We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again – in music, there’s no such thing as too much promotion. Independent artists need as much exposure as possible in the current music market and must get eyes in any way they can to make it known that they have new music on the way, or simply that they are active musicians.
Given the number of platforms available at our fingertips, it can be difficult for artists to know where to invest their time and energy. We’ve compiled a list of the best places – digital or not – for artists to make a little effort and put themselves out there to expand their reach and grow their fanbase.
1. Interviews
The best possible way to introduce oneself to a new audience is through literal introduction. Interviews are one of the most traditional ways of sharing upcoming work and getting people excited, and they can come in many forms.
Press, Blogs, Written Media
All media platforms are constantly on the lookout for new stories. Many of them, especially music blogs, have submission pages open for artists to send in their music and be considered for a write-up. If they take interest in you, you’ll have a full artist write-up and interview done where you can explain your project in detail, showcase your personality to readers, and give context to who you are as an artist.
Radio
Almost all radio stations do interviews, so don’t be afraid to reach out to radio programmers, especially community or college stations. Smaller stations are always more than happy to welcome new talent to the studio to shed light on a project and then play a song for listeners. As you get featured on smaller stations, you’ll gain the credibility and following necessary to climb the ranks and get airtime on bigger and bigger stations. Find a list of radio stations you can message on Groover here.
Podcasts
Podcasts are all the rage, and they exist on just about every subject known to man. There are a number of excellent music podcasts that feature songwriters often, so do some research to find the ones you like, listen to a few episodes, and then reach out. Even better if you think their demographic is aligned with your target audience. Make sure they know you have an interesting story so you get a longer segment on the show.
Street Interviews
Street interviews have taken social media by storm and are a great and easy way to get your face, name, or song on new screens. Find music-related content creators who do street interviews and either offer to be in a video yourself, or ask that a featured pedestrian says your song when they’re asked the oh so popular “what song are you listening to right now?”.
2. Public Spaces and Physical Promotion
When we’re not looking at our screens, we’re looking at our surroundings. Scour your environment for places your eye will naturally fall when waiting at a crosswalk, for the metro, or in line for some street food.
Posters and Flyers
With some vibrant color or high contrast visuals, you can grab the attention of passersby by putting up posters of your cover art on busy street corners in your local area. High traffic areas like coffee shops, music stores, or community boards are likely to get music lovers to stop and check out bold graphics or mysterious QR codes that lead them to your streaming pages.
Billboards
Did you know you can pay to have yourself displayed on a screen in Times Square? It’s true, and not too expensive either! It may require some digging, but researching areas near you with billboard or screen space that can be briefly rented is a great idea if you have a slightly bigger budget.
QR Code Stickers
Stickers are arguably one of the best promotional items available – they’re small, portable, and can be put everywhere. From your local bus stop to the inside of a dive bar bathroom, you can place a QR code that brings scanners straight to your new song, upcoming concert ticket link, website, or Spotify page. Everyone loves interaction, and if your sticker is visually appealing, you’re certain to get some engagement.
3. Social Media
The more obvious means of promotion is hopping on your social networks and telling the world about your work, and it’s certainly worth it. Whether you’re tech savvy or not, it’s the only way to reach potentially thousands or millions of people without leaving your room, so get cracking. Just remember to cater your content to each platform.
Use Instagram for high quality visuals and sound. Post professional photos, music video snippets, and short form teasers on the platform to promote your music while remaining visually engaging. Utilize stories, carousel posts, and Reels to hit every content corner, and thus, every corner of your following.
TikTok
Use TikTok for volume and consistency. The app values frequent posting more than anything, so if it means singing the same chorus of the same song in 10 different locations, that’s what you’ll have to do to get more eyes and ears. TikTok videos need not be high quality (though they should be once in a while), and can absolutely be iPhone videos as long as the image quality is decent.
Live Streams
Use live streams on Instagram to talk to followers, tease new music, play songs, and do Q&As to build your sense of community. Use live streams on TikTok to play music, as it will be public to anyone – not just your followers. Catch their attention through performance, focusing more on music that is already out and covers of existing songs.
4. Collaborations
There are a number of ways to collaborate with other creatives to tap into their audience and get your name out there. For example, if you’re coming out with an uptempo, percussion-heavy single, try finding a Hip-Hop choreographer who makes content and suggest that they create a dance to your song. By posting it to their followers, who likely learn the choreography at home (and have to listen to the song over and over during practice), you’ll be getting an increase in streams!
Collaborating with another artist by writing a verse for their song or doing background vocals is also a great way to get on a new fanbase’s radar. If you’re collaborating, it’s likely that you make music that complements one another, so your audiences are more likely to take interest in the other and vice versa. Cross-promotion then becomes mutually beneficial!
5. Live Shows
Face to face interaction is the best way to get people invested in your journey. Live shows, no matter the type, are a fast track to building community.
Local venues are a great place to start. Bars, coffee shops, music festivals, popular venues – no matter the location, it’s important to establish a presence in your area and get people talking. Smaller gigs will help refine your stage presence to prepare you for bigger stages.
Pop-up concerts are also fun and engaging. Post on your networks that you’ll be surprising them with a couple live songs at a certain location the following day, and set yourself up at a park, square, or street corner. You’ll attract both current and new fans.
6. Online Platforms
The internet goes beyond social media! Take to other promotional platforms that are designed to increase artist exposure and invest a little time into them.
Streaming Platforms
Spotify in particular has implemented a good amount of new features that allow artists to promote their upcoming releases more easily, such as the Countdown Page. Future drops are now featured at the top of an artist’s Spotify page and display the countdown until release, the tracklist, and a pre-save button so users get the project in their library as soon as it’s out.
YouTube, SoundCloud, Bandcamp, Reddit
Community platforms are specifically meant for sharing, so cater your promotion to each. Use YouTube to post behind the scenes from the studio, lyric videos, acoustic versions, live versions, and even casual covers to keep your channel active and engaging. Use SoundCloud and Bandcamp to post songs, different versions, and check out followers’ comments on your music. Use Reddit to talk about your new releases (on new music pages specifically) and hear feedback from the community. Remember to follow community guidelines to make sure you can promote yourself, as some music pages don’t allow this.
Groover
Music promotion platforms exist to help you pitch your song to music industry professionals from all areas, and it’s relatively easy and very affordable to do so. Groover has the most extensive list of partners, and they range from music reviewers to radio programmers to managers and labels. You can start a campaign for an upcoming release for feedback or press, or a recent release for radio play and playlist adds. It’s all completely up to you. Select whichever curators you want to send a message to and your music will go directly to their inbox. The best part is the accountability: if they don’t answer in 7 days, you get your credits back to send your campaign to someone else!
Final Tips
The most important aspect of promotion is to be relentless and consistent. It’s an ongoing process, so even though it takes some time, make sure to update your content regularly and stay active on the platforms you’ve chosen to focus on.
Remember to know your audience and understand the feedback you’re getting. If something isn’t working, change your strategy! Nothing is permanent, so track your results on Spotify for Artists, Instagram Insights, and the like to keep an eye on things. Keep exploring different promotional avenues, stay open minded, and be patient!
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