Download our free checklist here: http://tiny.cc/groovechecklist

Here’s a video that guides you through the process of distributing a new song:

Video Link:

We only charge a one-time 7$ (Rs. 700) per single upload and 20$ (Rs.1880 approx.) for an album. We do not charge a yearly subscription fee and instead only take 7% royalty. This means we only make money when the artist makes money.

You must upload your song 3-4 weeks before the release date. Usually our inspection team takes 3-7 days for inspection depending on the queue. However if there are issues with the release you still need time to make changes as well as pitch for playlisting, which must happen 2 weeks before the release. So we do not recommend rushing your release. Please don't write to us to speed up the process!

The following types of content are no longer accepted for distribution:
● Generic music library content (e.g., royalty-free stock music, production music,non-unique sound effects), that may be intended to game the DSP ecosystem.
● Generic artist names such as ‘Sleepy Dreamy Music’, ‘Happy Sound’, ‘Rain Sleep Story’.
● Unedited loops, nature sounds, functional music, or single-tone audio files with limited artistic merit.
● Sped-up / slowed-down versions of existing tracks, unless officially released by the original rights holder.
● Soundalike recordings that mimic famous artists or songs to mislead listeners.

It is NOT legal to release cover songs in India and across the world without the permission of the copyright holder. In India, most of the times the copyright is held with a label. You may have seen websites like easy song licensing that claim to provide you with a license for covers. Please note this license is ONLY applicable for release in America and not worldwide. If you’re caught releasing someone else’s copyright without permission you can be blacklisted by music streaming platforms. No distributor can help you secure a license for India and outside America.

Our system recognizes any releases over 3 tracks as EP/Albums. We can change the metadata of the release to show up as EPs when we distribute the release. However please note different DSPs will have their own guidelines on how many tracks and the minimum release length required for each release type so this may not always be reflected on each store.

Please let us know via the main artist dashboard support once you’ve uploaded the release with us so we can update the release type to EP for you.

A UPC code is a universal product code or barcode you see on any sale item. One UPC/ Barcode is issued for each point of sale. So for 1 single you will get 1 UPC code and for 1 album you will get 1 UPC code. You need to know the UPC code, if you’re switching distributors so you can use the same barcode.

An ISRC code is an International Standard Recording Code. It is used to identify individual sound recordings. So if an album has 10 songs, each song will be assigned an ISRC code and hence you will have 10 codes. You need to use the ISRC code when you’re switching distributors or when you wish to use the same song that has been previously released (same recording) for example as a single; as part of an album or compilation. If you use the same ISRC of the single as part of your album, then you will see both the single release with its artwork as well as the song as part of the album with the album artist, However the stream counts will be combined.

You can find the AI Mastering tool short cut via the artist dashboard drop down menu.

We strictly prohibit any form of artificial streaming, including:
● Use of bots, click farms, or incentivized streaming services.
● Manipulation of playlists or repeated playback to inflate stream counts.
If a DSP fines or penalizes us due to fraudulent streaming, these fines will be passed on to the responsible label or artist. Repeat violations may result in content takedown and account termination.

Due to ongoing copyright litigation and legal uncertainty surrounding AI-generated content, we do not distribute fully AI-created songs at this time, including output from services such as Suno or Udio. This includes:
● Fully AI-generated compositions, lyrics, or vocals.
● AI-modified versions of existing copyrighted works.
● AI-assisted remixes that may infringe upon third-party rights.
Any attempt to distribute AI-generated will be blocked.

Please note no refunds will be made if the song is rejected at inspection level. 

Before the internet, musicians needed a record label to release their songs. But now, with streaming platforms like Spotify and Apple Music, anyone can release music. To get songs on these platforms, artists (and even labels) need a digital distributor or aggregator. These companies act as the middlemen, helping artists upload their music to all major streaming services. MGMH Groove is one such digital distributor that supports independent artists in sharing their music worldwide.

If you have any tracks that are eligible for Discovery Mode, a button will appear under your account settings that allows you to opt-in!

You can opt in and out of individual tracks on a monthly basis. Please see more information from Spotify here. Again, only eligible tracks are invited to apply for discovery mode, the criteria are;

Track must be distributed by us
The artist must be credited as a main artist or remixer
Track must have been released more than 30 days ago
Track must have at least 1 radio and autoplay stream in the past 7 days. Please check your Spotify for Artists analytics if unsure about this.

Take a look at this link for some further details about Discovery Mode if you’re interested: https://support.spotify.com/us/artists/article/getting-access-to-discovery-mode/?ref=related

Music distribution is the process of making music accessible to audiences through various channels. This includes streaming platforms like Spotify and Apple Music, digital downloads, and physical formats such as CDs and vinyl records.

There are 2 main external sites you need to upload your lyrics to be shown on stores. Instagram stories pulls its lyrics from musixmatch.com. Apple Music uses the service genius.com. If you register an account with these services you can upload your lyrics and make them available to users on these services.

At the moment we do not deliver caller tunes and have no plans to start as we don’t get a lot of requests for it.

Yes we do! However Beatport needs to approve the label before we can deliver. Please write to tech support via the contact us form on the dashboard for the application form. 

And once it is approved by them, we will turn on your label in your dashboard to choose under label listing. Then you can upload and deliver.

You should first upload your single, once the single is delivered it will be issued an ISRC code. Now you can upload your album and for that particular single add the ISRC code issued. For the rest of the songs that are new, request an ISRC code. When you use the same ISRC code, your stream counts will combine and you can see the song under singles with single artwork and you can see the song under album under album artwork.

