Our review takes 1–2 business days. After that, your release can take up to 7 days to appear on every store, depending on how busy each store is. Spotify is usually quicker, often 1–3 days.
To give everything room to happen, submit your release at least 5 weeks before your release date.
What this means
Waiting for a release to go live can feel long, especially when you've got fans waiting. Here's what's happening behind the scenes.
Once you click Distribute release, your music goes through three steps:
We review it. We check your audio, artwork and release details against each store's rules. This helps make sure your release is accepted everywhere and stays up.
We send it to your stores. As soon as it's approved, we deliver it to every store you chose.
Each store puts it live. Every store works at its own pace. That's why your music might show up on Spotify before it appears somewhere else.
Step | Who handles it | How long it usually takes |
Review | The Artist Music Group | 1–2 business days |
Live on all your stores | Each store | Up to 7 days, depending on the store |
Live on Spotify | Spotify | Often 1–3 days |
We can't speed up a store's own process. What we can do is make sure your release reaches them correctly and on time.
When this applies
You've just submitted a release and want to know when fans can hear it.
You're planning a release date and want to know how early to submit.
Your release is live on some stores but not others yet.
If your release date has already passed and your music isn't live anywhere, jump to Troubleshooting below.
What you need before you start
Your login for The Artist Platform.
Your release title, artwork, credits and other metadata.
If you'd like to pitch your song to editorial playlists, keep that deadline in mind too. Your pitch needs to reach us 4–5 weeks before your release date. Editorial playlist pitching
Step-by-step
See where your release is right now
Log in at app.theartistmusic.com and open Distribution.
Choose your release and check its status.
If we've asked for a change, open the release, make the fix and submit it again.
Plan your release date
Get your audio, artwork and release details ready first. Most delays come from a missing or mismatched detail. Release details checklist
Submit at least 5 weeks before your release date. That leaves time for our review, every store, and playlist pitching.
Choose On a specific date instead of As soon as possible. That way your music comes out on the same day everywhere. How to choose a release date
What happens next
Once we approve your release, we send it to your stores.
Before release day, your release can show up in Spotify for Artists under Upcoming, usually a couple of days after delivery. Spotify's guidance
On release day, your music goes live on every store that's ready. Smaller stores sometimes follow a few days later.
If something needs fixing, we'll tell you exactly what to change. Once you resubmit, we review it again.
Troubleshooting
What's happening | What to do |
My release has been in review for more than 2 business days | Open your release and check for a message from us first. If there's nothing there, send us your release title and release ID, and we'll take a look. |
My release wasn't approved | Open the release to see why, make the change and submit it again. Why was my release rejected? |
It's live on some stores but not others | That's normal in the first few days. If a store still doesn't have it 72 hours after your release date, follow these steps: Music missing from a store. |
It went live on the wrong artist profile | Let us know straight away. Send us the UPC and links to your correct profiles. My release is on the wrong artist profile: how to fix it |
My release date has passed and it isn't live anywhere | Send us your release title, UPC and release date. We'll check the delivery and follow up with the stores for you. |
Need help?
We're here for you. Message us through the chat in The Artist Platform. Include your release title and UPC, and tell us which stores you're asking about, so we can check straight away. We aim to reply within 1 business day.