How to cite music in MLA means naming the creator, the track title, the container you used, plus a date and a locator such as a label or URL.
Music citations go wrong when how to cite music in MLA often feels fuzzy. A track on a streaming app, a YouTube performance, and a CD booklet aren’t the same container, so MLA asks for different details.
This guide shows the pieces MLA wants, clean patterns for common sources, plus a checklist for last-minute checks at submission.
How To Cite Music In MLA
MLA 9 uses a flexible template: you pull the elements your source provides and place them in a set order. Once you learn the order, you stop guessing about commas, italics, and where the URL belongs.
Start by collecting these details from the exact place you listened, watched, or read:
- Creator you’re crediting (performer, composer, or group)
- Title of the song, track, piece, or video
- Container (album, streaming service, website, database, or program)
- Other contributors that matter (featured artist, conductor, ensemble)
- Publisher (often the record label or the site hosting the item)
- Date (year works for many releases; use full dates for posts and videos)
- Location (URL, page range, track number, or time stamp)
| Source you used | Details to capture | Works Cited pattern |
|---|---|---|
| Track on a streaming service | Performer, track title, service name, URL | Performer. “Track Title.” Service, URL. |
| Song on a physical album (CD, vinyl) | Performer, track title, album title, label, year, format | Performer. “Track Title.” Album, Label, Year. Format. |
| Album as a whole | Performer, album title, label, year, format or platform | Performer. Album, Label, Year. Format. |
| Music video on YouTube | Uploader or artist, video title, site, date, URL | Uploader. “Video Title.” YouTube, Day Mon. Year, URL. |
| Lyrics page on a website | Artist, page title, site name, date, URL | Artist. “Song Title Lyrics.” Site Name, Date, URL. |
| Recording in a library database | Creator, item title, album or collection, label, year, database, permalink | Creator. “Item Title.” Album, Label, Year. Database, URL. |
| Live performance program or event page | Event title, venue, city, date, program URL | “Event Title.” Venue, City, Date. Site Name, URL. |
| Sheet music or score | Composer, title, editor, publisher, year, page range or database | Composer. Title. Editor, Publisher, Year. |
Citing music in MLA by format and access method
The same song can produce two valid citations, depending on how you accessed it. MLA solves that with containers. A container is the “thing that holds the thing,” like an album that holds a track or a site that hosts a video.
Use the core order, then stop
Think in this order: creator, title, container, other contributors, publisher, date, location. You won’t always have every element, and that’s normal. Include what the source shows you, then end the entry.
Choose the creator that matches your point
If you’re writing about a recording, the performer or group usually fits as the creator. If you’re writing about the composition across performances, start with the composer. For a score, composer first is often the cleanest choice.
Get titles and italics right
Song and track titles usually go in quotation marks. Album titles and site names usually go in italics. This makes it easy to see what’s the item and what’s the container.
Use the title as it appears on the source. Don’t “fix” stylized capitalization just to make it look tidy.
Works Cited entries for music sources students use most
When you want official wording, start with the MLA Style Center rules for songs, recordings, and performances. Next, check Purdue OWL’s “Other Common Sources” patterns. Use those as patterns and fill in the details from your container.
Track on Spotify, Apple Music, or another service
List the performer, the track title, then the service name in italics as the container. Add the direct URL for the track page.
Template: Performer. “Track Title.” Service, URL.
Sample entry: Lamar, Kendrick. “HUMBLE.” Spotify, open.spotify.com/track/xxxx.
Song on a CD, vinyl, or downloaded album file
Use the album title as the container. Include the label and year. Add the format at the end when it helps the reader understand what you used.
Template: Performer. “Track Title.” Album, Label, Year. Format.
Sample entry: Winehouse, Amy. “Rehab.” Back to Black, Island Records, 2006. CD.
Album as the full source
If you’re citing the whole album, start with the performer, then italicize the album title. Finish with label, year, and format or platform.
Template: Performer. Album, Label, Year. Format.
Music video or live session on YouTube
Use the channel name shown on the video as the creator. Add the full upload date, then the URL.
Template: Uploader. “Video Title.” YouTube, Day Mon. Year, URL.
Lyrics page on a website
If you copied lyrics from a website, cite that page. The site name becomes your container. Add a date if the page provides one, then the URL.
