Spotify and Apple Music dominate the conversation, and JioSaavn dominates many Indian phones — but Amazon Music quietly reaches millions of Indian listeners through Prime memberships and Alexa smart speakers. Amazon Music for Artists is the free app and web dashboard that lets you claim your artist profile, read your stats (including Alexa voice requests), update your images and pitch new songs to Amazon's editorial team. This guide walks independent artists in India through every step.

We've already covered Spotify playlist pitching, Apple Music pitching and JioSaavn's ArtistOne. Amazon Music is the fourth platform worth setting up — it takes about fifteen minutes, and most indie artists in India never do it.

Why Amazon Music matters for Indian artists

  • Prime bundling. Amazon Music comes with Amazon Prime in India, so a large base of listeners has it installed whether or not they chose it.
  • Alexa and voice. "Alexa, play [song]" streams come through Amazon Music by default for many Echo users. Amazon Music for Artists shows these voice requests separately — data you won't get anywhere else.
  • Less competition for attention. Far fewer independent artists pitch Amazon's editors than Spotify's. That doesn't guarantee placement, but your pitch isn't one in a flood.
  • Regional playlists. Amazon Music India programmes Hindi, Punjabi, Tamil, Telugu and other regional-language playlists alongside indie and global ones.

Step 0: Get your music onto Amazon Music

You can't upload to Amazon Music directly. Your songs reach it through a distributor or label. When you upload a release, make sure Amazon Music is selected as a store and that your artist name is spelt exactly the same across releases — mismatches create duplicate profiles that are a pain to merge. If you haven't chosen a distributor yet, compare options in our music distribution guide for India, and see our release without a label checklist.

Also important: Amazon says it does not allow profile claims before your first release is publicly available (Amazon Music for Artists FAQs). If you're a brand-new artist, wait until release day.

How to claim your Amazon Music for Artists profile

Per Amazon's FAQs, the flow is:

  1. Download the Amazon Music for Artists app (iOS or Android) or go to the web version at artists.amazonmusic.com.
  2. Sign in with an Amazon retail account. Your regular Amazon.in shopping account works; if you don't have one, create one.
  3. Search for your artist name and select the correct profile (check the release artwork to be sure).
  4. Tap Claim This Artist.
  5. Fill out the application — your role (artist, manager, label), contact email and links.
  6. Connect your social accounts for faster verification.

Instant access via distributor. Amazon notes that artists using CD Baby, DistroKid, TuneCore or TuneCore Japan can get instant access by authenticating with their distributor login. DistroKid's help article shows this as "Connect Via Distributor". If you use an Indian distributor, follow their instructions — for example, PlayGeet's knowledge centre explains that Amazon itself reviews and approves claims; the distributor doesn't.

If your claim is stuck: verification tips

Amazon's FAQs list what helps when verification stalls. Under "additional information", include any of:

  • A link to your official website that shows the email address you're claiming with.
  • A social media profile (Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, X, SoundCloud, Bandcamp) showing your name and/or that email in the About section.
  • For managers: a management company website listing the artist on its roster — and ideally your claiming email on that company's domain.

Your first claim has to be approved by Amazon's team before you can claim another artist. Practical tip for Indian artists: put a business email in your Instagram bio or YouTube About tab for a week while your claim is pending. It makes the reviewer's job easy.

What you can do once verified

  • Stats: streams, listeners, follower growth, top songs, and audience by city and country.
  • Alexa voice requests: how often listeners asked a voice assistant for your music.
  • Profile management: update your artist image and background.
  • Team access: invite managers or band members with Owner/Admin/other roles.
  • Pitching: submit new music for editorial and programming consideration.
  • Report issues: fix profile-mapping problems (wrong artist, missing songs).

How to pitch songs to Amazon Music playlists

Amazon's pitch page sets out eligibility:

  • New, never-released music only.
  • One track per release — single, EP or album.
  • Delivered to Amazon Music with streaming rights.
  • Submitted up to 14 days after street date (based on album-level metadata).

