Academy of Audio

Verification

Three badges can appear beside a member's name. They mean different things, and the difference matters.

This person is who they say they are. We have confirmed their identity, either on a short video call or by them proving control of an established channel of their own.

That is all it means. It says nothing about their ability or experience. It is free, and open to any member, including students at the very start of their journey.

The Academy of Audio has confirmed that this person works in audio to a professional standard. Real clients, real releases, real credits: this is a working professional, full time or part time, and we have checked.

This is the line between a serious professional and a capable enthusiast, and it has nothing to do with the room, the gear, or the genre. A producer working entirely in the box can hold this badge, and so can an engineer running a commercial studio. Awards and chart positions are not required. What we need is work we can confirm independently.

What we look at:

• Released, credited work. Commercial releases through a label or an established distributor, with credits we can confirm through streaming credit data, a label, or a recognised credits database.
• Real clients. A track record of artists and clients trusting this person with paid work, delivered to a professional standard.
• Sustained activity. Working now, and consistently enough that this is a real practice rather than a moment. It does not have to be full time.

The Academy of Audio has reviewed this person's career and vouches that their track record is beyond dispute. This is a judgement we make and put our own name behind, not a box that gets ticked.

Platinum recognises a professional operating at a significant level: records that reached serious audiences, sustained work at serious scale, recognition where it applies. There is more than one way to build a career like this, so not every marker below is required. We are weighing a career, not scoring a form.

What we look at:

• Reach. Chart placements, certified records, or streams at scale. A number one record or a nine-figure stream count is the sort of marker we mean.
• Awards and nominations, where it applies. An ARIA or a nomination helps. The absence of one rules nothing out.
• Major work. A history of delivering projects at significant commercial scale and budget.
• A sustained body of work. A career of delivering at the top of the profession, not one lucky credit.
• Standing among peers. Recognition from the people already doing this work at this level.

Every marker we rely on is confirmed independently.

What it is not

None of this can be bought, and none of it is affected by what anyone spends with us. Buying a course, a subscription or a mentoring session moves nobody closer to a badge. If it ever did, the badges would be worth nothing, and would deserve to be.

No badge is not a judgement. Most members will not have one, most will never ask, and plenty of excellent people simply have not applied. The absence of a badge says nothing about anyone.

Review and revocation

Badges are reviewed periodically and can be withdrawn, for example if the basis on which one was granted turns out not to hold, or if a member's conduct here is inconsistent with the Academy representing them.

We keep our reasoning for each decision private. That protects the people we decline, who are owed no public record of it.

Applying

There is no open application yet. The first Pro and Platinum badges are being granted to producers and engineers we already know and have worked alongside. An application route will open once we can review properly, and this page will say exactly how it works and what it costs before it does.

Questions about verification? Get in touch.