Transferring your music requires a bit of detailed work, but is fairly easy! This is how it works:
1. Create a new release(s)
First, navigate to your Family in Music Distribution Portal by clicking on Music > Start a release > Go to Distribution. Once you're there, create the assets by clicking 'Create Release'. Find detailed steps on how to create a release here.
2. Ensure metadata accuracy
In order to maintain your streaming data, please ensure to follow all these steps when creating the assets:
The song titles, artist name and artwork and other metadata need to be identical
Audio files need to be identical. Track length and format need to be identical
You must use the original ISRC and UPC codes
You must choose 'Yes' when asked if 'Has it been previously released?' on the 'Release History' section when creating the asset, and include the previous release date correctly
3. Distribute release(s)
Once you have created the releases, you need to distribute them again. (See this article for a ste-by-step guidance: Distribute a release).
⚠️ Note that the procedure to ensure track-linking and no downtime for releases differs between DSPs.
Some DSPs require redelivery under the new distributor first, and others require takedowns first before redelivery to ensure the sync happens correctly. See the details below.
🅰️ 1st Redeliver, then Takedown DSPs(72 hours later):
Re-distribute the releases to the stores that require Redeliver 1st*.
72 hours later, request a takedown from your previous distributor.
👉 The stores that require redeliver 1st are:
7Digital, Anghami, Apple Music, Deezer, FB Audio Library, FB Rights Manager, Mixcloud, Peloton, Spotify, Youtube Music/Youtube ContentID*, Amazon, iMusica, Nuuday, Pretzel, Tidal, Jiosaavn, KKBOX, Pandora, Netease, AWA, Audiomack, Kuaishou, TikTok/Resso, SoundCloud.
🅱️ 1st Takedown, then redeliver (72 hours later):
Initiate a takedown of the releases (on your previous distributor) for the stores that require the takedown to be done first*.
72 hours later, resubmit the releases to these stores via Family in Music.
👉 The stores that require Takedown 1st are:
Flo, Jaxsta, TenCent, Rhapsody/Napster.
Duplicated release
In some cases, it could happen that you will have a duplicate release up for a couple of days – that’s ok. It will say “1 more release” on Spotify (see screenshot below)
How to make sure whether the tracks are linked?
You can verify this by using for instance the Spotify app (not the web version) and then comparing the play counts of each track.
If you have any further questions about the process, please feel free to reach out to our Support team and we will be happy to help you further and make sure your transfer goes smoothly!
What happens when I move my music from another distributor?
The migration process affects in a different way to your music's data depending on the DSP.
Once you have transferred your music from another distributor and the tracks have been successfully linked:
SPOTIFY
The new release should retain all play counts
The new release will remain on any including playlists
APPLE MUSIC
Chart history & popularity should be retained
Ratings & reviews will be lost
YOUTUBE MUSIC / YOUTUBE CONTENT ID
Migrating will cause all play counts/views to reset.