Lyrics Not Showing on Instagram? Why It Happens and How to Fix It

If lyrics aren't showing on Instagram, the problem is almost always in the same place: the lyrics aren't on Musixmatch, they're wrong, they aren't synced, or the artist profile isn't verified. Instagram, Spotify, Apple Music and Facebook pull lyrics largely from Musixmatch. So the fix doesn't happen on Instagram, it happens through Musixmatch Pro: you verify your profile, add the lyrics, sync them and wait for delivery to reach the platforms. Below I walk through both the causes and the step-by-step fix.

I've been doing music distribution and digital marketing with Gizli Medya since 2009. This is one of the complaints I hear most from artists: “My song is on Reels, but the lyrics don't show up.” Most of the time there's nothing wrong with the song, just a few steps that got skipped.

Where do platforms get song lyrics from?

Musixmatch is a lyrics database and distribution infrastructure that delivers song lyrics to digital platforms. According to the partner table on Musixmatch's own help page, lyrics go to services like Spotify, Instagram, Facebook, Apple Music, Amazon Music, YouTube Music, Tidal and Snapchat, and they're also used by search engines like Google.

There's an important detail here: not every platform supports the same format.

• Instagram and Facebook: can show plain text, line-synced and word-synced lyrics.
• Spotify: shows plain text and line-synced lyrics, but not word-synced lyrics.
• Apple Music, Amazon Music, YouTube Music: plain text and line sync.

Because Instagram's lyrics sticker and the scrolling lyrics on Reels depend on timing, simply adding the lyrics may not be enough. Without sync, the lyrics either don't show at all or scroll in the wrong place.

Why aren't lyrics showing on Instagram?

Here are the causes I see in practice, in order of how often they come up. Often more than one applies at the same time.

1. The lyrics aren't on Musixmatch at all. The song was released, but nobody added the lyrics. This is the most common case.
2. The lyrics are there but not synced. Plain text was added, but no timing was done. Instagram's scrolling lyrics feature requires sync.
3. The lyrics were added from an unverified account. According to Musixmatch, lyrics added through musixmatch.com or the Lyrics Finder app may not be sent to partner platforms, even if they're live on Musixmatch. For delivery to platforms, lyrics have to be added from Musixmatch Pro, from a verified artist roster.
4. The artist profile hasn't been claimed. Until the profile is verified, the lyrics can stay locked and you can't edit them.
5. The song isn't in Instagram's music library. For lyrics to show, the song first has to be available on Instagram. That depends on your distributor delivering the song to Meta (Facebook and Instagram).
6. Region and licensing restrictions. Instagram's music feature doesn't work the same in every country or for every account type. Business accounts can have a more limited music library. In that case the problem isn't your song, it's the account or the country you're in.
7. The track length doesn't match. Musixmatch's own note: if the track length on Musixmatch differs from the length of the track uploaded to Instagram, lyrics distribution runs into problems.
8. The discography is mixed up. Two artist pages with the same name, a single that landed on someone else's profile, or releases that look different on Spotify and Apple Music all block verification.

Step 1: Verify your artist profile on Musixmatch Pro

Musixmatch's panel for artists is now called Musixmatch Pro (it used to be Musixmatch for Artists). The verification request can be made by the artist, their legal representative or their manager. The flow roughly looks like this:

1. Sign up for or log in to Musixmatch Pro. If you can, use an official email address that belongs to the artist, band or management. It makes the request more credible.
2. Go to the Roster page and click “Add artist.”
3. Search for the artist by name. If they don't come up, enter the Spotify and Apple Music artist links and submit the request.

Check these things before verifying, since most rejections come from here:

• At least one release must be publicly visible on both Spotify and Apple Music. Musixmatch doesn't count pre-releases for verification.
• The profiles on both platforms should share some of the same releases.
• None of your songs should have landed on another artist's profile. If one has, your distributor can get it fixed with the Spotify and Apple support teams.
• You should have a single Spotify artist page and a single Apple Music artist page. If your discography is split in two, your distributor submits the merge request as well.

If the request is rejected, Musixmatch tells you why by email. You can only submit a new request for the same artist once every 7 days, so don't resend it before fixing what's missing. For tidying up your profile on the Spotify side, check out my Spotify for Artists guide too.

How long does verification take?

Musixmatch's help page says verification is done manually by the team and can take up to 30 days. Paid plans include a fast verification option (Fast Track), which Musixmatch describes as a service that usually comes through within one business day. If extra identity details are needed, Musixmatch will contact you.

Don't miss one detail on the free plan: according to Musixmatch, if you're on the free Pro plan and haven't completed identity verification, the lyrics you add won't be delivered to partner platforms. Think of profile verification and identity verification as two separate steps.

Step 2: Add and sync the lyrics

Once your profile is verified, pick the artist from your roster, click the song and enter the lyrics. You can do this on the Musixmatch Pro website or in the Pro mobile app. Musixmatch says you need either a Spotify Premium account or the song's audio file to add and sync lyrics.

