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18h • Community
IMPORTANT UPDATE: SEARCH TERMS, METADATA & DISTROKID
Guerrillas, I want to make this as clear and factual as possible because I do NOT want anybody misunderstanding what I have been doing and showing in my videos.
I use search-based strategies myself, but that does NOT mean DistroKid, Spotify, Apple Music, or any other streaming service has approved that strategy.
There is also currently NO published DistroKid rule that I have found that says:
"Using a keyword automatically gets your DistroKid account banned."
I do not want anyone spreading that as fact.
But,
⚠️ IF YOU CHOOSE TO USE SEARCH TERMS IN YOUR SONG OR ALBUM TITLES, YOU ARE DOING IT AT YOUR OWN RISK. I AM JUST SHARING WHAT I AM DOING AND WHAT IS WORKING FOR ME.
However, DistroKid DOES publish rules that are extremely relevant to this discussion.
📌 DIRECTLY FROM DISTROKID: TITLE FORMATTING
DistroKid says streaming services don't accept titles containing:
("Too much extra information" or "Strange things in parentheses")
DIRECT DISTROKID SOURCE:
DistroKid even gives examples on that page where descriptive genre information added to a title is removed, as well as an example involving an artist-name "type beat" phrase.
That is important.
DO NOT USE THE WORD "TYPE BEAT" AT ALL!
This means that just because a search term accurately describes your song DOES NOT automatically mean adding that term to the title is acceptable metadata.
Relevance and metadata compliance are two separate questions.
📌 DIRECTLY FROM DISTROKID: SEARCH TERM FLOODING
DistroKid specifically discusses "search term flooding" in its soundtrack rules.
DIRECTLY FROM DISTROKID:
("covers should not include 'from' in their titles in reference to the soundtrack they are from, as this is considered search term flooding.")
DIRECT DISTROKID SOURCE:
That does NOT mean every use of a search term is automatically "search term flooding."
But it DOES prove that DistroKid recognizes search manipulation through release titles as a real metadata issue.
📌 DIRECTLY FROM DISTROKID: AI MUSIC & GAMING ALGORITHMS
DistroKid currently allows AI-created music, but its rules also specifically say:
("Music created solely to game streaming algorithms or flood platforms with generic content violates streaming services' policies.")
DIRECT DISTROKID SOURCE:
That is directly from DistroKid.
So again, there is an important difference between legitimately creating and marketing music versus creating metadata/content specifically to manipulate a platform.
📌 DIRECTLY FROM DISTROKID: STORES CAN REFUSE RELEASES
DistroKid's actual Distribution Agreement also makes it clear that stores have discretion over what they carry.
DIRECTLY FROM DISTROKID:
("Digital Stores may choose not to carry one or more of your Recordings")
The agreement also says DistroKid may decline to distribute or remove releases for store-rule issues, potential legal issues, or other reasons under its business judgment.
DIRECT DISTROKID DISTRIBUTION AGREEMENT:
I strongly recommend everybody actually read that agreement instead of relying on Facebook posts, YouTube videos, Reddit posts, or even what I tell you.
You are ultimately responsible for your own releases.
⚠️ NOW HERE IS MY PERSONAL RISK ASSESSMENT — NOT A QUOTE FROM DISTROKID:
I personally believe your risk increases significantly when you're using search terms that:
• Don't actually match the song
• Don't match the lyrics, subject matter, style, or audience
• Are extremely broad or ambiguous
• Are chosen only because they have huge search volume
• Are repeatedly stuffed into titles
• Use another artist's name to attract searches
• Reference major franchises, games, movies, characters, or brands merely to capture their traffic
• Are designed primarily to manipulate search results or recommendation algorithms
That is MY assessment based on the rules we're seeing.
I am NOT claiming DistroKid published a rule saying every one of those actions automatically results in a ban.
There is a difference.
For example, using a well-known artist, franchise, game, brand, or other protected name simply because it has enormous search traffic can potentially introduce completely separate metadata and intellectual-property issues depending on how you're using it.
Do not assume:
HIGH SEARCH VOLUME = GOOD KEYWORD.
And don't assume:
RELEVANT KEYWORD = AUTOMATICALLY APPROVED METADATA.
Those are not the same thing.
