Learn how to get your tracks played by your favourite artists!

Once you've spent hours in the studio creating music you naturally want to shout from the rooftops about it. Nowadays one of the easiest ways to get your track noticed is if it is played or playlisted by a famous artist. But how do you go about getting it to them if you don't have the budget for a music PR campaign? Follow our short guide to help you get your music heard by the right people.

STEP ONE: Prep your track selection.

Consider how you want to be known. Focus on a particular style and curate a coherent message that your music is trying to communicate about you as an artist. Having a clear direction will make you look more confident and help build your unique musical identity in the eyes and ears of your peers. Once you've selected your best works upload them to Soundcloud as private links (with downloads available.) It's critical you use private links for each artist or label you want to show your work too. If you make the tracks public the label or artist won't be as interested as naturally they will not feel like they are getting something special and selected just for them. If you are submitting to a label never make your tracks public before they are signed otherwise they will become worthless due to potential leaks. Part of the message you're creating should also be visual. Make sure you have a great logo or press photo and a biography so they can find out more about you. Include links to your other social media profiles if you have them populated with good content. A Resident Advisor artist profile is also very useful.

If you're going to try and give your music to your favourite artists in person you should load the tracks onto a few promo USBs. You might also want to brand the USBs with your logo, or put them inside some kind of promotional packaging. Click here to read an earlier LSA blog for inspiration!

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STEP TWO: Make contact.

Make contact with your favourite artists, they might not be as out of reach as you think. Social media has made it easier to contact your favourite artists directly. As Roger Sanchez told us on our recent Ibiza Villa Retreat he regularly checks his own messages and tags on social media including Instagram. You don't want to spam your idols so keep it short and to the point, send them the message on all their platforms and you might just get lucky. If you don't hear anything wait another few months and try again.

Yes, it can be hard to get the attention of your favourite artists but you have to make yourself known, make the effort to fly to different countries to watch their sets, make your face a recognisable one at their shows. Tag them in your social media as you watch them, help promote them and they could one day help you. Trust me, this helps. These artists get hundreds of demos each day and they are more likely to read emails that come through from friends or fellow producers that they know have good music.

Hit them up on every platform you can including: Instagram Posts, Instagram Stories, Twitter, Facebook Posts, Facebook Stories, Facebook Shares, Facebook Tags, Youtube Comments, Playlist Their Music, Soundcloud Comments, Mixcloud Comments, Comment On Their Press Articles, Comments on Events they are playing. Make yourself visible everywhere you can.

STEP THREE: Grow a thick skin.

Once you have established yourself on their radar ask them politely if they would be able to listen to your music. Nine times out of ten you will be ignored or rejected. Don't be upset, this is normal. You just need to get your foot in the door and rejection is a natural process. Grow a thick skin and be determined. Keep trying until one day you hit the jackpot. You might find it easier at first to converse about something else, like how awesome their recent gig was you attended. Show them you're a supporter first and they will be more likely to be favourable to you. If they don't like your music don't sweat it and just ask for some constructive feedback.

STEP FOUR: They listened, now what?

Great! They have listened to your music! Should you be happy? Hell yes. Should you expect something to come from it? Not necessarily. As I explained before, artists are humans, they have their own taste of what they like and they may not like what you sent but this isn't anything to get down about, its all about the process. Let's say they like your tune and they have emailed back saying that you have made a great track and they have proceeded to download it, music to your ears right? Only one thing left to do in that situation is to hunt for videos of them possibly testing it out or better yet showing up to their upcoming gigs to see if they play it! If you feel like it's not to cheeky why not ask them if it will be included in any of their set lists, radio shows or playlists.

STEP FIVE: The magic of the physical object.

This is where the USB comes in as I mentioned earlier. Things could have gone a little differently to step four. They may have totally ignored your online messages and tags. In this case why not reach out in the real world. Using actual USBs pre-loaded with your music and info is often one of the most memorable and attention grabbing ways to promote yourself. Try sending it to their label office or give it directly to them at a gig. Take your TWO USB’s to the show and let them see you and have a little chat with you, then pass on the USB and say that the tracks they listened to are on the USB. This wont be a set in stone agreement that they will for sure play your track (or tracks) but at least they've got a physical copy of it with them now. The only thing to do is to sit back and enjoy the night!

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Would you like to learn more from the experts, improve your productions and get released on LSA records or other labels? We have a high success rate for launching new artists because we teach on a one-to-one basis. Enrol now on our one-to-one music production courses on Ableton, Logic or FL Studio today and we can help launch your music career. Click here to read about our production courses.

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