Formatting rules matter for smooth distribution. The highlights from Musixmatch's guidelines:

• Write the lyrics while listening to the song, exactly as you hear them. Don't copy and paste from another site.
• Write out repeated sections in full, don't use multipliers like “x2.”
• Only write the words that are sung, don't add notes or section names.

Then go to the Sync tab. There are two types of sync: line by line and word by word. You can do line sync from the web panel too, but word sync is only possible in the mobile app. Since Instagram is one of the platforms that supports word sync, it's worth doing if you want the lyrics to flow smoothly on Reels. Make sure the sync length matches the audio source on Spotify almost exactly.

Paid plans also include AI-powered automatic transcription and auto-sync tools. Even if you use them, I recommend listening through the result from start to finish; misheard words can slip in, especially with Turkish lyrics.

Can I add lyrics before release?

Yes, but not on every plan. According to Musixmatch's help page, adding pre-release lyrics isn't available on the free and basic plans, only on Artist Grow and above. For the lyrics to show alongside the song on release day, you're asked to submit the lyrics and release details at least 5 days before release.

If the release doesn't yet show as a pre-release on the platforms, Musixmatch asks you for the UPC code and then the ISRC codes of the tracks. You get these codes from your distributor. That's why you should put lyrics delivery on the calendar when planning your release; I suggest adding it to the prep list I cover in my post on why a release plan matters.

When will lyrics show on Instagram and Spotify?

Musixmatch says it sends lyrics added and synced by a verified artist to its partners within one business day. Platforms displaying them is a separate process:

• Spotify: usually a few days.
• Instagram: can stretch to a few weeks.

To track the status, open the song from the Roster tab in Musixmatch Pro. The distribution status shows on the song page:

• No status: lyrics haven't been added yet.
• Delivered to Musixmatch: the lyrics are live on Musixmatch but haven't gone to partners. Usually because the lyrics were added outside Pro, the artist isn't on your roster, or identity verification is missing on the free plan.
• Delivered to Partners: the lyrics have been delivered to the platforms, now you just have to wait.

Every time you edit or re-sync the lyrics, it takes time again for the change to reach the platforms. So it makes more sense to batch small fixes and send them all at once.

If lyrics aren't showing on Spotify and Apple Music

The same problem happens not just on Instagram but on Spotify and Apple Music too, and the fix is largely the same. Still, there are a few platform-specific details to check.

• Spotify: lyrics usually show a few days after delivery. Since Spotify doesn't show word sync, a clean line sync is enough. Make sure the version of the song on Spotify is the same as the one on Musixmatch; a remaster or a version uploaded with a different ISRC can behave like a separate song.
• Apple Music: shows plain text and line-synced lyrics. If your Apple Music profile has a missing release or one that landed on another artist, Musixmatch verification will get stuck anyway, so fix the discography first.
• Featured songs: on songs with guest artists, Musixmatch may restrict direct lyrics editing. According to Musixmatch, paid plans let you add lyrics to these songs too; if the lock stays, you'll need to contact the support team.

Once you set up the lyrics correctly, they go to all these platforms from the same source. So instead of dealing with each platform separately, the shortest path is getting the Musixmatch side right.

What can your distributor do in this process?

You don't have to leave your distributor to use Musixmatch; Musixmatch says so clearly. Your distributor takes your song to the platforms, and Musixmatch Pro takes your lyrics. The two complement each other. These are the points where your distributor comes in:

• Delivering the song to Meta (the Instagram and Facebook music library). If the song can't be found on Instagram at all, check this before dealing with lyrics.
• Providing the UPC and ISRC codes needed for adding pre-release lyrics.
• Getting split or mixed-up artist pages fixed with Spotify and Apple.
• Making sure the same audio file goes to every platform. Versions with different lengths can break lyrics sync.

Some distributors work directly with Musixmatch, others don't. I recommend asking about details like this when choosing a distributor; I've gathered the other things to check in my post on how to choose a music distribution company. On the music distribution side, we work with Universal Music Group and Ingrooves infrastructure and treat lyrics delivery as part of the release process.

Quick checklist

If lyrics still aren't showing on Instagram, check these in order:

1. Can the song be found in Instagram's music library?
2. Did you test with a personal or creator account, or a business account?
3. Is the artist profile verified on Musixmatch Pro?
4. If you're on the free plan, is identity verification done?
5. Were the lyrics added through Pro, and were they synced?
6. Is the distribution status “Delivered to Partners”?
7. Is the track length on Musixmatch the same as on Instagram?
8. Have a few weeks passed since delivery?

Correct lyrics may seem like a small detail, but they directly affect a creator's experience when using your song on Reels. If your song isn't getting many streams overall, I cover the reasons separately in my post why isn't my song getting streams.