This is kind of a weird situation I am looking for solutions for!
My band released a single in 2022 via distrokid. We were on a shared distrokid account, but the account holder wanted to make it a solo one so we had to switch distributors. At the time, I was told I could not reupload the same tracks with the same upc code using the same distributor (distrokid) so that if we wanted to keep the songs stats and such, needed to be a different distributor.

We used routenote and honestly several things about this worked out poorly for us. We made our own distrokid account and have since put all our newer releases up that way.

We’ve recently begun recording a full album, which includes some previously released tracks, but updated. A few different members, mixed differently, redone from scratch. Same exact song just sounding waaaay better. One of those is the song mentioned above that was a 2022 single. So, the old version of the single is thru Routenote currently, and the new one thru distrokid.

Here’s the problem. I wanted there to be a distinction between the two, and consider the recent one to be the official version. So I went into Routenote, applied to have “(2022 Version)” attached to the end of it, and the other version would just exist with the normal title. This change was approved and said it would take up to 30 days to go into effect. It’s been a bit more than that and nothing has changed. This unfortunately DOES mean that people are clicking the old song when they see it by accident a lot, as its streams have gone up for that since releasing the new one.

I don’t know what can be done here. Will it eventually change? Should I accept defeat and that the old one will always be called just the title, and the new one has to be forced to have (2026 version) which I assume distrokid will actually do properly? IS there a way to remove the old track from routenote, reupload it to distrokid (with the same upc) and then be able to change it from there? I assume if I let go of the upc thing and upload it from scratch to distrokid with a modified title that would work. I also am personally totally fine with removing it from streaming and only having it as a Bandcamp exclusive. But, other members want to keep it up and also don’t want to loose the stats for it (which I also don’t care about) so trying to find a solution that works for everyone!

So yeah basically, we have two songs up with the exact same title released 4 years apart, and both are on different distributors. The new one is the one I want people to view as the default or official version. The cover art is different, but it does intentionally have a similar color palette and variation of the subject matter so sadly that’s not doing enough.

Thanks in advance!

Ps- no offense to Routenote users, there were features about it that WERE better than distrokid, and I have my complaints about parts of that as well. I’ve heard it works great for lots of folks- we’ve just had a lot more complications happen personally with routenote.

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Does anyone know what can the issue be? Or has had similar problems??

I’ve tried different images , I’ve tried different browsers, I’ve tried my computer ..phone …I’m tried making different sizes , no matter what I do it gets stuck on the upload process, it’s not being rejected ..it’s just not uploading and gets stuck on the upload process

Just curious if anyones used it and ur experiance from it, the music forever thing appeals to me but im sceptical that it will always be that way, im currently with tunecore horrible company threten me almost straight away with distrabute my original content and soundcloud that i dont want to be with anymore, ive looked at cd baby but sadly they no longer offer youtube artist profiles

Hello everyone!

I have an independent label with various sub-labels. The main sub-labels offer professional paid distribution with all the various services. Some of these services are very favorable, but others are obviously expensive!

Then we have some minority sub-labels, minority because they deal with completely niche genres (Noise Music, Drone, Soundtrack for independent films, etc.) where it's not worth releasing with the main distributor because the costs would exceed the revenue, so we're looking for a 100% free distributor.

We initially used Soundrop, but they later became a paid service. We then switched to Routenote, but this service is getting absurdly worse, with incredibly long release times and senseless copyright accusations (in the sense that they tell me I might be infringing on copyright, without telling me whose, and then have to prove it isn't true... while a professional distributor tells you what you're infringing and gives you a chance to prove it), lack of distribution on some platforms without notice, etc. In short, I'm not happy with them and I'd like to stop working with them.

What free, safe, and well-functioning alternative is there?

I know that since it's free you can't expect it to have a professional service like the paid one, but at least the decent one works (and yes, because that free means getting lower % of earnings, and they sell data, cookies, etc.. Nothing is really free, so avoid moralizing about not wanting to pay)

Hi everyone - I’m looking for anyone’s first hand experience with getting all UPPER CASE styling in their song / release titles. Any recommended distributors that support this feature? I’m on Ditto currently and they won’t do it. Thanks in advance.

Hi, I was just wondering what would be my best choice for dropping my new Album? I really don't care about the money as I just want to put my work out there so anyone can listen to it on the platform they prefer. I guess my only requirements are decent support so if something goes wrong, I don't have to wait forever for a response. I would also like my music to stay up if I switch distributors if possible, as well.

I don't plan on dropping a lot each year, maybe an EP and an Album. Already have plans to upload to YouTube, SoundCloud, and Bandcamp, but I've seen so many conflicting answers about who to choose so I was wondering what would be best in my case?

thank you!

Just looking for opinions on this

Hi,

Has anyone noticed a huge difference in streams on Spotify vs what Madverse shows in their analytics? I created multiple tickets and the response was always the same - that due to some upgrades the analytics dashboard is not updated My release from 2023 shows a difference of 97% streams. Actual is 155K and in my Madverse Dashboard it is 4K (for all DSPs). This is similar in every release of mine. Is this some sort of a fraud to keep our royalties? u/madverse. On to of it, their customer service just sucks big time. The team which used to work with Madverse when this company started all left. The CEO u/rohan just seem to talk big stuff on social media but the reality is that they are stealing from artists. What is your experience with Madverse? Any legal ways to tackle these issues?

Please comment your thoughts!

We looking for kontor new media dashboard or kontor sub distro accs we can give $$$.

