Song Library

The Song Library is your central catalog for every worship song your church performs. From here you can add songs, manage metadata, upload attachments, create arrangements, track usage, and share songs with your team.

Accessing the Song Library

1. Log in to your TimelyChurch admin dashboard.
2. In the sidebar, click Songs.

You will see the Song Library index page showing all songs with summary counts at the top (total songs, approved, drafts, and songs not used in the last 30 days).

Browsing and Searching

Search

Use the search bar at the top to find songs by title, artist, composer, or lyrics content.

Status Views

Click the dropdown on the left side of the toolbar to switch between status views:

• All Songs -- Every song in your library.
• Approved -- Songs approved and ready for use in services.
• Drafts -- Songs still being prepared.
• Archived -- Songs that have been archived (hidden from the main library but kept so they can be restored).

Filters Panel

Click Filters to reveal additional filter options. These are independent of the status view and can be combined:

• Status -- Draft, Approved, or Archived.
• Key -- Filter by the song's default musical key (all 12 major and 12 minor keys are supported).
• Tempo -- Slow, Medium, Fast, or Varied.
• Theme -- Choose from over 30 built-in worship themes including Praise, Worship, Communion, Christmas, Easter, Advent, Gospel, Contemporary, and more.
• Usage -- "Recently used (last 30 days)", "Not used in 30 days", or "Never used".
• Attachments -- "Has attachments" or "No attachments".
• Trashed -- "With archived" or "Only archived" to control whether archived songs are included.

Click Apply to run the filters or Clear to reset.

Sorting

Songs can be sorted by:

• Title (default, A-Z)
• Last used date
• Use count

View Modes

Toggle between Table view and Card view using the icons in the toolbar. On mobile devices, the card view is always used.

Adding a New Song

1. Click the Add Song button in the top-right corner.
2. A modal will appear with the following fields:

1. Click Add Song. The quick-add modal submits the new song with status Approved so it is immediately available to add to service plans. (You can change the status later from the song's edit form -- see "Editing a Song" below.)

You will be taken to the song's detail page where you can add more information.

Editing a Song

1. From the Song Library, click on a song to open its detail page.
2. Click the Edit button.
3. The edit form provides all fields available for a song:

Basic Information

• Title (required)
• Artist
• Composer
• CCLI Number
• Default Key -- Select from all major and minor keys.
• Tempo -- Slow, Medium, Fast, or Varied.
• Time Signature -- For example, "4/4" or "3/4".
• Status -- Draft, Approved, or Archived.

Content

• Scripture Reference -- A related Bible passage (e.g., "Psalm 23:1").
• YouTube Link -- A URL to a YouTube performance or tutorial.
• Spotify Link -- A URL to the song on Spotify.
• Lyrics -- Full song lyrics in plain text.
• Notes -- Internal notes for your team.

Themes

Select from the full list of built-in themes:

Praise, Worship, Adoration, Thanksgiving, Confession, Communion, Baptism, Prayer, Invitation/Altar Call, Christmas, Easter, Good Friday, Pentecost, Advent, Missions, Healing, Peace, Hope, Faith, Love, Grace, Salvation, Revival, Children, Youth, Opening, Closing, Traditional Hymn, Contemporary, Gospel.

1. Click Save Changes.

Song Detail Page

The song detail page is organized into tabs:

Header

Displays the song title, artist, status badge, key, tempo, duration, and CCLI number. Quick-action buttons let you Edit, open the Chord Chart Editor, Share the song, Duplicate it, or Archive it.

Stats Row

Shows four metrics:

• Used -- How many times the song has been used in services.
• Last Used -- The date it was last used.
• Files -- Number of attachments.
• Arr. -- Number of arrangements.

Details Tab

Shows the song lyrics, themes, and external links (YouTube and Spotify) with clickable buttons.

Attachments Tab

Lists all uploaded files and external links. You can preview audio, video, PDF, and image files directly in the browser. See the next section for details on adding attachments.

Arrangements Tab

Lists all arrangements with their name, key, BPM, and duration. See the Arrangements section below.

History Tab

Shows the usage history -- every service where the song was used, with the date and the name of the service order.

