The weeks after an artist signs set the tone for the whole relationship. Done well, the artist feels looked after and the first release runs smoothly. Done badly, the label spends the first release chasing bank details, publisher names and press photos, and the artist wonders whether they made the right choice. Onboarding is a workflow, and it deserves the same structure as a release.
Why the first 30 days matter
An artist who has just signed is at peak motivation. They will answer emails, fill in forms and turn up to calls. Six months later, when a distributor rejects a release because a songwriter's publisher is missing, that same artist is on tour and hard to reach. Onboarding is the window in which collecting information is easy, so use it to collect everything.
Collect core data before the first project
Every artist profile needs the same foundation: legal name and artist name, contact details, management and booking contacts, performing rights organization membership and IPI number, publisher relationships, existing catalog and where it is distributed, social and streaming profile links, and the assets you will reuse across releases such as bios, press photos and logos.
Ask for it in one structured request rather than piecemeal over months. A form the artist can complete in twenty minutes, with the option to come back and finish, gets far better results than a chain of emails.
The onboarding checklist
Write the checklist down and assign an owner to each item. The list below is a starting point that most labels adapt to their own setup.
- Executed contract stored and linked to the artist profile.
- Deal terms (splits, term, territories, options) entered where releases can read them.
- Artist profile complete: identifiers, contacts, publishing, socials.
- Payment and invoicing details captured by whoever handles finance.
- Existing catalog reviewed for rights and distribution conflicts.
- Shared workspace or channel opened with the artist and manager.
- Release calendar slot agreed for the first release.
- Intro to the label's process: how assets are collected, how approvals work, who to contact.
Set expectations and communication rules
Artists rarely know how a label works internally, and most friction comes from mismatched expectations. Tell them how far ahead you plan releases, what a complete delivery looks like, how long approvals take, and where conversations should happen. A one-page ‘how we work’ document does more for the relationship than a welcome dinner.
Decide where communication lives. Scattered WhatsApp threads with each artist are how details get lost. One shared place per artist, where files and decisions stay attached, keeps everyone honest about what was agreed.
Introduce the workflow, not just the team
Walk the artist through the release process once, ideally using their first release as the example. Show them the asset checklist, explain what metadata you need from them and why, and let them see the status of their release as it moves. Artists who understand the process deliver on time; artists who are kept in the dark deliver late and blame the label.
Use the first release as a test run
The first release will surface whatever the onboarding missed: a missing co-writer, an unregistered PRO membership, artwork in the wrong format. Expect it, plan slightly more time than usual, and record every gap you find so the onboarding checklist improves for the next signing.
At day thirty, hold a short review with the artist and manager. What was confusing, what took too long, what did they expect that did not happen? Feed the answers back into the checklist.