4 Tips For Getting On Spotify Playlists |
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Aug 26 2021, 03:38 AM
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For those of us who create original music, this is a very interesting time. There has never been a better time to be a musician in that gear has never been more available or more affordable. For a modest investment, one can create a home recording studio and create impressive results, given a bit of time and effort. However, this is a double edged sword. It’s true that its’ never been more accessible for a musician to make good quality music at home. It’s also true that this democratization of technology has made the barrier to entry so low that a huge number of people are sitting at home and making music. One doesn’t even need to form a band. Indeed, more often than not, most new music projects seem to be just one person. Through the use of plugins and vsts, it’s possible to create good sounding drums, bass, piano, etc. without actually having or playing any of these instruments. So while its’ great to have all these tools, it’s resulted in a glut of music being released by a huge collection of new artists. The result is that it’s now harder than it’s perhaps been in the past to get any sort of traction for the music that it’s now so easy to create. It was never easy to get traction, it’s just that now, there is so much music being put out, that it’s difficult to get anyone to care at all.
As a response to this, people have turned to SPOTIFY PLAYLISTS which are curated by a person or team of people. These playlists feature new artists quite often and generally, the best of the best are selected to be on these lists (not always, but often). So how does one go about getting on one of these Spotify playlists? It can seem daunting for folks who have never tried to do such a thing. Musicians would rather focus on just making music. Sadly, these days, that is not enough, for new artists in particular. One also has to have some idea about how to create some sort of traction. Let’s look at some tips on creating this traction. 1.)YOU HAVE TO ASK This rule may be the most obvious. You have to actually ask to be included on one of these playlists. Odds are that you won’t get noticed and added otherwise. Of course, there will be some rejection involved. There could be quite a bit of rejection involved. This is just part of the process. Start by finding playlists that you like, then try to contact the currator/s and see if you can develop a working relationship and then ask them to consider your music. 2.)DO YOUR RESEARCH Before you actually get to the asking bit, you’ll need to do some research on Spotify so download the app, create an account and start looking around. You will need to find playlists that you think your music would be good for. Of course, not every curator will agree with you, but you will still need to do the leg work. Start a list of playlists for each song that you are trying to get on spotify. The more the merrier. Part A.)DEFINE YOUR MUSIC Before you get to the researching playlists bit, you’ll need to answer some questions about your own music. This can be difficult if you have not done it before. What genre is your music? What sort of keywords describe your music? Do some keyword searches on Spotify to find out if your chosen keywords result in finding music that is similar to what you are planning on sharing. There are a variety of words that can be used to describe any type of music and finding out what these words are, as they relate to your own music, is critical. Once you start talking to curators, being able to know which of these words to use will be helpful. Part B.)START THE SEARCH Once you have defined your genre and found keywords that describe your music, it’s time to search for playlists. You may find a lot of lists that don’t quite fit. Be patient. Keep at it until you find a collection of lists that have music very similar to what you are trying to get played. Part C.)MAKE CONTACT Once you do find a given playlist, you may not be able to find contact information for the people curating it. After all, you are not the only person doing this. Curators get contacted by people non stop asking for a spot on their list. As a result, these people can be a bit of work to find. Get any information that you can from the playlist. Then start googling and see if you can locate social media accounts for these people and also some method of contacting them. Hunting them down can be a lot of work and can result in rejection but again, it’s all part of the process. If you can get on some playlists, you can get some traction and some ears for your music and that’s the point. 3.)MAKE YOUR PITCH SHORT AND SWEET Curators get a LOT of people asking them to add songs. As a result, they don’t have a lot of time. So keep your pitch as short as possible. Mention finding their playlist and that you think your music would be a great fit, perhaps add a few key words to help describe your music, and provide a link to that the curator can give it a listen. 4.)TRY PITCHING TO THE SPOTIFY EDITORIAL TEAM This is a long shot, but if you don’t try, then it can’t work. Anyone can attempt to convince the editorial team to get on one of these playlists. So competition is fierce. To strengthen your hand, it helps to have built up your listener count as much as possible to show that people already like your music. This makes it less of a risk for the team. Target a specific playlist for your song. Also, there are playlists just for newcomers like FRESH FINDS which is a series of playlists covering several genres. Here is a video from Spotify on how playlists actually work. *This article was very helpful in writing this piece. https://diymusician.cdbaby.com/music-promot...y_en_all_081221 *while you are feeling creative check out these creative arpeggios! https://www.guitarmasterclass.net/ls/Creati...ggios-Phrasing/ This post has been edited by Todd Simpson: Aug 26 2021, 03:39 AM |
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