DistroKid 'Cover Song' feature

[dollar.cinema]

Hello Folks
Has anyone here worked with DistroKid to release cover songs? I think cover songs would be a good way to grow my audience.
Do you know any other distributor that allows cover songs to be uploaded?

When working with the feature of DistroKid, what are the Do's and Don'ts you learned?


Thanks for the help and have a good day!

[AndrewSouthworth]

I've never tried it myself, but i've heard of other people doing it. I'm not 100% sure if the DistroKid feature is the only licensing you need to do, or if you also have to go through HarryFox / Songfile as well. I'd hit up DistroKid customer service and ask them, if nobody else here knows for sure.

[dollar.cinema]

I reached out to DistroKid and got some infos. I think the answers can be helpful for others, so here they are:

• The Licensing is available worldwide, not only for US citizens. (Raises the question: Could local copyright laws get me in trouble?)
• They cannot say if I am allowed to upload a music video to YouTube with this license. As far as I know, a Music Video would require another type of license.
• Generally speaking, all songs that have been previously released/available for sale in digital stores can be licensed. If there is a problem with licensing the track, the release will be rejected and they don't charge anything.

On their FAQ page, DistroKid states the following: "It is your responsibility to ensure that your song would be covered under the compulsory mechanical license."
I'm currently waiting for the response on what that acutally means, and if I need to get another license.

I'll keep you updated! 👍