Is a youtube thumbnail any less valid than a spotify thumbnail?

A few users are downvoting cover art as found on youtube because ‘i am just pulling splash screens’. They don’t seem to view a youtube thumbnail as an artist creation, while the song has been released only digitally so this is the cover art for the song. Oddly they precieve Spotify images as ok.

https://musicbrainz.org/edit/109715935

So what’s up with this. Is a Spotify image any different than a youtube thumbnail if it is clearly a created work on the artist official youtube?

Since we already have plenty of ongoing debate about how vodeos should be handled, I am just asking how to handle audio only releases.

Personally I feel it is wrong to dismiss (delete from the database) a piece of art the artist made to go with the song, just because it was uploaded to youtube rather than spotify.

left a note on the edit, but I figured I’d explain here.

as said in my note, I do agree that if a thumbnail was created, it definitely belongs on a release (actually, even if it was automatically selected, I think it’s still good to have). however, I wouldn’t add this art to the wrong release (in this case the Spotify/Deezer/Apple Music release), as that release never had that piece of cover art

(I’d hold off on acting on the below until a decision comes out of the discussion of STYLE-2428 for adding lyric video releases)

I would add this art to it’s own release for the lyric video instead, as it was actually distributed with that piece of cover art (via YouTube’s thumbnail system)

cover art in MusicBrainz is primarily meant to identify releases (tho moreso for physical, it also often applies to digital). by adding a YouTube thumbnail to a Spotify release, it might become more difficult to properly identify releases such as these, thus damaging the integrity of the database


complete sidenote, I do appreciate you joining the push for music videos~ I’ve been trying to get a better place for them for at least a year, maybe two, and we’re finally getting some good and proper discussion with the style leader~ :sunglasses: :call_me_hand:

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Apparently this is not a video release but an audio release with links to online download audio shops.
I didn’t press play button but I guess this is just a still image, isn’t it?

I think for audio releases, the video-ish 16:9 YouTube thumbnail is indeed less appropriate than the download shops’ square (1:1) or almost square audio-ish cover art.

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I believe it’s the thumbnail for this lyric video. not 100% sure, as there’s no link on the edit tho, and I’m away from my computer and don’t have my YouTube thumbnail puller

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I think audio releases should be taken as the same release but all versions of the album cover (thus also the youtube thumbnail) should be added. If the realse date differs that means mutliple release events on the same release.

Actual videos should be standalone releases.

Dismising any youtube thumbnail as ‘lesser than spotify’ makes no sense to me. Someone made this image on purpose. People have seen this image associated with the music they played, it belongs with the song as much as a Spotify cover or physical album cover.

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Maybe I’m reading this ‘all versions’ part somehow wrong but I need to say no. A few exceptions exist but normally any difference in artwork means we should create a respective unique release.

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7 posts were merged into an existing topic: What is a cover recording?