YouTube Official Artist Channels

Official Artist Channel are designed to help artists and their teams get the most out of YouTube and YouTube Music.  Claim your Official Artist Channel today to gain access to analytics and tools that will help you engage with millions of fans and better manage your presence on the platform

As a CD Baby artist signed up for  "Downloads and Streaming" distribution, your albums and singles will be delivered to YouTube Music automatically. YouTube will auto-generate a channel with the suffix "- Topic" like "Surfing - Topic." Claiming your Official Artist Channel will give you the tools you need to merge this Topic (music) channel with your personal artist channel. 

More information here about Official Artist Channels & YouTube for Artists.

You can now claim your YouTube Official Artist Channel from your CD Baby account here.

Common questions

Who can claim a YouTube Official Artist Channel?
How long does it take?
Why don't I see my artist listed?
How can I link multiple CD Baby accounts?
How do I change my Official Artist Channel?
How can I revoke access?
How do I reset the Official Artist Channel request?

Who can claim a YouTube Official Artist Channel?

CD Baby artists must have at least one release (album or single) distributed to YouTube Music and Google Play Music as well as at least one music video on your YouTube Music Channel. 

CD Baby artists need to have 1 active release on YouTube Music & Google Play to qualify.

How long does it take?

While most requests should be processed within 2 weeks, some requests can take a bit longer. You’ll receive an email directly from YouTube letting you know the status of your Official Artist Channel.  If you have not received an email from YouTube and it has been more than 2 weeks since you made the request, you can contact us for assistance here. Please do not delete your YouTube channel after requesting an Official Artist Channel.

Why don't I see my artist listed?

• Only the primary artist listed on your release/s is supported. 
• Your content was just recently delivered to YouTube Music and it’s still being processed
• Your album’s release date is in the future.
• YouTube Music and Google Play Music weren’t selected as part of your distribution options.
• Your release hasn’t passed inspection and therefore hasn’t been distributed.
• Your artist name doesn’t match or it was mixed up with another artist

• If this is the case file an artist separation. More info here.
  

I have multiple CD Baby accounts with the same artist, how do I link them together?

Currently, you can't merge them. We advise using the one you’re actively using or plan to use to release new music by that specific artist.

How do I change my Official Artist Channel?

Please make sure you are linking the correct artist to the correct YouTube channel. When you link your artist name to a YouTube channel and apply for a YouTube Official Artist Channel, if it is approved, that’s the channel you will be linked to. It may not be possible to change.  

How do I revoke access?

Revoking OAuth access does NOT remove the Official Artist Channel designation from your YouTube channel. 

To revoke CD Baby's OAuth access, you can log in to your Google account associated with the YouTube channel you linked and revoke access. This article covers the basic steps. 

After you follow those steps, CD Baby won’t have access to your YouTube channel any longer. We’ll remove the link from our database within 30 days. You might still see a linked channel on the YouTube Official Artist Channel landing page in your CD Baby account for up to 30 days.

VERY IMPORTANT: Revoking CD Baby's OAuth access doesn’t UNLINK the YouTube Official Artist Channel from that artist. It simply removes CD Baby's access to the YouTube account. Your music and artist name are still associated with that Official Artist Channel and further releases will still be associated on YouTube with that Official Artist Channel. 

How do I reset the Official Artist Channel request?

To request a complete reset of your artist’s Official Artist Channel, the CD Baby support team must put through a special escalation request to YouTube’s support team to reset. We can only request to reset Official Artist Channels if they are truly associated with the wrong artist. To request a complete reset, fill out this form.