Attachments

Adding an Attachment

1. Open a song and go to the Attachments tab.
2. Click Add Attachment.
3. Choose the attachment type:
   • Chord Chart -- PDF or image of chord charts.
   • Lead Sheet -- Printed lead sheets with notation.
   • Lyrics -- Lyrics-only documents.
   • Audio -- MP3, WAV, or other audio files.
   • Video -- Video files.
   • Other -- Any other file type.
4. Either upload a file from your computer or provide an external URL.
5. Click Add.

Files are uploaded with a progress indicator. Large files are supported.

Previewing Attachments

Click on any attachment name or the eye icon to preview it in a built-in viewer. Audio files play in a styled player. PDFs and images display inline. Video files play in an embedded player.

Downloading and Deleting

Use the download arrow icon to download a file, or the trash icon to delete an attachment.

Arrangements

Arrangements let you store multiple versions of a song -- for example, an "Acoustic" arrangement in the key of G and a "Full Band" arrangement in the key of A.

Adding an Arrangement

1. Open a song and go to the Arrangements tab.
2. Click Add Arrangement.
3. Fill in:
   • Name (required) -- For example, "Acoustic", "Full Band", "Christmas Version".
   • Key -- The musical key for this arrangement.
   • BPM -- Beats per minute (20-300).
   • Duration -- Length in seconds.
   • Notes -- Internal notes.
   • Is Default -- Whether this is the default arrangement.
4. Click to save.

The first arrangement added to a song is automatically set as the default. When you mark another arrangement as default, all others are unset.

Arrangement-Specific Chord Charts

Each arrangement can have its own chord chart content in the Chord Chart Editor. Attachments can also be linked to a specific arrangement.

Duplicating a Song

From the song detail page, click Duplicate. A copy of the song is created (including all arrangements) with "(Copy)" appended to the title and the status set to Draft. Usage count and last-used date are reset.

Archiving and Restoring

Archiving

Click Archive on the song detail page. The song's status is set to Archived and it is hidden from the default library view (but kept so it can be restored later).

Viewing Archived Songs

In the Song Library, select "Archived" from the status dropdown to see archived songs.

Restoring

From the archived view, click Restore on any song. Its status is set back to Approved and it reappears in the main library.

Permanent Deletion

Archived songs can be permanently deleted, which also removes all attachments and arrangements.

Bulk Actions

Select multiple songs using the checkboxes and use bulk actions to:

• Bulk Approve -- Set all selected songs to Approved status.
• Bulk Archive -- Archive all selected songs at once.

Sharing a Song

You can create a shareable public link for any song:

1. Click the Share button on the song detail page (or the share icon in the library list).
2. Configure the share options:
   • Name -- An optional label for the share link.
   • Arrangement -- Optionally select a specific arrangement.
   • Target Key -- Optionally transpose the chord chart to a different key.
   • Show Nashville Numbers -- Toggle Nashville Number display.
   • Show Chords -- Toggle chord display.
   • Share Attachments -- Include the song's attachments in the shared view.
   • Expires In -- Set an expiration (1-365 days) or leave blank for no expiration.
   • Password -- Optionally require a password to view.
3. Click to create the share. A shareable URL is generated.

Live Key Control

After creating a share, you can update the target key, capo position, and display settings in real time. Changes appear for anyone currently viewing the shared link within seconds.

Quick Share

From the Song Library list, click the share icon next to any song to instantly create a share link without configuring options.

Share-Link URL Format

Every song share generates two equivalent URLs:

• Short link: https://your-church.timelychurch.com/s/{token}
• Full link: https://your-church.timelychurch.com/share/song/{token}

Both resolve to the same shared view. The short form is easier to text or paste into chat apps. Setlists use https://your-church.timelychurch.com/p/{token} (short) and https://your-church.timelychurch.com/share/setlist/{token} (full) -- see Worship Team View.

Chord-Chart Tools

The Chord Chart Editor includes a few helpful tools:

• Validate chord content -- When you paste chord content from an external source, the editor checks it and shows any errors and warnings so you can fix formatting issues before saving.
• All keys at once -- The editor and the shared-song page can show the chord chart pre-transposed into all 12 keys, with a suggested capo position for each, so you can pick the right key from a dropdown.
• PDF preview and download -- You can preview a song's chord chart as a PDF in your browser, or download it as a file. See Chord Charts and Key Transposition for details.

Related Articles

• Chord Charts and Key Transposition
• Service Orders (Service Plans)
• Worship Team View
• Song Arrangements