last updated 18th September 2022
Overview
Members are currently testing a beta version of the new Dashboard. Once ready, the Dashboard will replace the current music submission process. Artists will then be able to self-upload, manage their music, and check analytics & earnings. Until development and testing are finished, music uploads are handled by a volunteer crew of members: some artists, some listeners.
Bugs and errors
Since it is still under construction, the Artist Dashboard has a variety of bugs and unituitive elements. This guide will help you navigate those issues while uploading. If you encounter bugs or odd design elements, share your thoughts in the Artist Dashboard area:
Who this guide is for
This guide is for Uploaders ā those who wish to help upload music on behalf of artists as a way to build Resonate.
How to become an Uploader
Please read through this guide, then introduce yourself below.
First, create a new basic Resonate Listener account. Weāll switch this to an Uploader account, giving you access to music submissions and the Dashboard.
To track your work and update the Uploads Spreadsheet, weāll email edit access to you. Could be the same email as above.
Request access to join uploaders and include the following emails in your message:
- new Resonate Listener Account email address
- whatever email address you want Uploads Spreadsheet access sent to
Current Uploaders
Process & Schedule
Uploaders can upload submissions whenever they like. An upload takes 5-15 minutes once you know the process and depending on if the submission is a single, EP, or album.
Checking a submission
All submissions processed by Uploaders will be tracked in the Uploads Spreadsheet.
When the Upload Coordinator receives email notification that a new release submission entry has been added to the New Release Submission Form, they will transcribe the information from the form entry to the uploaded tab of the Uploads Spreadsheet.
Each row that does not have a name in the Uploader column is a submission that needs uploading. All others are either in progress or complete. (If you see āUpcoordā in this column, that means the Upload Coordinator is working with the artist to resolve any problems with their submissions.)
Processing a submission
When choosing submissions, start with the oldest ones (lower Entry No. value and older Timestamp value) not the most recent.
- Enter your uploader name in the Uploader column for the submission you will process. This is how we track which submissions are being processed.
- Visit the link in the Link to submission column. Download all files.
- Some artists will send a locked submission. If locked, request access to it and say youāre with Resonate. When the artist grants access, continue work from there. Leave a note on the Resonate Uploads spreadsheet that you are waiting for access.
- Check the submission for compatibility and required metadata (see below).
- Final step:
- If the submission is not compatible, leave a note explaining the problem(s) on the Resonate Uploads spreadsheet.
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If the submission is compatible:
a. Record the following information from the submissionās metadata spreadsheet to the Resonate Uploads spreadsheet for the release: the Artist name, the Release title, and the Release Date.
b. Upload it right away (see section below: Uploading a Submission).
Checking a submission for compatibility
- All audio track files are in either FLAC, WAV, or AIFF format
- Album artwork is 1:1 square in JPEG, JPG, or PNG format with minimum dimensions of 1400Ć1400 pixels. Maximum dimensions are 3500Ć3500 pixels. Maximum file size is 5 MB.
- Metadata spreadsheet: has required metadata for release-level and track-level
- Metadata spreadsheet: audio files are the same as the ones listed
There is a known bug where some upload workers are unable to upload AIFF files. Some workers have the issue, some donāt. Still a mystery why.
Required release-level metadata
- Release Artist
- Release Title
- Release Year
- Release Composer
- Total number of tracks on the release
- Release Type ā Single, EP, or Album
Required metadata for each track
- Track title
- Track filename
- The sequence number of each track (so that we know the correct order of the tracks within the release)
Walkthrough
- While uploading, record any bugs in the Artist Dashboard category here on the Forum. Start a new Topic for each issue.
- Log in via your Uploader Account at dash.resonate.coop.
- Go to (All) Releases Page.
- Click [Create New Release].
- On Create New Release Page, complete fields from top to bottom. Completing entries in a different order can lead to glitches. After completing all entries and clicking the two confirmation boxes at the bottom, [continue] will become clickable.
