A release looks simple from the outside: a song comes out on a Friday. Inside a label, that Friday is the end of eight weeks of work spread across the artist, the producer, the mastering engineer, the designer, the distributor, the publisher and whoever runs the socials. Most releases that go wrong don't fail on the music. They fail on a missing split sheet, an ISRC that was never assigned, artwork rejected by a store, or a pitch sent three days too late.
This guide is the checklist we'd hand to anyone learning how to run a record label. It covers every step of a release, in order, with a deadline for each one counted back from release day. You can copy it into your own tool, or start from our free release tracker template, which has the whole plan built in.
The release plan at a glance
Plan backwards from the release date. Eight weeks (D-56) is a comfortable lead time for a single. Add two to four weeks for an EP or an album, or if vinyl is involved, since pressing plants work in months, not weeks.
Pre-production
D-56: release agreement and split sheet signed
Production
D-49: final masters approved
D-42: artwork approved (3000×3000 px)
Delivery
D-42: credits and metadata collected (ISRC, writers, publishers)
D-35: release delivered to the distributor
D-30: works registered with your PRO / CMO
Marketing
D-28: Spotify editorial pitch sent, other DSPs pitched through the distributor
D-21: pre-save link live, press release and EPK sent
D-14: social calendar locked, lyrics and Spotify Canvas uploaded
D-7: teaser posted
D0, release day: links shared, bios and profiles updated
Post-release
D+7: week-one numbers reviewed
D+30: 30-day report sent to the artist
The rule behind the plan: every deadline depends on the one before it. You can't deliver without metadata, you can't pitch before the release shows up in Spotify for Artists, and you can't build a pre-save link without a delivered release. When one step slips, everything after it slips too. That's why the plan is written as offsets from release day rather than fixed dates: move the release, and the whole plan moves with it.
1. Contracts and splits (D-56)
Paperwork comes first because everything downstream depends on it. Who gets paid, whose name goes in the credits and who can approve the masters is all decided here.
Release agreement signed. A single-release deal, a license, or a release under an existing artist contract. Either way, the terms that apply to this release (royalty rate, recoupable costs, territory, term) are written down and signed before money is spent.
Split sheet signed for every track. Who wrote what, as a percentage of the composition, with each writer's PRO and publisher. Get it signed while everyone still remembers who did what. Six months later, memories get generous.
Master splits agreed. Separate from the composition. Featured artists, producers on points and remixers all need their share of the master written down.
Samples cleared. If a track uses a sample, the clearance (master and publishing) is signed before delivery. Stores and distributors take down uncleared samples, and sometimes the whole release goes with them.
Feature and remix agreements signed, with the right to use the featured artist's name and image in promo.
Chasing signatures by email is where this phase usually stalls. Sending agreements for electronic signature and keeping them attached to the release saves the "did they ever sign it?" conversation later. The splits you record here are also what your royalty statements will be calculated from, so get them right once.
2. Masters and artwork (D-49 to D-42)
Final masters approved by the artist and the label. WAV, 16-bit/44.1 kHz at minimum; 24-bit if your distributor accepts it, which also covers hi-res and Apple Digital Masters.
Clean versions ready if any track is explicit and you want radio or playlist options.
Instrumentals and stems exported and archived. You'll need them for sync, remixes and live shows.
Artwork approved at 3000×3000 px, square, RGB, JPG or PNG. Most distributors reject anything smaller.
Artwork follows the store rules. No URLs, social handles, store logos, prices or "new single" stickers. Any text on the cover matches the artist name and release title in the metadata exactly.
Promo assets cut from the artwork: square, 4:5 and 9:16 versions for socials, a banner for the artist's profiles, and a print-ready file if there's merch or vinyl.
3. Metadata, ISRC and UPC (D-42)
Metadata is the least glamorous part of a release and the one that causes the most damage when it's wrong. A misspelled writer name means lost publishing income. A wrong artist ID puts the release on someone else's Spotify profile. Collect everything in one place before delivery.
Identifiers
ISRC for every recording. The ISRC (International Standard Recording Code) identifies one recording, not one song: a remix, a radio edit or a live version each get their own. Your distributor can assign them, or the label can get its own registrant code from the national ISRC agency and assign them itself, which keeps the codes under your control if you change distributors.
UPC/EAN for the release. The UPC identifies the product: the single, the EP or the album as a whole. Distributors provide them, or you can buy your own from GS1.
Catalog number assigned following your label's own scheme (for example LBL001), so the release is easy to find in your catalog, contracts and statements.
Release-level metadata
Release title and version (Original Mix, Radio Edit, Remixes)
Primary artist(s), spelled exactly as on their existing profiles
Artist IDs on each store (Spotify URI, Apple Music ID) so the release lands on the right profile, or a clear "new artist" flag for a debut
Label name, ℗ line and © line, with year
Genre and sub-genre
Release date and, for a re-release, the original release date
Territories and any pre-order date
Track-level metadata
Track title and version, featured artists in the format your distributor's style guide requires
Explicit flag
Language of the lyrics (or instrumental)
Writers, composers and publishers, with their shares from the split sheet
Producers, mixing and mastering engineers, performers
Preview start time, if your distributor lets you pick the clip
Lyrics, ready for Musixmatch or your distributor's lyrics feature
4. Distribution and registrations (D-35 to D-30)
Release delivered to your distributor at D-35. Four to five weeks gives the stores time to ingest it, leaves time to fix a rejection, and gets the release into Spotify for Artists early enough to pitch it.
Release date set to a Friday, the global release day, unless you have a reason to do otherwise.
