Today, everyone streams music. Spotify has revolutionized the music industry by offering an extensive music library to millions of listeners worldwide, shaking things up for music discovery and how we primarily consume music. The online music streaming platform has made it easier for emerging artists to get their music heard by a wider audience and represents a large part of all streamed music. Today, people most often play their favorite music through online music streaming, whether that be through Youtube music, Napster, Tidal, Amazon music, Apple music streaming, or of course, Spotify. That means for artists, one of the most effective ways to get your music heard, reach new listeners and climb to the top of streaming music services is by getting your own music featured on Spotify playlists so that when people listen to music online, they listen to yours. Playlists are becoming the new radio stations, with playlist curators acting as the Djs. They let you discover new artists and listen to any song in genres of your choosing. If you’re a Spotify premium user or have other music streaming sites subscriptions, you’ll be able to even listen to any music you want offline! However, like any part of the music business, the process of submitting your new releases to Spotify playlist curators can be rather tricky, especially if you don’t know where to start.
In this article, we’ll discuss how to get in touch with Spotify Playlist Curators and increase your chances of getting your music featured on their playlists. Spotify has tons of playlists, many of which are curated by independent curators. These curators are responsible for creating playlists that cover various genres, moods, and themes, from classical music to hip hop. While getting your songs on a popular playlist can help boost your digital music streams, it’s essential to note that submitting to curators doesn’t guarantee that independent artists will be added to the playlist. Therefore, before submitting your music, you should ensure that your track is well-produced for streaming audio, fits the playlist’s genre, and has the potential to appeal to the listeners.
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Want to get in touch with Spotify playlist curators? 👇
1. Social Media
The first way to approach Spotify playlist curators is through social media. Next time you’re listening to music online in your genre, try clicking the playlist and see if any social media profiles are linked. Many playlist curators are active on social media platforms. Indie musicians or record labels can reach out to them, introduce themselves, and provide a streaming link to their new music. However, it is essential to note that playlist curation may be a part-time endeavor for some, and many curators may receive countless requests, so standing out and providing a unique angle to your own music is critical. But don’t despair—playlist curators are, after all, music lovers looking for the best new music over the internet. Reach out to them directly so that they can potentially share your music with the subscribers on their playlists!
2. Curator Websites
Another way to promote your music to Spotify playlist curators is through their websites. If they have a website, they usually have a dedicated section where musicians can submit their latest releases. The submission process is simple and requires musicians to fill in details about their release, including the genre, mood, and theme (and don’t forget to make sure your audio quality is on point before submitting). The advantage of this method is that the all music submissions go straight to the Spotify playlist curators, increasing the chances of getting curators to listen to your music and feature it on their playlists. The disadvantage is that it’s often quite expensive, without any promise of organic results.
3. Digging
You can also do some digging on your own. There are techniques for finding the best third party playlists on Spotify, but you’ll have to be brave and patient to find the contact info of the people who manage these Spotify playlists. Type the name of the playlist on Google, LinkedIn, etc., and see what comes up. Ideally, you may find the email of the playlist curator. You can also check out playlists on other smaller digital music services like Soundcloud or a local internet radio to see if they have active users listening. Perhaps they also have their curated playlists available on Spotify! Write a very clear and concise message to explain your project, and don’t panic if you don’t receive a reply. Instead, try a brief follow-up. It’s possible that your message will never be opened, and your song never listened to, but it’s a risk you have to take. Plus, it’s not a big deal when you know that online music services like Groover exist now to help you avoid being skipped.
4. Groover
There are no skips on Groover, a music promotion platform that allows artists to get in touch with playlists directly, with the guarantee that their recording will be listened to and that they’ll receive feedback within 7 days from music industry pros who always listen to songs you submit. You can even send your music directly to record companies, publishers, music managers and more. On Groover, there are playlists for all styles of music, and you have access to all the information you need to know if you want to contact a particular playlist: number of followers, favorite artists, accepted language, type of music, etc.
5. Sign with a Record Label
Music labels have privileged access to playlist curators, and especially to the editorial teams of online music streaming services like Spotify, Apple Music, and Deezer. Popular music services maintain these connections so that they can take a shortcut to music from composers and songwriters vetted by industry pros. The gravitas that comes with signing with a label goes a long way to having your music listened to by the right people. Of course, major labels may have more influence in the recording industry when it comes to their network. That being said, smaller independent labels with good digital distribution can also make a big difference in promoting your music catalog to playlist curators.
