One of the areas with the most errors in releases is the management of featuring credits and contributor credits. Where does the featuring artist's name go? How is it different from a co-artist? Where do producer credits go? This guide clarifies every case.
Primary artist vs featured artist
The first distinction to understand is between Primary Artist and Featured Artist:
- Primary Artist: the main artist of the release. The one who appears as the "author" on stores.
- Featured Artist: a guest artist on the track, who contributes but does not own the release. Appears as "feat." or "ft."
How it appears on stores
The typical format on stores is:
Track Name - Primary Artist ft. Featured Artist
or:
Track Name (feat. Featured Artist) - Primary Artist
The exact format depends on the DSP, but in general: the featuring artist's name goes in the "Featured Artist" field of the distribution, not in the track title. If you add it to the title manually, Spotify risks not recognizing the featuring and failing to link the featured artist's Spotify profile to the track.
Co-artists (when two artists are equal)
If the track is an equal collaboration (Marco and Luca, not "Marco feat. Luca"), the two artists are Co-Primary Artists. In this case:
- Both appear as main artists
- The format is: "Marco, Luca - Track Name" or "Marco & Luca - Track Name"
- On Spotify, the track appears in the discography of both artist profiles
Note: on some distributors this is managed differently from a "featuring." Check how to configure it on the platform you use.
Where "behind the scenes" credits go
Credits are different from visible artists. Credits include people who contributed to the track but don't "appear" in the store title:
- Producer (who produced the beat/instrumental)
- Songwriter / Lyricist (who wrote the melody or lyrics)
- Composer (who composed the music)
- Mixing engineer
- Mastering engineer
- Session musician (instrumentalists)
- Programmer (sequences, synthesizer programming)
These credits go in the Contributors/Credits section of the release (not in the visible artists field). They appear on platforms that display them (Apple Music and Tidal show them; Spotify shows them partially).
Why credits matter
For publishing royalties: if you are also an author (you wrote the melody or lyrics), you must be listed as songwriter/composer to receive compositional royalties through your collecting society (ASCAP, BMI, PRS, SIAE, etc.). Without this registration, the publishing share won't reach you.
For catalog accuracy: accurate credits create a professional catalog that works better in the long run, especially for sync licensing and media opportunities.
Out of respect for collaborators: a producer or co-author with correct credits can receive their own royalties and build their own portfolio.
Common mistakes
| Mistake | Consequence | Solution |
|---|---|---|
| Putting "ft. Name" in the title manually | Spotify doesn't link the featured artist's profile | Use the "Featured Artist" field |
| Not inserting the producer as a contributor | Publisher doesn't receive royalties, incomplete catalog | Add in credits |
| Confusing Co-Artist with Featured | Track only appears in one artist's discography | Use Co-Primary Artists |
| Forgetting the songwriter in credits | Publishing royalties lost | Add in songwriter contribution |
The featuring artist's name: consistency with the profile
A critical point: the featured artist's name in the metadata must match exactly the name on their Spotify artist profile (same spelling, same capitalization). Only then will Spotify automatically create the link to their profile.
If the featured artist is called "DJ Marco28" on Spotify and you write "DJ Marco 28" (with an extra space) in the metadata, Spotify will not link the profiles.
How to manage featuring and credits on LightSound
On LightSound you can:
- Add primary and featured artists with their respective profiles
- Enter all contributors with specific roles
- Manage royalty splits for each collaborator
This ensures that the release is complete, credits are visible on the appropriate platforms, and royalties reach every rights holder.