to playlists, the audio they hear should match the store audio, not a louder “promo master.”
Name files for humans: Artist_Title_master.wav, Artist_Title_instr.wav. Not fdslkfj_1.wav.
Metadata accuracy matters
Artist names, song title formatting, ISRC/UPC handling, and contributor credits should be consistent with how you already exist on stores. Metadata errors delay releases and can split royalties across duplicate artist pages. “DJ Alex” versus “Dj Alex” versus a featured artist in the title field is how you vanish from your own catalog.
Put features in the field your distributor specifies, not only in the audio title if that creates a second recording identity. Lyrics files, if you submit them, should match the explicit flag.
Genre tags should match the music you actually made. Tagging a folk song as “dance” to game playlists usually backfires.
Visual and promotional assets
Prepare cover art to spec, usually 3000x3000 JPEG or PNG without extra text that stores will reject. Prepare short-form promo snippets and caption copy in advance to avoid launch-day chaos. Consistency between audio quality and branding improves perceived professionalism: a translated master next to a blurry meme cover still looks like a demo.
If you cut a 15-second clip, mix the vocal for that clip. A quiet intro as your TikTok audio is a discovery problem, not a mixing philosophy.
Have a square crop and a vertical crop. You will need both.
Post-release quality control
Check live platform listings for artwork, metadata, and playback behavior after release goes live. Collect listener feedback and note mix translation on real phones. If Spotify shows the wrong feature credit, fix it immediately through the distributor; do not wait a month.
Save the ISRC. You will need it for Content ID, DistroKid, and “wait, which version did we pitch?”
If a playlist add sounds quieter than neighbors, remember normalization. Do not panic-remaster the same day unless there is a real click or a wrong file.
Release-week workflow
Work backward from the store date. Distributors need lead time. Playlist pitching often wants the audio earlier than you think.
Do not schedule the premiere before the master is locked. That is how you upload a v2 with a click at 0:07.
- Lock mix and master; phone-check the WAV.
- Export instrumental and clean version if needed.
- Fill metadata in a doc: title, writers, ISRC plan, explicit flag.
- Create artwork to spec; export promo clips.
- Upload to distributor with margin for review.
- Day-of: verify stores, then post the clip you already made.
Independent release checklist
Print this. Launch day is a bad time to invent process.
If audio is not locked, nothing else on this list matters yet. Metadata week on a clicky bounce is how you pay for a replacement upload.
- Approved master WAV, no clicks, intentional tail.
- Instrumental / clean versions if the campaign needs them.
- Artist name matches existing store profile.
- Title, features, and writers consistent.
- Artwork meets pixel and content rules.
- Promo clip with audible vocal in the first seconds.
- Post-release store check on phone data, not only Wi-Fi.
A wrong artist spelling is more expensive than a 1 dB mix debate.
Finish audio in MegaMix AI before you hit distribute
Use /app to mix and master, export WAV, and only then fill DistroKid or your distributor. Prompt for translation, not for a last-minute new 808. Put a free trial on the calendar before the upload date, not after you already announced Friday — or see plans.
No DAW is required to get a release-ready WAV if your bounce is clean. Keep version names in the export so metadata week does not use mix_v11_reallyfinal.wav by accident.
For a visualizer stinger or a content whoosh, MegaSFX AI at /megasfx generates 2 to 12 second clips you can mix under the promo video, separate from the store master. Do not reprint the store WAV with extra FX unless that FX is actually in the song. For demos, workflow, and more mix AI FAQs, see the Mix AI hub.
FAQ
Should I upload WAV or MP3 to distributors?
Use high-quality WAV unless your distributor specifies otherwise. They encode for stores; Uploading a 128 kbps MP3 as the master is how your release sounds worse than your SoundCloud dump.
Do I need multiple masters for each platform?
Usually one strong master works across streaming platforms. Make extras only for vinyl, DJ club versions, or a TV-safe peak limit.
When should I schedule release?
Give enough lead time for distributor processing and playlist pitching, often 1 to 3 weeks depending on the service and whether you want editorial consideration. Same-week panic uploads skip pitching windows.
What causes most release delays?
Metadata mismatches, artwork specification errors, and audio that still has clicks or the wrong version. Mix taste is rarely what the distributor rejects.
Do I need an instrumental?
Not always for the store, but you will want one for videos, content, and some sync. Bounce it when you bounce the master so you are not reconstructing a session in six months.
Should lyrics be in the title?
No. Put the song title in the title field and lyrics in the lyrics field or a lyric platform; Titles stuffed with hooks and emojis look amateur and can create messy store pages. More on the Mix AI hub. See Start free trial or plans.