If you are an independent musician, you have more to do than a record label artist. You are the one responsible for songwriting, music production, and even how to promote indie music.
Of all the tasks you need to shoulder as an independent musician, the most challenging is music promotion. There are hundreds of thousands of songs to compete with daily, making it hard to stand out from the crowd.
While there are scores of how to promote indie music and brand as an indie artist, the radio has proven to key at music discoveries. Despite the viral nature of social media, it does not trounce the effects of radio It is a great way to grow your network and connect with other music professionals.
If you are wondering if this result applies to indie artists, yes it does! In this post we will be sharing how to promote indie music using radio;
1. Discover Your Key Radio Station
Whether you are pitching a local or online radio, it is important to carry out due research to find out the right ones for your genre or line of music. The key is spending more time on the channel before contacting them. This will also give you a higher chance of success.
For instance, if you are an indie rapper or singer, consider searching stations who are promoters of indie songs. It is important to settle for a radio station that is listened to by your target audience.
The right people you should reach are mainly music directors, station managers and project directors. The time spent listening to their station will also determine if you should consider them or not.
It further helps you discover what type of music the station prefers to air as well as other programs. You can start by building a relationship, and call for a meeting. You can download the indie artist music app to meet with other singers and creators.
2. Pitch Radio Stations Around You
Truth is, radio stations receive propositions daily due to the loads of traffic they receive from business, brand and music promotions. For this reason, you have strived to ensure your pitch stands out. Ask yourself; why is my proposition more relevant than those the radio has received before. Then pitch with it.
Start by sending pitches to local stations, especially if you are promoting a debut or new album. Local stations have a sense of communal bond built around it.
The impact is, during broadcast, they can get massive reach and following, especially when the singer is or was a part of the tribe. Which can be more than those built around top trending stations.
For indie music, you should consider pitching to non commercial stations, colleges and university radio. Indie creator music app is packed with several passionate curators who would love to connect with new artists.
Aside from pitching physical radio stations, consider online radio stations too. The advantage of pitching online radio is the access to more listeners from a global perspective. Pitching the regular radio station is limited to about 60 km/ 40 miles.
Also, pitching online radio is quite advantageous and easy to reach as they are often filled with community and colleagues. Being managed by amateurs and non-professionals further makes it easier to pitch them.
Online radio prefers more original songs making them great for supporting amateur and independent.
3. Start a Radio Broadcast
If you’re finding it difficult to reach and connect with radio shows, you may need to consider creating your own radio station.
It is easier if you are creating an online station. Plus it gives you more reach and connection. All you need is an internet connection and a computer. Having access to a radio station makes it easy to air your music as well as other songs to the world.
All you have to do is upload your song, create a playlist, and schedule the songs to play all day, everyday.
Thereafter, share the links on your social media pages, music newsletter and other platforms to gain new audience and followers. If you have a website, embed a radio player that allows visitors to listen. The indie creator music app makes it easy for you to create a playlist.
4. Broadcast Home Performances
Recently, there are some live performance shows hosted online that allow artists to share various recordings and performances. Giving room for listeners to participate in a live intimate moment of their show.
You can leverage this method and convert it to a radio episode, whether you are pre recording or broadcasting live. It’s simple. Just film yourself performing and send to blogs and other media partners to help premier it.
5. Partner as a Radio Co-Host
Collaborating with a radio station as an in-person live show is another surefire way to promote your music and create more awareness. This partnership is more profitable as you will get more followers from listeners who have already been engaged in the station.
You can come to be interviewed or decide to share some experience about yourself; in a fantastic way. In the spirit of the show, the host can play one of your music and even let you do a live performance right in the studio.
It is a win-win situation. You can broadcast the radio station on your channels or website, while letting fans know you will be airing live from that channel. It further gives room for both parties to other connections.
Final Thoughts on How to Promote Indie Music
Promoting indie music through radio is a great way to gain more audience and popularity. It also lets you build your network and connection in the music industry. Radio promotion remains one of the oldest and effective ways of reaching millions of listeners.
However, it requires lots of diligence and hard work. But the basics of radio promotion is to build relationships. The indie artist music app makes it easy to meet with people and tell them about your song. If you must win in pitching your music, you must learn to connect with humans effectively.
