RELEASE REVIEW
Why Every Release Is Reviewed
Every release distributed through LabelGrid passes two checks before it reaches a store: an automated validation that runs the moment you save, and a manual review by our team. The automated pass catches metadata that stores will reject. The manual pass catches the things software cannot see: rights you may not hold, and content that would put your catalogue at risk once it is live.
Both run on every release, on every plan. Most move through without anything to fix.
THE AUTOMATED PASS
What the Automated Validation Checks
Validation runs every time you save a release or a track, and the results appear immediately in the Getting Started panel.
It runs your release against the requirements stores actually enforce. That is a large body of rules rather than a short checklist, it differs from store to store, and it changes as stores change what they will accept. The checks group into broad areas, each one covering many individual rules:
- Identifiers. Whether the codes that identify your release and your recordings are valid and consistent across your catalogue.
- Audio. Whether every track carries a file that meets delivery requirements.
- Artwork. Whether cover art is present and fit for delivery.
- Credits and contributors. Whether the people involved are named and attributed the way stores require.
- Rights and splits. Whether ownership shares are complete and accounted for.
- Delivery setup. Whether the release is configured to reach the stores you want.
- Store-specific requirements. The additional rules individual stores apply on top of the common ones.
We do not publish the individual rules behind these areas. Maintaining them is a large part of what LabelGrid does, and they move as stores move. What matters on your side is what happens when one fails: the release cannot be sent until it is fixed, and the panel names the exact field and track rather than returning a general error. That is the problem which would otherwise reach you days later as a store rejection, usually without telling you which field was wrong.
THE HUMAN PASS
What the Manual Review Catches
Metadata can be perfectly formed and the release still cannot ship. A human review is the only way to catch that, and it is the reason we do one. Our team checks that the content is yours to distribute, which in broad terms means:
- The recording and the song. These are two separate rights, and holding one does not mean holding the other.
- Anything built on someone else’s work. Whether the permissions that material needs are actually in place.
- Everyone who took part. Whether the other people involved in the recording are accounted for.
What a reviewer looks at depends on the release, and the specifics of how we review stay internal. Where something needs resolving, the review tells you what it is rather than leaving you to work it out.
WHY IT MATTERS
What This Protects You From
A release that ships with a rights problem does not fail quietly. It is claimed, taken down, or it generates revenue that is later reversed, after the release has been promoted and after listeners have found it. Takedowns are visible to your audience in a way a pre-release fix never is.
The automated pass protects something smaller but more common: a store rejection is a silent delay. It happens after you have set a release date, and it arrives with a technical error rather than an instruction.
Checking before delivery converts both into a fix you make once, while the release is still yours to change.
HOW IT FITS TOGETHER
Three States, Always Visible
A release moves through three states, shown in the Getting Started panel when you open it: Release Validation, which is automatic and runs on every save; Release Review, performed by our team; and Release Distributed, delivered to stores.
Each step shows its own status, so at any moment you can see which of the three you are waiting on and whether anything needs your attention. The validation and review guide walks through each step in detail, and the content guidelines cover what can and cannot be distributed.
TIMING
Review Is Not a Queue You Get Stuck In
A release under review is not idle. Reviews are worked continuously and most releases clear without any change. Where a release does need attention, the review tells you what to change rather than simply refusing it, and re-submitting puts it straight back in.
Two different things are worth separating here. The review itself is worked to a service level set on your account, and API plans carry review priority. The time from submitting a release to it being live is a different question, and it cannot be quoted as a single number, because it depends on what the review finds. A release with nothing to fix moves straight to delivery. A release with something outstanding waits on you resolving it.
That is why we ask for a release date with room in it, rather than publishing one figure that would be wrong for most releases. If a release has been in review longer than you expected, contact support and we will tell you exactly where it is.
COMMON QUESTIONS