Music Credits MCP

What is MCP?

Model Context Protocol is the open standard for connecting AI assistants to external tools and data sources. When you connect to the Credits.fm MCP server, your AI can natively search music metadata, look up songwriter credits, resolve Spotify URLs, and more — without you having to copy-paste API responses.

Connect in 30 seconds

Get a free key at credits.fm/api, then paste one of the configs below. Always send the raw cfm_ key as x-api-key — never Authorization: Bearer. tools/list can succeed while lookups fail without a key.

{
  "Credits": {
    "url": "https://credits.fm/mcp",
    "headers": {
      "x-api-key": "cfm_YOUR_KEY"
    }
  }
}

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "credits": {
      "url": "https://credits.fm/mcp",
      "headers": {
        "x-api-key": "cfm_YOUR_KEY"
      }
    }
  }
}

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "credits": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://credits.fm/mcp",
      "headers": {
        "x-api-key": "cfm_YOUR_KEY"
      }
    }
  }
}

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "credits": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["mcp-remote", "https://credits.fm/mcp", "--header", "x-api-key:cfm_YOUR_KEY"]
    }
  }
}

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "credits": {
      "serverUrl": "https://credits.fm/mcp",
      "headers": {
        "x-api-key": "cfm_YOUR_KEY"
      }
    }
  }
}

Contributing

Lookup responses include a structured _contribute data block listing fields the record is missing along with a pre-filled template. When you want to share data you have — from MLC, CISAC, MusicBrainz, Apple Music, your own catalog, or your own knowledge — you can call credits_contribute with that template. Low-risk fields (ISWC, song title, alternative names) auto-accept; medium/high-risk fields stage for human review. Accepted contributions become part of the public CC-BY 4.0 index.

Pass contribute: false on a lookup tool to suppress the _contribute block in the response.

API key

Get a free API key and pass it as x-api-key on every MCP request (see configs above). Required for credits_contribute; strongly recommended for all lookups — guest MCP is rate-limited (~20 tool calls/min) and some environments return Access denied without a key.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "credits": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://credits.fm/mcp",
      "headers": {
        "x-api-key": "cfm_YOUR_KEY"
      }
    }
  }
}

Available tools

17 tools covering all of Credits.fm's data. Start with credits_search for any query, then drill down with specific lookup tools. credits_contribute is available when a user asks to fill gaps they discover.

Example

Once connected, just ask naturally. Your AI will call the right tools automatically.

Protocol details

Test it

Verify the server is running with a simple curl:

# List available tools
curl -X POST https://credits.fm/mcp \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","method":"tools/list","id":1}'

# Search for a song (include x-api-key)
curl -X POST https://credits.fm/mcp \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -H "x-api-key: cfm_YOUR_KEY" \
  -d '{"jsonrpc":"2.0","method":"tools/call","params":{"name":"credits_lookup_isrc","arguments":{"isrc":"GBCEE9800022","contribute":false}},"id":2}'

Data coverage

Also available

Data handling

Per request we log: client IP, the identifier looked up, the tool name, a hashed API-key id when present, the rate-limit tier, response latency, and HTTP status. We do not store conversation content, request/response bodies, or any user PII beyond the IP. Logs are retained for abuse-prevention and aggregate analytics; they are not sold or shared.

The index itself is licensed CC-BY 4.0 and aggregates from open sources (MLC, CISAC, MusicBrainz, and ISNI.org). Apple Music and Spotify provide navigation links plus supplementary factual metadata (recording/album titles, artist names) used to fill records the open sources don’t cover — attributed to the platform and not claimed under our CC-BY license; their cover art is governed by their own developer terms and is not redistributed (the API returns only open-licensed MusicBrainz Cover Art Archive artwork). Accepted contributions submitted via credits_contribute become part of the public index. See the Notes.fm privacy policy for the full data-handling statement covering Credits.fm.

Security & support

Report security vulnerabilities to security@credits.fm. We aim to acknowledge reports within 5 business days. General questions and support: hello@credits.fm or file an issue at github.com/Notes-fm/credits/issues.