Template: Artist. “Song Title Lyrics.” Site Name, Date, URL.
Recording in a database
Databases often act as a second container. Start with the creator you’re crediting, add the recording details, then list the database name in italics and use its permalink when available.
Sheet music or a score
For print scores, the publisher and year matter more than a URL. For digitized scores, add the site or database name and its stable link at the end.
In-text citations for lyrics, tracks, and performances
In MLA, the parenthetical citation points to the first element of your Works Cited entry, then adds a locator. Books use page numbers. Music often needs a locator like a time stamp, a track number, or a page range from printed music.
Quoting lyrics in a paper
Keep lyric quotations short. Use a slash with spaces on both sides to show line breaks in a short quote. For four lines or more, use a block quote and keep the line breaks as printed or displayed.
After the quote, add a parenthetical that matches your Works Cited entry. If your entry starts with the artist’s name, use that name in the parenthetical. Add a locator that helps your reader find the spot you used.
Choosing a locator when there is no page number
Streaming tracks and videos don’t come with page numbers, so use what the format provides. A time stamp works well when you’re pointing to a moment in a recording. A track number can work when you’re pointing to a track inside a multi-track album.
Pick one locator style for each source type in your paper, then stay consistent.
Details that cause errors in MLA music citations
Most grading comments come from small slips. Fix these and your citations will look clean across the page.
Using a search-results link instead of a direct URL
Use a direct page URL, not a search results page. If the platform offers a share link, use it. If your library provides a permalink, use that.
Guessing at a publisher
For streaming, the platform name is often enough as the container. A separate publisher may be missing. If the source lists a label or distributor, include it. If nothing is shown, skip it.
Doubling containers
When you cite a track from an album, the album title is your container. When you cite the same track from a streaming service, the service is your container. List both only when you used both, such as a database entry that delivers the recording.
| Check | What MLA expects | Quick fix |
|---|---|---|
| Creator matches your point | Performer for a recording, composer for a composition | Change the first element to match your claim |
| Track title formatting | Quotation marks for a song or track | Add quotation marks, keep title capitalization consistent |
| Container present | Album, site, service, or database in italics | Ask where you accessed it, then cite that container |
| Date fits the source | Year for many releases; full date for posts and videos | Use the date displayed on the platform |
| Location helps the reader | URL, page range, track number, or time stamp | Use a stable link or a clear locator |
| Punctuation stays consistent | Periods after major elements, commas inside containers | Match your entry to a trusted template |
| No extra add-on labels | Skip “Retrieved from” unless your instructor asks | Delete extra words after the final element |
| Entry ends cleanly | Last element ends with a period | Remove stray punctuation, then finish with one period |
Citing music in MLA when you write about a lyric line
When your sentence quotes a lyric, start by matching the source. If you copied the words from a lyrics website, cite that page on your Works Cited list. If you transcribed from a recording, cite the recording container you used.
Then build the parenthetical around the first element of the Works Cited entry. Add a locator that fits the container, like a time stamp for audio and video or a page number for a printed score. If your class wants line numbers, use the line numbers printed in the edition you used.
Checklist you can keep beside your draft
This list keeps your Works Cited entries and in-text citations in sync:
- Write the Works Cited entry first, using the container you actually used
- Make the first element of the entry the name you’ll use in parentheses
- Use quotation marks for a track title; use italics for album and site titles
- Add a label or site publisher only when the source shows it
- Add a date that matches the format shown on the source
- Add a location that leads back to the item (URL, page range, track number, time stamp)
- Check that each parenthetical citation matches its Works Cited entry
Fast build method for a clean Works Cited entry
- Name the item. One track, a full album, a video, a score, or an event page.
- Name the container. Album title, Spotify, YouTube, a database, or a program site.
- Fill creator and title. Add performer or composer, then the item title.
- Add publisher and date. Use what the source displays.
- Add location. Paste the direct URL or add a clear locator.
- Do a quick scan. If it reads like a clean path back to the source, you’re done.
When your instructor adds extra rules
Some classes want extra details, like listing both a composer and a performer, or a class handout may set a strict preference for one title form. That isn’t you doing it “wrong.” It’s a course-level rule layered on top of MLA.
If a rubric or handout calls for something specific, follow that. When it doesn’t, stick to one MLA pattern per source type and keep your Works Cited page consistent.