In a waterfall strategy, essentially you set up the releases with each single building up to an EP/album release. There are quite a few artists doing waterfall strategies these days. Each release is a standalone product, so you need to upload each new single with the previous singles re-uploaded on the tracklist, and using the same ISRC for each previous single on the new product
eg.
Release 1
1. Single #1
Release 2
1. Single #2
2. Single #1
Release 3
1. Single #3
2. Single #2
3. Single #1

And you keep the same ISRC for Single #1 / Single #2 across all releases.
Then you can takedown the previous releases each time a new one comes out.
You can see an example of this on LEISURE’s release ‘Side A’ you will see in their ‘singles & EPs’ tab they had each release (Slipping Away, Spark It Up, Lonely Nights) building up to the final product.

Important updates regarding credit requirements that are now being enforced by major DSPs like Apple, Deezer, and Spotify. 

What’s changing? DSPs now require minimum credit information at the track level. This ensures that the right people get recognized for their work and that platforms have the data they need to display accurate credits.

Why this matters: Proper crediting isn’t just about compliance—it’s about giving creators the recognition they deserve. These platforms are putting a stronger emphasis on transparency, and we want to support that.

Here’s what’s now required for every track:

Main Artist – already a standard requirement
Composer & Lyricist – Both required for vocal tracks; only Composer for instrumentals
Performer – at least one performance role (e.g., vocals, guitar, drums)
Additional Contributor or Remixer – typically a producer, mixer, etc.

Important note on naming: For composer and lyricist credits, full names are now required:

✅ Bryan Adams = valid,  ❌ Beyoncé = not valid

DSPs are actively checking this. However, for performer and producer roles, using the artist’s stage name is totally fine.

Where can I update this? If you are missing any of these credits, you can update this by navigating to the MY CATALOGUE section of your artist dashboard.

The turnaround time can vary from store to store. We recommend submitting your album at least four weeks prior to your intended release date. This gives enough time for us to ingest and deliver your tracks, and for the services to also ingest, index and display them on their own sites. We will advise you from your catalogue page if your release has been delivered to stores, but this does not mean the store itself has been able to get the tracks live on their site (which is out of our control).

You can place a track on hold before release by editing the release and moving the release date to a date well in the future, then editing the release and changing it again when you have a set date.

In order to submit a song for Spatial audio delivery please upload the stereo mix with the regular version of your release first. Then please follow the steps below and write to our tech team via the artist form on the dashboard.

Create a new release in your artist dashboard. Please use the original audio and metadata.
Please ensure you DO NOT use the same ISRC as the original release.
Leave the release as incomplete and do not submit it for review – our team will manually push this through
Please send us an email via the contact us form on the dashboard once you have finished creating your release and send us a download link for your Dolby ATMOS file (via Google Drive/DropBox). Please ensure you check your sharing settings so our team can access the files (ensure there are no time restrictions on the file and do not use WeTransfer).
Our team will notify you when your Dolby ATMOS release has been sent to the relevant stores.

We’ll also need the Apple Digital Masters Engineer’s Email in order to apply for the badge on Apple Music.

Yes you can submit your song title in all caps, however some platforms like Apple do not accept it. In that case, we would have to manually send an update to Apple. You can reach out to us via the drop down contact us form in your artist dashboard for this.

Thumbnail Spec: 1280 x 720 up to 2MB
HD Videos  

Video 
Compression Type: H.264 or ProRes
File Format: .mov or .mp4 
Dimensions: 1920x1080 (preferred) 
Frame Rate: Native (No less than 23.98) 
Bit Rate: 20mbps (Minimum 7500 kb/s, if necessary) 
File must be de-‐Interlaced (Please, no Interlacing) 
Multi-‐pass encoding is preferred 
Do not use frame re-‐ordering in your encoding settings 
Do not include front or end slates, title or end cards, etc

Audio 
Format: AAC 
Channels: Stereo (L R) 
Sample Rate: 44.100 kHz 
Bit Rate: 320 kbps CBR 

4K/2K 
Video
Compression Type: ProRes
File Format: .mp4
Aspect Ratio: 16:9, 1.85.1, 2:1, 2.35.1, 2.39.1, or 2.4:1
Dimension Format: 1440p, 2160p, or similar native (depending on the aspect ratio)
Frame Rate: 23.976, 24, 25, 29.97, 30, 48, 50, or 60
Bit Rate: 30mbps (2K) / 60mbps (4K)

Audio 
Format: LPCM 
Channels: Stereo (L R)
Sample Rate: 48kHz 

Vertical Videos 

Video 
Compression Type: H.264 or ProRes
File Format: .mov or .mp4 
Dimensions: 1080x1920 (preferred)
Frame Rate: Native (No less than 23.98) 
Bit Rate: 20 mbps (Minimum 7500 kb/s, if necessary) 

Audio 
Format: AAC 
Channels: Stereo (L R) 
Sample Rate: 44.100 kHz 
Bit Rate: 320 kbps CBR

There is No limit on file size.

There is also a form located within your Artist Dashboard that can be used for further details on submissions. Any other questions or queries please let me know via the contact us form on the artist dashboard.

We accept .WAV audio files in 16bit 44.1kHz resolution (CD Quality), and 24bit WAV files at the most common sample rates. We do not accept mp3 files or 32bit files. You can convert other file types to WAV using iTunes or other web-based conversion apps.

An album can have 25 tracks maximum.

The name on artwork MUST match the release name. The file format must be .jpg/.jpeg/.png in RGB Colour (not CMYK). The file size must be no larger than 10Mb image dimensions at least 3000 x 3000 pixels, and perfect square. The art must not contain website addresses, barecode or social media links.