This guide is to help you slice mixes for uploading to Spotify & Apple Music on Proton. If you're looking for the full guide for how the entire mix upload process works go here for artists and here for music labels.
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Uploading mixes to Spotify & Apple Music is not as easy as uploading mixes to SoundCloud, MixCloud, or the Proton Radio station. On Spotify & Apple Music, mixes need to be sliced into their individual WAVs for each track in the mix. You then upload these WAV slices instead of a mixed MP3 file.

We've prepared a guide that explains how to easily slice your mix using Ableton Live. Even if you don't use Ableton to make your mixes, you can still use this guide to slice your mix with Ableton. You can also use different applications (like Audacity) to slice your mix using this guide as an example.

Our mix slicing guide for Ableton Live uses the "Locator" features to help you create accurate selections for your slices. First, you'll create a locator at the start of each track plus one at the end of your mix. Then, you'll select each slice individually and export it as a WAV. Here's how!

Step 1 -  Create Your Mix
Create your mix mix as you normally would, with any application or setup. The screenshots for this guide are of a mix made in Ableton itself, but you can also drop in a recording of an existing mix. 

Step 2 - Prepare to Slice!
To begin, switch Ableton into arrangement view by toggling the TAB key or clicking the arrangement icon in the top right corner, like this:

If you didn't make your mix in Ableton itself, drop your mix file into the arrangement view so that you're able to start slicing.

Step 3 - Add First Locator
​Right click in the scrubbing area at the top of the mix and select ‘Insert Locator’ at the exact start of your 1st track. Locator #1 should appear, like this:

Step 4 - Add Locators for Every Track
Move to where you want your 2nd track to start. Right click in the scrubbing area at the top and select ‘Insert Locator’. Locator #2 should appear.

Now, repeat this for every track in the mix. Make a locator at the start of every track, and double check you have as many locators as you have tracks in your mix.

Exactly where you add the locators is somewhat up to you. Where you drop the locators is where the tracks will switch on Spotify and Apple Music, so we recommending dropping locators at the critical moment a song begins in the mix.

Step 5 - The Final Locator
​In the previous step you added a locator at the start of every track, including the beginning of your mix. Now you need to add one final locator at the end of your mix. When you're done, this means you have one more locator than you have total tracks. For example, if you have 10 tracks in your mix, you'd have a total of 11 locators: one at the start of every track, plus one locator at the very end.

Step 6 - Export Your Slices
Double check you have as many locators as you have tracks, plus the extra one at the end of the mix. Once all your locators are in place, you're ready to export your slices.

Right click on your first locator and select ‘Select to Next Locator’:

With the selection made, you can now export the audio for this slice. Go to the File menu and select the Export Audio/VIdeo option - it will only export your selection!

Export the slice as a 16 Bit 44khz WAV. When saving your sliced WAVs, we recommend putting the track number at the start of your slice, ex 01 Track.wav -- this will help you with uploading later.

Step 7 - Double Check Your Work!
​After slicing all your WAVs, you can test playback of your mix using an audio player that supports gapless playback.  If you're a Mac/OSX user, we recommend a free player called Vox because iTunes actually won't playback gapless like Apple Music. For Windows users, try foobar2000 to test playback of your slices.
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