Once your distributor has delivered the release, it appears under Profile & Tools → New Releases in the app. Anyone with Owner or Admin access can submit the pitch. Amazon accepts one pitch per team type (artist team vs label team), and you cannot edit a pitch after submitting, so agree on the details with your team first.

Pitch earlier than the deadline

Fourteen days after release is the cut-off, not a target. Pitch as early as the release shows up in New Releases — ideally before release day — so editors have time to consider it. Ask your distributor to deliver 2–4 weeks ahead of the release date.

What to write in an Amazon Music pitch

Amazon's own tips stress accuracy and context: details about the track, the artist and your marketing plans; where your audience is; and any featured guests. One Amazon curator quoted on the pitch page says genre matters, but so do context and mood — "a dark pop song about heartbreak" tells them more than "pop".

A strong pitch from an Indian indie artist covers:

  1. Genre + mood + language, precisely: "Hindi indie-pop, melancholic, late-night drive, acoustic guitar and synth pads".
  2. What the song is about, in one or two sentences.
  3. Where your listeners are: "Our strongest cities are Pune, Bengaluru and Delhi; 30% of listeners are in the UAE and US."
  4. Marketing plan: Reels campaign, YouTube video premiere, radio or press, gigs and festivals.
  5. Collaborators and credits: featured artists, producer, notable session players.
  6. Momentum: previous editorial placements, sync, press coverage, follower growth.

Keep it factual. Don't paste lyrics; don't exaggerate numbers.

Amazon Music for Artists vs Spotify for Artists vs Apple Music for Artists

  • Claim before first release? — Amazon Music for Artists: No; Spotify for Artists: Yes (via distributor, upcoming release); Apple Music for Artists: Varies
  • Pitch window — Amazon Music for Artists: Up to 14 days after street date; Spotify for Artists: Before release (at least 7 days ahead recommended); Apple Music for Artists: Via distributor/Apple tools
  • Tracks per release — Amazon Music for Artists: One; Spotify for Artists: One
  • Unique data — Amazon Music for Artists: Alexa voice requests; Spotify for Artists: Discovery Mode/Marquee (paid); Apple Music for Artists: Shazam data

As described on each platform's artist pages; check each portal for current rules.

Tips to grow on Amazon Music after release

  • Share Amazon Music links alongside Spotify and YouTube on your link-in-bio pages, so fans who use Prime have an easy option.
  • Ask fans with Echo devices to try "Alexa, play [song] by [artist]" — it helps them and shows you voice demand.
  • Keep metadata clean: correct ISRCs, featured-artist fields and language tags help programming. See our guide to ISRC and ISWC codes.
  • Pitch every release. Even if one song isn't picked up, consistent pitches with accurate data build a track record.
  • Watch the city data and use it to plan gigs and paid ads.

FAQs

Is Amazon Music for Artists free? Yes, it's free for artists with music on Amazon Music.

Can I claim my Amazon Music profile before my first song is out? No. Amazon says claims are only allowed once the first release is publicly available.

How long does Amazon Music verification take? It varies. Connecting via a supported distributor is instant; manual claims depend on Amazon's review. Linking social accounts speeds it up.

How many songs can I pitch to Amazon Music? One track per release, submitted no later than 14 days after the street date.

Will Amazon tell me whether my pitch was accepted? Amazon's FAQ addresses pitch status updates; in practice, placements show up in your stats. Don't expect personal feedback.

Do I need a separate profile for Amazon Music India? No. One Amazon Music for Artists profile covers your artist page globally, including India.

The takeaway

Amazon Music for Artists takes fifteen minutes to set up and unlocks Alexa data no other platform gives you, plus a pitching channel most independent artists in India ignore. Claim your profile on release day, pitch every new song early with precise genre and mood, and add Amazon links wherever you share music.

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