diff --git a/.gitea/workflows/release.yml b/.gitea/workflows/release.yml
index 651ed89..f5a1cd8 100644
--- a/.gitea/workflows/release.yml
+++ b/.gitea/workflows/release.yml
@@ -27,17 +27,38 @@ jobs:
             IS_PRE="true"
           fi
 
+          # Scan for RELEASE_NOTES.md (repo root first, then up to 3 levels deep)
+          NOTES_FILE=$(find . -maxdepth 3 -name "RELEASE_NOTES.md" -type f | head -1)
+          if [ -n "$NOTES_FILE" ]; then
+            export RELEASE_NOTES=$(cat "$NOTES_FILE")
+            echo "Found release notes: $NOTES_FILE"
+          else
+            export RELEASE_NOTES=""
+            echo "No RELEASE_NOTES.md found"
+          fi
+
           BODY_JSON=$(python3 -c "
-          import json, textwrap
+          import json, os, textwrap
+
           tag = '$TAG'
-          body = f'''## Downloads
+          release_notes = os.environ.get('RELEASE_NOTES', '')
+
+          sections = []
+
+          if release_notes.strip():
+              sections.append(release_notes.strip())
+
+          sections.append(textwrap.dedent(f'''
+          ## Downloads
+
           | Platform | File |
           |----------|------|
           | Windows (installer) | \`MediaServer-{tag}-setup.exe\` |
           | Windows (portable) | \`MediaServer-{tag}-win-x64.zip\` |
           | Linux | \`MediaServer-{tag}-linux-x64.tar.gz\` |
-          '''
-          print(json.dumps(textwrap.dedent(body).strip()))
+          ''').strip())
+
+          print(json.dumps('\n\n'.join(sections)))
           ")
 
           RELEASE=$(curl -s -X POST "$BASE_URL/releases" \