When two artists make a song together, someone has to decide how they appear on the release: who is the primary artist and who is featured. It looks like a formality, one field in a form. In practice, the role you choose decides which artist pages the song lives on, how it is shown to listeners and how hard it will be to change later.
What a primary artist is
The primary artist is the artist the release belongs to. On streaming platforms, a release appears in the main discography of its primary artist, among their singles, EPs or albums. The primary artist's name is shown first and most prominently, and the release is presented as their work.
A release can have more than one primary artist. In that case it belongs equally to each of them and appears in each artist's own discography. Their names are joined in the artist line, for example "Mara Vale, Jonah Reed", in whatever format each platform uses.
What a featured artist is
A featured artist is a guest on a track that belongs to someone else. The song is presented as the primary artist's release, and the guest's name is shown with "feat." or a similar marker, depending on the platform.
On the featured artist's own page, the song usually does not appear among their main releases. Platforms tend to place it in a separate section for songs the artist appears on. So a feature is visible from the guest's profile, but as a guest appearance, not as part of their discography.
That difference is the whole point of the choice. Primary means "this is my release". Featured means "I am on this release".
Duets and equal collaborations: two primary artists
Use two primary artists when the song is truly a joint project:
- both artists sing or rap a comparable part
- both will promote it as their own song
- the release plan, cover and announcements are shared
- both want it in their own discography
A classic duet fits here. So does a joint EP where two producers made every track together.
Use primary plus featured when one artist leads and the other contributes: a guest verse, a chorus, an instrumental solo. The song belongs to the lead artist's story, and the guest adds something to it.
A practical test: imagine the song on each artist's page. Would one of them say "that is not really my song"? If yes, that person is the featured artist.
Release level and track level
On a single, the release and the track are basically the same thing. On an EP or album, roles can be set on two levels.
- Release-level primary artists own the whole release. Every track on it is theirs.
- Track-level artists apply to one song only. A guest who sings on track 4 should be featured on track 4, not added to the whole album.
A common mistake is adding a guest as a primary artist at album level because they appear on one song. The whole album then shows up in the guest's discography, which neither artist wanted.
What happens when the role is wrong
Mistakes with roles are among the most annoying to fix, because the release is already out and listeners have already found it.
- The song lands on the wrong page, or misses the right one. A guest listed as primary gets the whole release in their discography. A co-lead listed as featured sees the song only as a guest appearance.
- A new empty profile appears. If the guest's name is spelled differently from their existing profile, platforms may create a new profile for that spelling.
- Changes after release are slow. Fixing artist roles usually means correcting the metadata and delivering again, and each platform processes the change in its own time. Some changes may not be possible without taking the release down.
- The release may be sent back. Listing a well-known artist who is not actually on the song, or adding producers as featured artists to attract attention, is treated as misleading and gets releases rejected.
Producers, songwriters and engineers belong in the credits, not in the artist roles. "Prod. by" does not go in the title or in the featured artist field.
Agree before you submit
Before one of you fills in the release form, settle these points in writing, even in a short message:
- Who is primary and who is featured, or are you both primary?
- The exact spelling of each name, as it appears on existing profiles.
- Links to each artist's existing profiles on the main platforms, so the release is matched to the right pages.
- Whether the roles apply to the whole release or to specific tracks.
- Who submits the release and who checks the details before it goes out.
If the review finds a problem with names or roles, the requested change appears in the CULT portal, on the release itself. But no review can know what you and your collaborator agreed. That part is yours.