How to Add Artists and Collaborators

Where Do You Add Artists?

In Quick Creation, artists are added directly in Step 1 of the wizard. In advanced mode, they're added from the Artists section inside the release's edit page — a separate section that appears after you save the release's general information.

Creating an Artist Profile

Only two fields are required: the artist name and the type (Individual or Group/Band/Collective).

• If the type is Individual, you must provide a legal first and last name.
• If the type is Group, Band, or Collective, you add one or more members, each with their own legal first and last name.

The rest of the profile's data (bio, photo, social media, links to Spotify/Apple Music, manager info, etc.) is optional and can be filled in later.

You don't need to create the artist separately before assigning them to a release: the same artist selector includes an option to create a new one on the fly, without leaving the screen you're working on.

Adding an Artist to a Release, with Their Roles

From the release's Artists section:

1. Use "Add Artist Roles."
2. Choose an existing artist (or create one right there) and select one or more roles for them.
3. Save — the artist is now linked to the release with those roles.

The same artist can hold multiple roles at once (for example, being both Main Artist and Composer). If you add them again with a different role, they won't be duplicated in the list — the new roles are simply added to the ones they already had.

To change the roles of an artist already added, use "Manage Roles" on their row — this replaces that artist's entire role set. To remove them from the release completely, use "Remove Artist."

Available Roles

The roles that directly affect the release's validation are:

• Main Artist: who headlines the release.
• Producer: who produced the recording.
• Composer: who wrote the music.
• Lyricist: who wrote the lyrics (not applicable if the release is instrumental).
• Vocals: who performs the lead vocal (or Instrumentalist — with the instrument they play — if the release is instrumental).
• Featured Artist: a highlighted collaborator in the credits, without being part of the main lineup.

Beyond these, there are dozens of additional credit roles available to accurately recognize the whole team: Arranger, Mixing Engineer, Mastering Engineer, Backing Vocals, Remixer, Director, and others — useful for giving full credit, though they don't affect the validation checklist.

Legal Name Required for Certain Roles

If you assign the Composer, Lyricist, or Producer role to an artist, that artist must have a complete legal name on file (first and last name if individual; first and last name of every member if it's a group or band). This information is for legal and royalty purposes — it isn't shown publicly.

If it's missing, you'll see a warning icon next to that role's selector. Click it to complete the legal name without leaving the screen you're working on.

Featured Artist vs. Main Artist

The Featured Artist appears in the track credit as "Main Artist(s) Feat. Featured Artist(s)," but doesn't count as a Main Artist.

There's a limit on Main Artists before Spotify shows the release as "Various Artists" instead of listing them by name: 4 for Singles, 3 for EPs and Albums. If you go over it, you'll see a warning on screen — you can still proceed, but keep in mind how it will display on the platform.

Tracks Inherit the Release's Artists — But You Can Customize Them

When you upload or create a track, it automatically copies the release's artists and roles. However, you can adjust a specific track's artists independently: open the track via the "Edit" action (it opens in a new tab) and modify its artist list there, without affecting the rest of the release.

If you changed the release's artists after uploading tracks and want them to reflect the updated list, use the "Resync" action on each track — keep in mind this replaces that track's artists with the release's, rather than merging them.

When You Can No Longer Edit Artists

Once the release leaves its editable state (draft, or "requires changes"), the artist list becomes read-only until it returns to that state.

More Than One Main Artist: Royalty Splits

If you add more than one Main Artist and submit the release for review, the system will suggest setting up how royalties are split between them through an automatic division — it's not required to do it right away, but you can accept it from that same notification. See the article on Automatic Divisions for more detail.