Your audio goes to Spotify through a distributor — but what about your videos? Music video distribution has its own rules, and two names confuse almost every independent artist: the YouTube Official Artist Channel (OAC) and Vevo. Here's what each one is, what it does for you, and how to actually get them in 2026.
The YouTube Official Artist Channel (OAC)
An OAC is the upgraded YouTube channel with the music note badge next to the artist name. It merges everything YouTube knows about you — your own uploads, your distributed songs (those "Topic" tracks), and your subscriber counts — into one official channel.
What you get:
- The verified music-note badge, which signals "real artist" to fans and the algorithm
- Merged content: your auto-generated "Artist - Topic" tracks and your own channel count as one artist
- A proper artist layout: shelves for videos, albums and playlists
- Access to YouTube analytics for your whole catalogue, not just your uploads
How to get it: you can't apply from a regular YouTube account. The requirements are, in plain terms — you have an active YouTube channel, your music is delivered to YouTube Music through a distributor or label, and the request is submitted through a YouTube partner (your distributor). Once granted, YouTube merges your channels within a few weeks. If you distribute with Grootin, ask support to raise the OAC request once you have at least a few releases live.
One prerequisite worth doing first: claim your artist profiles everywhere, so your name, image and links are consistent when the merge happens.
Vevo: what it is and when it makes sense
Vevo is a premium music-video network. It doesn't have its own app store presence in the way fans assume — Vevo videos live on YouTube, on Vevo-branded channels, and on Vevo's syndication network (smart-TV apps and partner platforms).
What Vevo actually gives you:
- A Vevo-branded artist channel on YouTube, which carries a certain industry prestige
- Syndication of your videos to Vevo's TV and partner network
- Eligibility for Vevo's editorial programs (their emerging-artist franchises)
How to get it: Vevo works through distributor and label partnerships, not open uploads. If your distributor is a Vevo partner, they can create your Vevo channel and deliver videos to it. There's usually a per-video or subscription-style cost — ask your distributor what their Vevo delivery costs before committing.
Honest take for independent Indian artists: an OAC is close to essential; Vevo is a nice-to-have. If your budget is limited, put it into the video itself and Content ID, not a Vevo channel.
Videos on Apple Music and other platforms
Apple Music accepts full music videos through distributors that support video delivery — your video then appears on your Apple Music artist page. Specs are stricter than YouTube (broadcast-quality files, specific formats), and there's usually a separate delivery fee. JioSaavn and Spotify don't take full music videos the same way — Spotify's visual formats are Canvas loops and short Clips instead.
The practical playbook
- Release your audio through your distributor with Content ID on.
- Upload the official video to your own YouTube channel — don't hand it to a third-party channel for "promotion" without a written deal.
- Once 2–3 releases are live, ask your distributor to request your OAC.
- Revisit Vevo and Apple Music video delivery when videos are a core part of your strategy and budget.