Taking Care of the Details of Releasing Your Own Album
You’re about to read Stonebridge Mastering’s guide for taking care of the details of releasing your own album. As far as we know, this guide is the most complete guide of its kind. This guide has been reviewed by Sébastien Mamy of CISAC and Arlene DiBenedetto of ASCAP. We update it regularly with any new information and changes that may take place.
You have finally finished your album, and you’re ready to put it on the market. Before you do that, there are a few details to take care of to make sure that your album’s release is professional. These are the details that producers and managers usually take care of. Whether you’ve done this a few times, or if it’s your first album, this information can lead you to having a professional independent release. Stonebridge Mastering is dedicated to helping recordings reach their full potential, even after they are mastered. If you have any recommendation for updates or find any broken links in this post, please contact us.
1. Obtain ISRC Codes. Every track on your CD will need it’s own unique ISRC number. To get ISRC numbers for your recordings, you’ll need to apply online, and once you get the numbers, you’ll need to send them to us before the final CD is burned. ISRC codes are embedded into the final CD. These codes can help identify your recording online and get you paid for radio play. ISRC codes must be obtained before the end of the mastering session. ISRC is an abbreviation for International Standard Recording Code. If you’re wondering what an ISRC code make look like, here is an example: “US-PR3-73/00012″. They can also be obtained if you purchase a membership with CD Baby.
- CD Baby website: http://www.cdbaby.com
- If you are in the U.S.A., you can register to receive ISRC codes online at: https://usisrc.org/
- If you’re in the UK, go to: http://www.ppluk.com/
- If you’re not in the US or the UK, then visit: http://ifpi.org/isrc
2. Obtain a UPC Code. UPC Codes are also called bar codes. We’ve all seen bar codes on nearly everything we buy, and you’ll need one for your CD. CD duplication/replication companies often offer a bar code for your album included in the price for pressing the CDs. You can also get them if you join CD Baby. If you want to get one on your own without going through another service, it can get expensive (around $500.00), which can be done by applying with the UCC.
- CD Baby website: http://www.cdbaby.com
- UCC website: http://barcodes.gs1us.org
- Talk to your CD Duplication/Replication company
3. Embed CD Text. If you complete our order form, we will embed the CD Text.
- Stonebridge Mastering Order Form: http://www.stonebridgemastering.com/ordering.html
4. Register your UPC Code with Nielson SoundScan. The billboard charts are created directly from SoundScan data. Also, there are tons of record companies, agents and other important industry insiders who watch the SoundScan reports. If you’re looking to get on the radar of a major record label, this is the best way. If your album sales are good, and you are registered with SoundScan, then you may see opportunities that you probably would not see otherwise. Many people do not know this, but obtaining a bar code does not automatically register you with SoundScan.
- SoundScan website: http://www.soundscan.com
5. Submitting to databases. Some CD players show song titles and artist information, but most software music players and music services will not display it. Most software music players get the artist and song information from Internet databases. Itunes draws from the Gracenote database. Windows Media Player and the PS3 player draw from the AMG Lasso database. The AMG Lasso database requires that you send in a physical copy of your CD and they enter the information from there. AMG Lasso is infamous for putting information in wrong, so we recommend typing out a sheet to include with your submission with your song titles and other information typed in a large, easy to read font. Other databases provide different information to different sources, and we recommend registering with all of the below:
- All Media Guide’s AMG LASSO: http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=32:amg/info_pages/a_product_submissions.html
- Gracenote database: http://www.gracenote.com/company_info/FAQ/FAQs/#5a.
- Muze: http://www.muze.com/html/industry/labels.htm.
- FreeDB: http://www.freedb.org/
- MusicBrainz: http://musicbrainz.org/
6. Obtain copyrights. Registering a copyright with the U.S. Copyright Office can now be done electronically. If you don’t want to file electronically, then you can file Form CO, which replaces Forms SR and PA that were commonly used in the music industry. This is a good topic to review with your entertainment attorney.
