Stands for: International Standard Recording Code
Assigned by: Record Labels or Distributors
Assigned to: Sound Recordings and Music Videos
Sound recordings and music videos are identified with an International Standard Recording Code (ISRC). An ISRC is a unique 12-character international identifier assigned to each version of a recording or music video. For example, The Beatles recording of “Yesterday” (1965) has the ISRC GBAYE6500521, the Elvis Presley version of “Yesterday” (1969) has a different ISRC USRC16908444, and the Marvin Gaye recording of “Yesterday” (1970) also has a different ISRC USMO17000287. An ISRC is helpful when activity or information related to recordings or music videos needs to be tracked or managed, such as in the processing of digital streams or downloads. It is usually assigned by a record company during the production process, although in the case of do-it-yourself recording artists whose recordings are not overseen by a record company, it may be assigned by an authorized ISRC Manager such as a music distributor or a metadata management company. Before a record company or ISRC Manager can assign ISRCs, it must obtain a Registrant Code from a National ISRC Agency. In the U.S., the agency is the RIAA.
For more information, visit https://isrc.ifpi.org/en/ or https://www.usisrc.org/.