README

YouTube Downloader for Navidrome

This project is a small utility written in Pascal, created both as a learning exercise and as an automated workflow to download music from YouTube, clean metadata, and organize files in a structure compatible with Navidrome.

The script downloads videos or playlists, applies proper ID3 metadata, and arranges audio files in a clean Artist/Album folder hierarchy.

Language

• Pascal (Free Pascal)

This script is intended to be compiled with the Free Pascal Compiler (FPC).

Requirements

Your system must include the following tools:

yt-dlp

Used to download and extract audio from YouTube.

Download: https://github.com/yt-dlp/yt-dlp/releases/

Example installation (Linux):

sudo install -m 755 yt-dlp /usr/local/bin/yt-dlp

id3v2

Used to apply ID3 metadata to MP3 files.

Debian/Ubuntu:

sudo apt install id3v2

beet

Used to apply metadata to mp3 files.

Download: https://github.com/beetbox/beets/releases/

sudo beet import <MUSIC_FOLDER>

Compilation

Compile the script using fpc:

fpc ./main.pas

This generates an executable named main.

Execution

./main

Script Logic

1. Input Collection

The script asks the user for: - The YouTube URL (video or playlist) - The Artist Name - The Album Name

These inputs are used to name folders and apply metadata.

2. Temporary Directory Creation

A working directory is created in /tmp, for example:

/tmp/navidrome-downloader-XXXX

If the directory already exists, it is reused.

3. Download Audio with yt-dlp

The script uses yt-dlp to download audio and convert it to MP3:

yt-dlp -x --audio-format mp3 -o "/tmp/.../%(title)s.%(ext)s" "<URL>"

All downloaded files are stored in the temporary folder.

4. Apply Metadata with id3v2

Each MP3 file in the temporary directory receives proper metadata:

id3v2 --artist "ARTIST" --album "ALBUM" file.mp3

This prevents Navidrome from creating duplicate artists/albums due to inconsistent tags.

5. Build the Final Folder Structure

The output path follows:

BASE_DIRECTORY / ARTIST / ALBUM /

Example:

/mnt/navidrome/music/WeRenoi/Diamand\ Noir/

Folders are created automatically if missing.

6. Move Processed Files to Final Directory

All MP3 files are moved from /tmp/... to the final album directory.
The temporary directory can then be removed or left for debugging.

Example Folder Layout

/mnt/navidrome/music/
????????? WeRenoi/
    ????????? Diamand Noir/
        ????????? Poney.mp3
        ????????? First.mp3
        ????????? ...

Metadata ensures correct sorting and display in Navidrome.

Notes and Future Improvements

• Use beet