Stores and territories checked. Make sure nothing is excluded by mistake, and that TikTok, Instagram and the other short-form platforms are on.
YouTube Content ID opted in if you want to collect on user videos that use the track. Leave it off if the track uses samples or beats you don't fully control, or you'll end up flagging your own artist's uploads.
Delivery confirmed. Check that the release shows up in Spotify for Artists and Apple Music for Artists and is attached to the right profile.
Works registered with your PRO / CMO at D-30 (ASCAP, BMI, PRS, SACEM, GEMA, depending on the country), with the shares from the split sheet, plus the mechanical rights society where relevant (The MLC in the US).
Recordings registered for neighbouring rights (SoundExchange, PPL, SCPP or your local society) so radio and public performance of the master gets paid.
5. Pitching and promo (D-28 to D-7)
Spotify editorial pitch sent at D-28 from Spotify for Artists. Spotify needs the pitch at least seven days before release, and only takes one unreleased track per pitch. Sending it four weeks out gives the editors time to listen and still gets the track onto your followers' Release Radar. Write about the song, not the artist's career: the mood, the story, what's in the production, and what's happening around the release (tour dates, press, a sync).
Apple Music, Deezer and Amazon Music pitched through your distributor at the same time. Most distributors have a pitch form with its own deadline, often earlier than Spotify's.
Pre-save link live at D-21, on a smart link that covers every major store.
Press release and EPK sent at D-21 to blogs, playlist curators, radio and the press you have relationships with. The EPK holds the bio, press photos, the artwork, a private streaming link and the credits.
Social content calendar locked at D-14: what the artist posts and what the label posts, day by day, from the teaser to the week after release.
Lyrics and Spotify Canvas uploaded at D-14, along with any Apple Music motion artwork.
Music video or visualizer delivered to YouTube and scheduled.
Teaser posted at D-7. A 15-second clip of the hook, with the pre-save link.
6. Release day (D0)
Check that the release is live on every store, on the right profiles, with the right artwork.
Share the store links, swapping the pre-save link for the live one.
Update the artist's bio and link in bio, and the profile banners on Spotify and YouTube.
Post from the label and the artist accounts, then reshare what fans, curators and press post.
Send the release to your mailing list and thank everyone who worked on it.
7. After the release (D+7 to D+30)
Week-one numbers reviewed at D+7: streams, saves, playlist adds (editorial, algorithmic and user-made), and where the listeners are.
Follow-up pitches to the curators and press who didn't respond, now with numbers to show.
30-day report sent to the artist at D+30. What worked, what didn't, and what's next. Artists who get a clear report sign the next release.
Metadata errors fixed while they're fresh: a missing credit, a wrong writer share, a track on the wrong profile.
Royalties tracked. The release's income starts arriving in distributor statements a few months later. Matching it to the right tracks and splits is what turns a release into a royalty statement the artist can trust.
A release plan template you can copy
Writing this checklist out by hand for every release gets old fast. We built a free record label release tracker for Notion and Google Sheets, with this plan built in:
a Releases database with a countdown to release day and a progress bar for the checklist;
a Release checklist where every task has an offset from release day, so changing the date moves every deadline and flags anything overdue;
Tracks with ISRC, credits and a "splits signed" box, and Artists with their deal and links.
Duplicate it, add your next release, and the plan above lays itself out.
How to run a record label when you have more than one release
A template works for one release at a time. Running a label means running several at once: one in mastering, one waiting on a split sheet, one out this Friday and one being pitched. The checklist stays the same, but keeping track of it across releases, artists and collaborators is the actual job.
That's what LabelBase's release pipeline is for. You create the release, set the date, and the tasks are created with deadlines counted back from release day, like the plan in this guide. Everyone on the team sees what's due, who owns it and what's late. The contracts, splits, metadata and assets live on the release itself, and when the money comes in, the royalties are calculated from the same splits. If you're setting up or growing a label, see how LabelBase works for record labels.
FAQ
How far in advance should a label plan a release?
Eight weeks is a good minimum for a single, counting from the signed agreement to release day. For an EP or an album, plan ten to twelve weeks, and several months more if you're pressing vinyl. The hard deadline is delivery to your distributor, four to five weeks before release, so you can pitch to Spotify editorial in time.
What is the difference between an ISRC and a UPC?
An ISRC identifies a single recording. Every track, and every version of a track, gets its own. A UPC (or EAN) identifies the release as a product: a single, an EP or an album has one UPC, whatever the number of tracks on it. Stores and collecting societies use both to route plays and income to the right people.
Does a label need its own ISRC codes?
No. Most distributors assign ISRCs for free. Having your own registrant code from the national ISRC agency means the codes are yours, they follow a consistent pattern across your catalog, and nothing changes if you move to another distributor.
When should I pitch a release to Spotify?
As soon as the release appears in Spotify for Artists, ideally three to four weeks before release day. Spotify requires at least seven days, but editors get many pitches every week, and an early pitch also makes sure the track reaches your followers' Release Radar.
What should be in a split sheet?
The song title, each writer's legal name, their share of the composition as a percentage (adding up to 100%), their PRO and IPI number, their publisher if they have one, the date, and every writer's signature. Master splits for producers and featured artists go in a separate agreement.
What metadata do distributors require?
At minimum: release title, primary artist, label name, ℗ and © lines, genre, release date, UPC, and for each track the title, ISRC, explicit flag, language, writers and publishers. Each distributor has its own style guide for how featured artists, versions and remixes are written, so check it before you deliver.