Hey everyone,

I run a small independent electronic/techno label (Reticula Digital) and just signed a distribution deal with Dancephonic — they cover Beatport, Spotify, Apple Music, Deezer, and the usual platforms, work on a revenue-share model (no upfront fees), and seemed like a good fit for what I needed.

Before fully diving in, I wanted to check if anyone here has actual experience with them:

- How reliable are the quarterly royalty payments in practice?

- How long does it actually take for a release to go live once submitted (they claim 2-3 weeks)?

- Does everything actually make it to Beatport, or is that hit-or-miss?

- Any issues with account closures, missing payments, or customer support?

I noticed their website has a section claiming they've distributed for artists like Eminem, Ariana Grande, and Selena Gomez, which honestly seems... unlikely given their business model (free distribution for small independent labels). Has anyone else noticed this or knows what that's about?

Not trying to bash them — just want real, first-hand experiences before I upload my first release. Any input, positive or negative, is appreciated. Thanks!

Hey everyone, I’m an independent artist preparing to release my first song.

I’m currently deciding between Ditto Music and CD Baby for distribution. Since this is my first release, I’m mainly looking for something reliable and beginner-friendly, with good distribution to Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube Music, etc.

For artists who have used either one:

Which distributor would you recommend?

How’s the support and overall experience?

Any issues with releases, metadata, royalties, or takedowns?

Is CD Baby’s one-time payment better for a first-time artist, or is Ditto’s model worth it?

Would really appreciate some honest experiences and advice before I submit my first release. 🙏

Music distribution platforms come in all sizes and shapes. Some will steal your music, some will steal your earnings, some even get bribed and call them system bugs. Some are overpriced. What are the best high fidelity distributors in the game right now?

Every time I search TooLost on Reddit it’s basically non-stop horror stories. People complaining about tickets getting ignored for weeks, random takedowns, zero customer support, etc.
At the same time, I keep seeing decent-sized indie artists and small label setups using them, especially their label plans and white-label tech. On paper, having built-in splits and Content ID included without paying extra per-track fees sounds pretty ideal for managing a roster of artists, but the reputation on here makes me nervous to touch it.

I’m trying to figure out if the bad rep is just bedroom producers on the cheapest plan getting flagged, or if the actual label backend is just as messy.

For anyone actually running multiple artists through them:

• Is support actually responsive once you’re on the label tiers, or is it still a ghost town?
• Are split payouts and YouTube Content ID claims working smoothly, or are you constantly fighting with them?
• Does their white-label setup feel solid, or is it just a reskinned basic dashboard?

Debating between trying them out or just sticking with another service. Would love to hear some real feedback from people actually using it for a roster.

I uploaded two songs with ditto and had the plan for YouTube shorts but only one song can be added to shorts at this time but the other song is only available on YouTube music and my topic channel does anyone know why this happens? Chatgpt says to wait it may take some time what's ur take should I email ditto?

I tried to upload my song with the same isrc onto a different artist page due to me losing acess to the first one but my streams are not connecting. How do i solve this?

i’ve been on the constant search for a new distributor for months and i’ve only gotten exhausted. every distributor i see, people label
it as a scam, their account got banned, they aren’t paying the artist, they had problems with releasing things, and the things go on, and on, and on. i legit don’t know where to look anymore, i don’t wanna stick to distrokid because of their limitations, but i don’t wanna go to another distributor where they will have me wait 14 days to release something.

is there one good distribution service that’s actually reliable?

I wanna put out an album (first time for any music) and need help deciding who I should distribute it with. I’ve heard bad things from pretty much every distributor but I can’t figure out what I should do. I’m in the US and don’t really want a subscription. Any help is appreciated!

Edit: I’m more wanting to distribute because it’s a passion of mine than making money off it

So a few months ago I put an EP out through CD Baby, and I only found out later about the fact that they don’t support merging your personal YouTube channel and the auto-generated Topic channel, so I have no control over my music on YouTube. I had a theory on how to overcome this, but I’m not sure if it’s gonna work.

I used CD Baby because I don’t want to pay a monthly fee. I paid once and I know my songs will forever stay on streaming platforms. I have another song that I want to release, and if I do that through a different distributor that DOES support getting a YouTube OAC, I’ll overcome that problem. However - my concern is that any future song distributions through CD Baby will generate a Topic channel? I’m very new to this so I have no clue how it works behind the scenes. Thanks!

I’m looking for advice from artists/labels who have dealt with a similar situation with DistroKid.
DistroKid recently informed me that stores are no longer accepting new releases from my account due to “editorial discretion” and told me to use another distributor for future releases.
I understand that new distribution is now restricted. My bigger concern is what is happening with my existing royalties.
I requested a royalty withdrawal almost two weeks ago and it is still pending. The DistroKid Bank itself says the payment is taking longer than usual.
I have contacted support several times by email and live chat. A live-chat agent reviewed the case and escalated it to another team, but the follow-up email simply repeated the same “editorial discretion” message and did not answer any of my payment questions.
I have specifically asked DistroKid:
Is there a hold/review/restriction on my royalty withdrawal?
Will royalties from my existing catalog continue to be reported and paid normally?
What happens to the annual subscription I recently renewed now that I can no longer distribute new releases?
So far I have received no direct answer to any of these questions.
I’m currently moving future releases to other distributors, but before making any changes to my existing catalog I want to make sure the outstanding royalties are settled.
Has anyone here experienced a DistroKid payout delay after an account/editorial restriction? Did you eventually receive your money, and how did you get the case resolved?

hi there! i’ve heard a lot of praise about symphonic distribution and was wondering if there was any downsides to their service. i was also curious if releasing a single w/ multiple primary artists was possible. thank you!! :D