Whether you're sending demos to a label, sharing advance copies with press, or collaborating with producers remotely, the challenge is always the same: how do you share your unreleased music without it ending up somewhere you didn't intend?
Music leaks can derail release campaigns, strain relationships with labels, and cost you momentum you've worked hard to build. Here's a practical guide to sharing your work-in-progress securely.
The Problem with Traditional File Sharing
Most artists default to familiar tools: email attachments, Google Drive links, WeTransfer, or Dropbox. These work for sharing files, but they weren't designed with music security in mind.
- No access control after sharing: Once someone downloads your MP3, you have no way to revoke access or know if they've shared it further.
- Generic presentation: Your carefully crafted album arrives as a list of files in a folder, not as the cohesive project you envisioned.
- No visibility: Did they listen? Did they even open the link? You have no idea.
- Forwarding risk: Links can be forwarded endlessly, and downloads can be re-uploaded anywhere.
What Secure Music Sharing Actually Requires
To share unreleased music safely, you need control over three things:
1. Who Can Access It
The first line of defense is controlling who can listen at all. Password protection is the minimum—anyone who wants to hear your music needs to know the password, which you can change at any time.
For more precision, email allowlists let you specify exactly which email addresses can access your music. Combined with email verification (OTP codes), you can be confident the person listening is who they claim to be.
2. What They Can Do With It
Streaming-only access is far more secure than downloads. When someone can only stream your music through a web player, they can't easily grab the file, upload it elsewhere, or add it to a torrent. Yes, someone determined can always screen-record, but that's a much higher barrier than simply forwarding a downloaded MP3.
If you do need to allow downloads (for mastering engineers or collaborators who need the actual files), you can enable them selectively for specific shares.
3. For How Long
Time-limited links reduce your exposure window. If you're sharing an advance copy for a review that publishes next week, that link doesn't need to work forever. Set an expiration date, and the link stops working automatically.
Play limits work similarly—if you only want someone to be able to listen 10 times, you can enforce that. After the limit is reached, the link stops working.
Best Practices for Different Scenarios
Sending Demos to Labels
When you're pitching to A&R, presentation matters as much as security. Send a professional-looking share page with your artwork, track titles, and any context (lyrics, credits) rather than a ZIP file attachment.
Use a password that's easy to include in your pitch email. Keep downloads disabled unless specifically requested. Set the link to expire after 30 days—if they haven't listened by then, you can send a fresh link.
Sharing with Press and Playlist Curators
For press, use email allowlists when possible. Most publications have clear contact emails, and verifying those emails ensures your advance copy goes to the actual journalist, not someone impersonating them.
Enable real-time notifications so you know the moment they start listening. This helps you follow up at the right time—"I saw you checked out the EP yesterday, would love to hear your thoughts" is much more effective than a generic follow-up.
Collaborating with Producers and Artists
Collaborators often need downloads so they can work with the actual files. In these cases, trust is the first layer of security—you're choosing to work with this person, after all.
Still, use a unique share link for each collaborator rather than one shared link. That way, if something leaks, you know where it came from. Change passwords between collaborators if you're cycling through multiple people listening to the same project.
The Bigger Picture
No system can guarantee 100% leak-proof sharing—a determined bad actor can always find a way. But the goal isn't perfection; it's making casual leaks much harder and intentional leaks traceable.
By using proper access controls, you also signal professionalism to the people you're sharing with. A polished share page with controlled access shows you take your music seriously—which makes the listener take it seriously too.
The difference between a file attachment and a professional share link is the difference between "here's some music" and "here's my work, presented the way I intended."
Take control of how your unreleased music reaches the world. Your future releases will thank you.