🚨 YOU DO NOT HAVE TO USE SEARCH TERMS.
I want this part to be extremely clear.
Search-based naming is something I have personally experimented with.
You do NOT need to copy me.
If you're releasing music with normal song titles and you're getting streams, building listeners, growing artists and getting paid:
KEEP DOING WHAT IS WORKING.
In fact, I specifically want people inside this community who are doing well WITHOUT adding search terms to their release titles to post your results.
We need more data.
I would much rather have 100 people reporting what is actually happening to their catalogs than have everybody repeating a rumor they heard from somebody else.
📌 MY OWN DISTROKID UPDATE
I also want to be completely transparent about what happened to me.
I received my first editorial-discretion notice involving an album on one of my DistroKid accounts.
To be VERY precise:
MY DISTROKID ACCOUNT WAS NOT BANNED.
I was NOT told that I could no longer upload music.
The message applied to that particular album/release.
That matters.
I've seen different emails from different people.
A release rejection is not necessarily the same thing as an editorial decision.
An editorial decision is not necessarily the same thing as an account restriction.
And none of those are necessarily the same thing as an account termination.
We need to stop lumping every email into "DistroKid banned me."
That isn't accurate.
📌 DISTROKID CAN TERMINATE ACCOUNTS UNDER ITS AGREEMENT
This is another reason I'm telling everybody to take this seriously.
DistroKid's Distribution Agreement gives DistroKid broad authority to terminate its agreement in circumstances including violations of its agreement, violations of store terms, intellectual-property issues, stores refusing the content, abuse of the service, fraud, or illegal activity.
READ THE ACTUAL AGREEMENT:
Again:
That DOES NOT say:
"Use one keyword and your account gets banned."
Do not turn it into that.
It means we need to understand that distribution is not an unlimited right to upload whatever metadata we want.
📌 I'M TESTING OTHER DISTRIBUTORS TOO
Because of everything happening across distribution right now, I'm beginning to actively test other distributors.
I'm starting with Ditto.
But I want everybody to understand something:
I WILL NOT recommend another distributor simply because it accepts my upload.
That's not enough.
I will let ya'll know when MONEY ACTUALLY HITS MY BANK ACCOUNT!
Only then can I start telling this community that I've actually vetted that distributor.
And because music royalties are delayed, that process can take MONTHS.
So if you see me testing Ditto or another distributor, that does NOT automatically mean:
"Jesse says everybody should leave DistroKid."
I am not saying that.
I'm testing.
🛑 BOTTOM LINE
Here are the FACTS:
DistroKid publishes rules against excessive title information.
DistroKid publishes rules concerning inappropriate information in parentheses.
DistroKid specifically recognizes "search term flooding."
DistroKid says music created solely to game streaming algorithms or flood platforms with generic content violates streaming-service policies.
DistroKid's agreement says stores may refuse releases.
DistroKid's agreement gives DistroKid the ability to decline or remove releases.
DistroKid's agreement also gives it broad termination authority under specified circumstances.
What DistroKid DOES NOT currently say in the sources I've found is:
"Every artist who uses a search term in a song title will be banned."
So I am NOT going to tell you that.
My recommendation is simple:
⚠️ USE SEARCH TERMS AT YOUR OWN RISK.
Do not keyword stuff.
Do not hijack unrelated searches.
Do not use another artist's name simply to steal traffic.
Do not grab giant broad keywords just because they have huge search volume.
Do not assume something is compliant simply because it describes your music.
And if you don't need search terms at all?
DON'T FEEL LIKE YOU HAVE TO USE THEM.
I'm going to continue testing this, watching policy changes and reporting what actually happens to my releases and accounts.
You should make your own decisions based on your own risk tolerance.
We are going to deal in facts, show our sources, share our results and adapt when the platforms change.
No rumors.
No pretending we know things we don't know.
No hiding the risks from the community.
🦍⚔️ AI GUERRILLAS — TEST. TRACK. ADAPT.
OFFICIAL DISTROKID SOURCES:
Title Formatting Rules:
Search Term Flooding / Soundtrack Rules:
AI Music Rules:
DistroKid Distribution Agreement:
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IMPORTANT UPDATE: SEARCH TERMS, METADATA & DISTROKID
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