6. Independent Spotify Playlist Curators waiting to Hear your Music
As we mentioned above, Groover is a great place to get in touch with independent playlist curators and get a guaranteed response. You don’t need to be on the Billboard charts or trending to find a playlist that is right for your music. Here are the top 10 curators that are the most influential on the platform, where they are based, and the kind of music tracks they are looking for. You can even check out their statistics of how many submissions they accept!
1. Esydia
If you’re looking for independent Spotify playlist curators into R&B, look no further than Esydia. They are based out of Canada and focus mostly on R&B/lo-fi/pop/hip-hop/afro/commercial happy & upbeat music. For these artists, getting their music on curator’s playlists could include: R&B Hits 2022: 133k likes, Lo-Fi Reading Music: 198k likes, Chill R&B 2022: 22.3k likes, Morning Energy Boost: 24.5k Likes.
2. Wake up filthy
Wake up filthy is a playlist curator based in Italy looking for artists that make music in the genres of hip-hop/drill/jersey/international rap/phonk/trap music. They are among the more selective Spotify playlist curators, but they are known for having a strong visibility impact on the artists they share. Their playlist has around 20k likes, making them an important playlist curator to get in touch with.
3. DEEP HOUSE BASS
For independent playlists curated by an electronic music curator, check out DEEP HOUSE BASS from Spain. They are looking for house music/deep house/dance music/techno/progressive tracks to add to their playlist with 48k likes. This playlist curator can certainly bring your house music to new fans!
4. TheonlyMajed
TheonlyMajed is a playlist curator based in the United States who is looking for dance music/bass music/dubstep/experimental electronic/house and phonk genres. Their main Bass playlist has 52k likes, followed by theonlyMajed with 34k and Night Life with 32k listeners. Independent playlists curated by theonlyMajed are difficult to be accepted to, but can be very impactful.
5. HipHop RnB Selects & Chill Mood
HipHop RnB Selects & Chill Mood is a playlist curator from Taiwan interested in receiving submissions in rap/hip-hop/chill/R&B/trap/dance genres. They are among the independent Spotify playlist curators with multiple playlists with over 30k followers are have a higher sharing rate than then some of the other top Spotify playlist curators.
6. did you check on me?
If you make music in the genres afrobeats, Nigerian pop, afropop, or dancehall, you should submit to independent playlists curated by did you check on me? based in South Africa. The playlist has almost 10k listeners and the playlist curator is looking mainly for lyrics in English.
7. i don’t care how long it takes
For artists in dream pop/chill/singer songwriter/indie folk/indie pop/R&B, submit your song to independent playlists curated by i don’t care how long it takes. Their playlist is mainly focused on love songs and has over 35k listeners.
8. Trash Gang
Trash Gang is part of the independent Spotify playlist curators focused on hip-hop and trap music based out of Slovenia. Their Spotify playlist has over 77k listeners and they also promote underground music on their YouTube channel. This independent playlist curator could help grow your fanbase in Slovenia!
9. Blues & Whiskey
Based out of France, playlist curator Blues & Whiskey is looking for singer songwriter/indie folk/country americana/blues/modern jazz music. For blues artists, getting their music on curator’s playlists like Blues & Whiskey with over 115k listeners could be a gamechanger!
10. Reggaeton 🔥 Pop Español
With 57k likes, the Spotify playlist curator Reggaeton 🔥 Pop Español is looking mainly for submissions in dancehall/reggaeton/latin music/latin pop/urban pop music. This playlist curator is based out of Spain and could help expand your music to a European audience.
What are you waiting for?
Getting your music featured on Spotify playlists is a gradual process that requires hard work, persistence, and a unique approach, but it’s very helpful in getting people to stream music you’ve put your heart and soul into. Not only can you boost your streams by getting into playlists, but you will also boost your streaming royalties and thus, revenues. It’s essential to understand the type of music that fits into a particular playlist and ensure that it aligns with Spotify’s guidelines. If you didn’t find your genre in the top 10 independent Spotify playlist curators above, check out the rest on Groover to find the right fit. With the right strategy and a bit of patience, musicians can approach Spotify playlist curators and increase the chances of getting their music heard by millions of listeners worldwide. Then, anyone looking to discover new music on digital music platforms will be able to discover your song out of the millions of songs out there.
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