Step 1: Finish and master the track
Do not upload a rough mix. Get the song mixed and mastered to a competitive loudness, streaming platforms normalise volume, but a muddy master still loses listeners in the first ten seconds. If budget is tight, an affordable online mastering service beats an unmastered upload.
Export a high-quality WAV (16-bit/44.1kHz minimum). Keep the session files, you will want stems later for sync, remixes and reels.
Step 2: Artwork and metadata
Artwork must be square (3000x3000px), with no logos, URLs or promotional text, distributors reject those. Get the details right, they are permanent once live:
- Primary artist name, spelled exactly how you want it everywhere.
- Track title and any features listed correctly.
- Songwriter and producer credits, you need these for royalties.
- Genre and language, which affect where you get placed.
Step 3: Choose a distributor
A distributor delivers your track to every platform and collects your money. The choice is mostly flat annual fee versus a revenue cut, run the math on your real numbers. Our full breakdown is in the best music distributor for India, and the platforms Indian listeners actually use are in music platforms for independent artists.
One rule above all: a distributor can take a fee or a share, never your rights. Read the agreement for any ownership-transfer language.
Step 4: Set a release date two to four weeks out
Do not release the day you upload. Set the date at least two to four weeks ahead. That window is what lets you pitch Spotify editorial through Spotify for Artists and reach out to blogs, playlists and curators before the song is live, which is when it counts.
Claim your Spotify for Artists and Apple Music for Artists profiles in that window so the release lands on a real, verified profile.
Step 5: ISRC, copyright and publishing
Your distributor usually assigns an ISRC automatically, that is the fingerprint tracking your recording's plays. Separately, register your composition (the lyrics and melody) with IPRS so you collect publishing royalties, distributors do not do this for you. Details in registering music copyright and IPRS in India.
Step 6: Drop day and after
On release day: share the link everywhere, add it to your Instagram bio and pinned story, and ask your close network to save the track (saves matter more than a one-time play). Then keep going, one release rarely moves the needle. Sequencing releases so each builds on the last is the difference between growth and disappearing, which is the heart of the 12-week release plan.