- Now on the newly-created Release Page, click [Upload New Tracks] under the Tracks section.
- Upload tracks either one at a time or all at once. Sometimes track titles will be autocompleted from embedded metadata in the audio file. If not, the entry box will default to displaying the trackās filename and will need to be corrected.
- Click [Edit tracks info] at the bottom of the page. On the Track Metadata page, one-by-one change each trackās monetisation setting to Paid (unless Free is requested).
- Under the three-dot menu at the left of the main header, go to Tracks Page. One-by-one, change ownership of each track for the release to the artist, using the artist email included on their metadata spreadsheet.
- Return to Release Page; change ownership of Release to artistās account.
- On Release Page, uncheck [private].
- On Release Page, check [enable].
Youāre done!
Record completion of your work in the Uploaded, unless otherwise noted column of the Uploads Spreadsheet.
Details details details
Covers and Remixes
Resonate accepts covers and remixes where the artist has accepted responsibility and confirmed they have the appropriate rights. Artists or their representatives claim this responsibility via the checkboxes on the wordpress submission form.
When uploading these submissions via the Dashboard, you will have to tick the appropriate checkboxes, even though they say no covers and no remixes. These check boxes will be updated with new language before the Dashboard goes public.
While changing ownership of Releases and Tracks
Use the artistās email address rather than searching for them by name. Sometimes an artist has multiple Resonate accounts.
While copy/pasting infomation to complete fields
Watch out for unintentional spaces at the ends of what you copy/pasted.
If artist only included year on Release Date, what do I put for month and day?
Put 01 and 01 for month and day.
Formatting genre tags
Write all genre tags as single compound words in lowercase, for example āhip-hopā and āhip hopā become āhiphopā. āIndie Electronicā becomes āindieelectronicā.
On the Create New Release page, there is information appearing from the last Release I created. What do I do?
Refresh the page via your browser. This will clear all the fields on the page. Donāt delete entries manually, as āghostā data can remain. Ghost data is a term I just made up and is probably not a real thing.
Keep an eye out for different styles of entry boxes:
- Some confirm entry after clicking elsewhere. Example: Album Artist on Create New Release Page.
- Some can save multiple entries, but each entry has to be confirmed via adjacent button. Example: adding genre tags on Create New Release Page.
- Some will search our database based upon text entered; an item from pop-up needs to be clicked in order to confirm. Sometimes these fields will autofill based upon previous selections on other pages, however, you still need to type in the info again and click the pop-up in order to save the info. Example: change ownership.
Iām both an artist and an upload volunteer. Can I use the upload tool to upload my own releases without asking permission?
Yes, but only if you already have music on Resonate. Otherwise, we need to get you onboarded first. If you already have music on Resonate and feel confident that you know how to use the upload tool, feel free to upload more of your own music without asking permission.
Donāt forget to:
- add the releases to the Uploads Spreadsheet
- change ownership to your Artist Account for each track and release you upload
Iām both an artist and an upload volunteer. Can I use the upload tool to upload other artistsā releases without asking permission?
No, because there are still onboarding steps we need to go through with each artist before they upload music. Weāll want to check first that they have created an artist profile on Resonate. We also need confirmation from each artist that they want their music on Resonate. The Music Submission Form is a way for us to confirm this.
If you know an artist who wants their music on Resonate and they have an upcoming release with an approaching release date that they want on Resonate ā chat with the upload coordinator about expediting its upload. We can usually make these deadlines.
Accessing the Legacy Artist Uploader page
Before we transitioned to the New Release Submission (Google Form), artists submitted upload requests via Wordpress. If you need to access the legacy Artist Uploader page on Wordpress (e.g. to complete processing an upload that needed further action from the artist):
- First, log in via your Uploader Account at https://resonate.is.
- To reach the submissions area, visit this link: Log In ā¹ Resonate ā WordPress