Frequently Asked Questions

  1. Where can I send my demo?
    The best way of getting your music heard by Akon is by signing up as an Artists, uploading your songs and have them analyzed by our Dynamic Hit Score (DHS) system. If your song scores high, it’ll be flagged by our system as a potential hit, and that always gets Akon’s attention.
  2. What audio format do you accept?
    We accept MP3s, preferably encoded at 128kb/s.
  3. Do I retain the copyright of my songs?
    Absolutely! All "intellectual property" that you upload to our website remains solely yours, however when you join and agree to our Terms of Use you allow us a limited license to use your content. Please read the Terms of Use carefully.
  4. Does Akon listen to the Artists on Hitlab?
    He certainly does. However, because of his busy schedule, he can’t listen to everyone, but if a song receives a high DHS and if the Artist has a high rank, they’ll be flagged as potential hit material and that will get Akon’s attention for sure.
  5. How does the ranking work?
    The ranking is more about interacting with Fans than about the points. Fans like to feel connected to Artists they like and HITLAB rewards you for sharing with your Fans. The Fans, in return, reward you by voting for you, buying your songs, and telling their friends about you. The more you give your Fans, in terms of songs, blog posts, photos and videos, the more points you are rewarded by HITLAB and the more you are rewarded by your Fans.
  6. Do you consider Artists not on the top 100 ranking?
    If a song receives a high enough DHS, you’ll be noticed regardless of your rank.
  7. If my song gets a high DHS, does my rank matter?
    Your rank still matters as that is an indication of how well you interact and are received by the Fans. This in turn gives us an indication on how well you will interact and be received by the rest of the world.
  8. Do you have a section for lyrics only?
    Not at this stage. However, it is something we will be looking at in the future.
  9. How old do I have to be to create a profile?
    You should be 13 years or older.
  10. I want to be featured artists.
    Featured Artists are chosen based on a number of criteria, including DHS, Rank, as well as how they have been promoting their HITLAB profile outside of HITLAB. We look at other websites such as Twitter, MySpace, Facebook as well as the Artist’s own website or blogs and anywhere else they may have mentioned HITLAB or their HITLAB profile.
    It really comes down to if you promote us, we’ll promote you.
  11. When will I receive money for selling songs?
    From each song sold, $0.60 goes directly to you, the artist, and once your song sales reach $50 we will send you a check for that amount.
  12. What is your refund policy
    Because of the digital nature of our products, we are unable to provide a refund. If you have purchased a product such as DHS and haven't used it, then we may be able to provide a refund, but it will be on a case-by-case basis.
  13. I am being charged repeatedly for a DHS credit
    It looks like you've purchased a monthly membership (check if you are being charged $19.99 each time). If you don't wish to have a monthly membership, contact Customer Service to have your membership cancelled (see question above for our stance on refunds).