Guides

Suno to DistroKid: a release checklist that survives review

Updated 2026-09-06

Distributors reject uploads for boring reasons far more often than interesting ones. This is the order that works.

1. Get the best file out of the generator

Download WAV, not MP3, if your plan allows it. An MP3 has already lost the top end once. Mastering it loses it again.

2. Repair before you master

AI exports have a hard cutoff near 16 kHz, low-mid mud near 350 Hz, and a narrow image. Fix those first. Mastering a track with those problems just makes them louder.

3. Master to a target, then check it

• Integrated loudness in the range for your genre, usually -9 to -12 LUFS for pop and hip-hop.
• True peak at or under -1 dBTP. This is the one that causes crackle after upload.
• Export 24-bit WAV at the source sample rate. Do not upsample.

4. Metadata and artwork

3000 by 3000 pixel artwork, RGB, no blurry upscales, no text that promises a chart position. Song titles without "official" or "remastered" unless they are. ISRC codes are assigned for you unless you have your own.

5. Disclose what is AI

As of 2026 most distributors ask whether a track used AI, and Spotify credits AI contributions through its partners. Answer honestly. A master does not change what the track is, and Burnish never claims to. The "release-ready" stamp on a Burnish report means the numbers are right, not that the origin is hidden.

6. Common rejections

• Clipped audio. The true peak check above prevents this.
• Silence longer than a few seconds at the start or end. Trim it.
• A cover, remix or sample without a license. Do not.
• Artwork with someone else's logo or a platform's logo on it.

Run the free analysis on your export before step 3. It tells you the cutoff, the mud, the width and the current loudness in one page.