Multilingual music metadata: titles, scripts and audio language

Build one approved language record

• Artist names and titles in their intended original spelling and script.
• Language used for the release information.
• Language or languages spoken or sung on each track.
• Any approved translated display text, clearly labelled as a translation.
• Any transliteration into another writing system, clearly separated from a translation.
• The reviewer responsible for language accuracy and the date of approval.

Understand the platform distinction

Apple’s current style guidance separates album-level metadata language from track audio language and discusses localised display information. Those requirements do not mean every distributor exposes the same fields. Confirm what DistroBolt’s current release flow supports before supplying extra variants. The website’s English guidance does not require artists to rename songs in English.

Translation and transliteration do different jobs

A translation conveys meaning in another language; transliteration represents words using another writing system. Either can introduce a mistake in identity or meaning. Have a competent reviewer check names, punctuation and context. Keep the approved original alongside any alternate version so the person submitting the release knows which value belongs in which field.

An international release example

An artist’s title is written in Japanese, while one song contains Japanese and English vocals. The team keeps the original title, a reviewed transliteration and an optional translation as separate values, then asks which supported fields apply. It does not replace the artist’s name with an English keyword phrase or claim that a translated title guarantees discovery in another country.

Preserve artist identity

Keep each artist’s approved spelling consistent across releases and retain the exact existing profile links. A new writing-system variant can be mistaken for another identity if supplied incorrectly. Use the artist-profile guide before creating duplicate artist entries. For a genuine rebrand, follow the name-change process instead of presenting it as a casual translation correction.

Check artwork and lyrics separately

If artwork contains text, compare it with the approved release identity and version. A lyric transcript should match what is actually performed, including the relevant writing system and version; it is not the same record as a translated marketing description. Use the lyrics guide and the release-artwork checklist for those assets. Confirm permission for any translation or adaptation of material you do not control.

If the live display is wrong

Record the store, exact release link, current displayed text and the approved intended value. Explain whether the problem concerns spelling, script, language, localisation or the wrong artist identity. Ask DistroBolt to review the delivered metadata rather than repeatedly reuploading the recording. See the correction-request guide. Display and language support can vary, and a localisation request does not guarantee an outcome or turnaround.