The kickstart of any career is its most vital moment. Unfortunately, it’s kind of like a hit-or-miss strategy. It may get you exactly where you want to be, or it may take you on the wrong route.
Nowadays, with the way the internet is saturated with musical content, artists find new ways to promote their songs and get listened to. One of the easiest ways to do so is by submitting your music to blogs.
Independent blogs often share music with a large number of followers. If you want to get featured in a blog and offer your music to listeners, submitting your music to blogs is the perfect kickstart.
However, there are a couple of tips you’ll want to follow to go off on the right foot.
Tips for Submitting Your Music to Blogs
Submitting your music to blogs needs to be done carefully to yield the wanted results. You don’t just jump at the first blog you find and keep sending emails. There are a couple of considerations to take into account first.
Filter the Blogs By Genre
Finding online blogs for music is now easier than ever, but it’s not enough. You need to filter the blogs you find by genre to make sure they suit the type of music you offer. For this, there are a couple of social media tools.
For example, there’s Hype Machine. When you open the home page, you’ll find ‘Latest Music’ listed. This is the latest music in indie music blogs, so you can find blogs with the same genre as yours. You can also note the featured music and see if it’s on the same level as yours.
Create a Spreadsheet List
The next step in your researching journey is creating a spreadsheet list of all the blogs. You can include the blog name and the submission link.
Then, look for writers on the blog who write reviews for similar music to yours. Add their name to the sheet, and look for their email addresses if they’re available. You can also put a link to one of the writer’s articles for reference.
After you’re done researching, compare all of the data and decide on your preferred blog.
Double Check the Submission Guidelines
The submission guidelines are an essential aspect to take into consideration. If you don’t follow them correctly, the blogger will think you haven’t given their website enough attention, which is partially true.
Most blogs have specific requirements they need to see in your email, and some of them require a particular way to upload your music. So make sure to follow everything they need to be on the right track.
Create an Email Template
If you submit your music to many blogs, you’ll need an email template to make matters easier for you. Instead of writing a new email each time and forgetting an important detail, create a basic info template.
That way, you only need to personalize it when it’s time to submit.
To write a good template, first, show your appreciation of the blogger’s reviews and articles. Then, start telling them that you make similar music and ask them if they want to hear it. Right after that, include your streaming link and your own bio or website.
Of course, before sending the template, make sure you’re following the submission guidelines of the blog. They may differ from one blog to another, so a double-check is in order.
Choose the Right Time to Submit
Bloggers love new music. If your song has been on the internet for a few months or a year, they likely won’t find it attractive enough to feature it. They want to share new releases. So, the best time to submit your song is within a week of its release or before it’s even released.
Generally, artists who submit their music within the first week of release have the highest chance of being featured.
Send Your Music Links Correctly
Sending your music links correctly is a bit tricky, but it’s the sole most vital aspect of your submission. Avoid sending MP3s or links that need to be downloaded; these are completely unnecessary, and it’s generally not a recommended way to send your music.
The better approach is to choose a platform that doesn’t ask for logging in as Spotify does. Then, provide your link accordingly.
Most blogs prefer SoundCloud because it offers private links. In all cases, it’d be good to check the submission guidelines for the preferred way to send your music.
Blogs You Can Submit Your Music To
Now that you know what to do to submit your music, here’s a shortlist of some blogs that may be useful:
- IndiePulse: Indiepulse magazine is a blog for independent artists. It offers an online radio station for artists to share their songs.
- Xune Mag: The best thing about Xune Mag is that it accepts any music you offer, regardless of the genre.
- A&R Factory: This is one of the most renowned music blogs on the internet. It offers radio stations for sharing music and includes some record label owners who constantly choose aspiring artists to feature.
- Aquarium Drunkard: This blog accepts all genres that fall in between country, folk, vintage garage, funk, psych, and R&B music.
- Indie Shuffle: The bloggers on Indie Shuffle only write good reviews, so you don’t need to worry about negative ones. They only choose the music they truly enjoy to feature.
- Pigeons & Planes: The Pigeons & Planes blog features the music of all genres, so you have a good chance of getting featured regardless of your genre.
To Wrap Up
Submitting your music to blogs should be easy enough if you have a clear plan and a shortlist of blogs. As long as you approach everything in an organized manner, you’ll be good to go.
Remember to double-check the submission guidelines and make sure the blog of your choice supports your genre.
We hope you get featured as soon as possible!