diff --git a/utils/publish-release.sh b/utils/publish-release.sh
index 991dc47ee..988403efc 100755
--- a/utils/publish-release.sh
+++ b/utils/publish-release.sh
@@ -79,8 +79,8 @@ git fetch
 git checkout main
 git pull "https://${GITHUB_ACTOR}:${GITHUB_TOKEN}@github.com/aws/aws-iot-device-sdk-java-v2.git" main
 
-# Create new tag on latest commit with the release title
-git tag -f v${new_version} -m "${RELEASE_TITLE}"
+# Create new tag on latest commit (lightweight tag - we do NOT want an annotated tag)
+git tag -f v${new_version}
 # Push new tag to github
 git push "https://${GITHUB_ACTOR}:${GITHUB_TOKEN}@github.com/aws/aws-iot-device-sdk-java-v2.git" --tags