- Form CO and Electronic Filing: http://www.copyright.gov/forms/
7. Register with ASCAP or BMI. When your material is played over mass media, you can collect royalties through ASCAP or BMI. You have to select one, as you cannot be a member of both. There is another organization called SESAC, but it is by invitation only. These organizations represent artists and can help advance your music into mass media. You can watch the following video below to find out more about ASCAP, BMI and SESAC:
- Sign up with ASCAP: http://www.ascap.com/about/howjoin.asp
- Sign up with BMI: http://www.bmi.com/join/?link=navbar
8. Register with SoundExchange, CD Baby or Tunecore if you’re independent. CD Baby also offers a very wide host of artist services. Tunecore has fewer services than CD Baby, but it is cheaper and easier to get started. To get paid royalities for digital non-interactive play (cable music channels, internet radio, satellite radio, etc.) you should join SoundExchange.
- SoundExchange: http://www.soundexchange.com/
- CD Baby: http://www.cdbaby.com/
- Tunecore: http://www.tunecore.com/
9. Musicians Release Agreements. If you have hired session musicians, or guest musicians to play on your album, you want to make sure they fill out a musicians release agreement or a similar release form. It basically says that they have agreed to work for the amount they were paid, and not for royalities or any other benefits. This usually isn’t needed if a band or label is releasing an album themselves. We advising seeking the counsel of an entertainment attorney for creating these agreements. Standard online versions may not address your specific situation.
10. Songwriter / Artist / Publisher Agreements. These agreements define how the money from the songs will be distributed. Again, we advise seeking the counsel of an entertainment attorney, as standard online versions may not address your specific situation.
11. Obtain ISWC Codes. ISWC (International Standard Musical Work Code) codes are not embedded in your CD, so you do not need to have them before the mastering is complete. These codes are mostly important for referencing musical works in contracts and correspondence, collecting royalties, licensing, and cataloging musical works in libraries. ISWCs are for musical works, while ISRCs are for recordings. For example, different edits, remixes and recordings of a song will have a different ISRC, but the same ISWC. If you are in the USA, you will have to submit your work to ASCAP, BMI or SESAC to obtain your ISWC codes, IPI number and the work classification code. They will take care of submitting your application. If you are outside of the USA, you will have to contact your country’s agency that is responsible for assigning ISWC codes (we’ve linked to a list below).
More information:
- FAQ about ISWC Codes: http://www.iswc.org/en/faq.html
- Visit this page to find the contact person/agency for ISWCs in your country: http://www.iswc.org/en/agencies.html
12. Create Selection Number. This number is sometimes referred to as the Catalog Number. If you look at the spine of a commercially released CD, you may find an example of this number. It usually starts with letters and ends in numbers. Just like your album title, or artist name, you can make these letters or numbers whatever you want them to be. They are just meant to help you refer to your own works.
13. Keep all metadata information easily accessible. Metadata is descriptive information about a file, which in this case is your music and usually includes at least the following:
Artist name, Album Title, Song Titles, Song Time Lengths, Genre, ISRCs and UPC.
Entering this information consistently, every time, everywhere, can boost sales and result in more exposure. Entering it inconsistently can hurt sales for many years to come. This information should be saved somewhere that is easily accessible. Emailing a copy of this information to yourself , or perhaps saving it in a Google Document (our preferred method) can help you keep up with it. However you choose to keep up with it, entering it the same way every time can be a tremendous boost. We suggest copying and pasting it from wherever the information is saved, to avoid the possibility of a typo.
- Google Documents – http://docs.google.com/
Once these things have been completed, then you can move on to album promotion with confidence.
Check out our mastering studio, Stonebridge Mastering, for your CD mastering, Audio Mastering, or Audio Mixing needs.
|
-
UAD-2 Manley Massive Passive VST Plug-in Review by Stonebridge Mastering This blog post... Read Full Story » -
STONEBRIDGE MASTERING BLOG SERIES INTRO Welcome to the new Stonebridge Mastering blog series... Read Full Story » -
INTRODUCTION This will be a very short post about acoustics. There is a ton of information... Read Full Story » -
Welcome to WordPress. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start blogging! Read Full Story »
