Adding Publishers to Tracks in Velveteen
Updated June 11, 2026
To add a publisher credit to a track, you need a person record for the songwriter and a publishing house record. Open the track, go to the Contributors tab, and scroll to the Publishers section. If records do not exist yet, you can use free-text names as a fallback and link proper records later.
Before you start
For the cleanest result, with IPI flowing through to DSPs, create two records in advance:
- A person record for the songwriter, with their IPI number filled in.
- A publishing house record for the entity administering their composition rights.
If either does not exist yet, the steps below show how to use free-text fallbacks and link proper records later.
Adding a publisher credit
- 1
Create the person record (if it doesn't exist)
Go to Catalog, then People, then New Person. Enter the songwriter's name and, if you have it, their IPI number. Save. - 2
Create the publishing house record (if it doesn't exist)
Go to Catalog, then Publishers, then New Publishing House. Enter the name (e.g. "Jane Doe Publishing"). Save. - 3
Open the track and go to the Contributors tab
Open the track in your catalog and select the Contributors tab. - 4
Scroll to the Publishers section and click "+ Add Publisher"
In the Publishers section, click + Add Publisher. In the songwriter field, search for and select the person record you created. In the publishing house field, search for and select the publishing house record. - 5
Save
Click Add Publisher to confirm. The credit appears in the Publishers section. The songwriter's IPI (from the person record) will be included in the next delivery payload for this track.
Tip
Co-writes: multiple credits
For a co-written track, repeat steps 3 to 5 for each songwriter. Each songwriter gets their own credit with their own person record and publishing house. There is no limit on the number of credits per track.
Frequently asked questions
Can I add a publisher credit before the publishing house record exists?+
Yes. Type the name directly in the free-text publisher field when adding the credit. The name will be included in the delivery payload. Create the publishing house record later and link it. The credit updates without redelivery for most DSPs.
How do I add credits for multiple co-writers?+
Repeat the workflow for each co-writer. Each songwriter gets their own credit: their person record (or name) paired with their publishing house. There is no limit on the number of credits per track.
What if I only have one of the two: songwriter but no publishing house, or publishing house but no songwriter?+
You can save a credit with just one side. A songwriter name without a publishing house is included in the payload as an unclaimed songwriter. A publishing house without a songwriter is included as an unknown composer credit. Both are better than nothing, but the full credit (songwriter, publishing house, and IPI) provides the strongest royalty matching.
Do I need to resubmit a release after adding publisher credits?+
If the release has already been delivered, adding publisher credits creates pending metadata changes. Velveteen will flag those changes for sync. For most DSPs, updated composition metadata is included in the next scheduled sync rather than requiring a full resubmission. Check the track's pending changes status after saving.
Related articles
Publisher & songwriter
How one track_publishers row pairs a composer with their publishing house, and what to do for co-writes.
Songwriting credits
How the track_publishers join connects a composer to their publishing house, and why it matters for royalty collection.
What is a publishing house?
The entity that owns composition rights: what it is, how it differs from a label, and when you need one.