Beat / It seems the big playlists are today what music videos used to be on MTV. They generate enormous reach. From your point of view, how important are playlists today for making music known?
Sven Seibert / In my opinion, these currently have a huge impact on the reach of music and the comparison is certainly appropriate here. In addition to the playlists, you also have the social media channels and the platforms themselves, which work with algorithms. So in terms of pitching, we have two blocks of topics, because in addition to playlists, pitching on Spotify, for example, also serves to address the algorithms. Just think of the release radar at Spotify.
Beat / How do you pitch a track on Spotify to get on one of the high-reach playlists?
Sven Seibert / With Spotify, this is relatively simple. Here, artists have the option of claiming their own artist profile. This is done via artists.spotify.com. Once this step has been completed and the account has been verified, in addition to the statistics, you have the opportunity to pitch your upcoming releases, that is, to propose them to an editorial team. With a good song, a good text, a little luck and ideally a strategy, you then have the opportunity to catch one of these coveted places.
Beat / What makes pitching promising from your point of view? What mistakes should you avoid when pitching a track?
Sven Seibert / There are several factors that can increase the chances. However, I must mention in advance that the editorial teams at the platforms naturally receive tons of pitches. So, unfortunately, there is no guaranteed recipe for success. First of all, I would make sure that there is enough lead time here, so the release is ideally already on the platforms about three weeks before the release date. Depending on the store or streaming provider, the processing times here vary. This is the most common mistake bands make, because they naturally want to please their fans with their music quickly. Understandably so.
The next important point is, depending on whether it is an album or a single, that you think about a strategy. The press text should be crisp, so should briefly outline the band or music and should ideally sound so that an editor can use it directly via copy & paste. Feel free to use the given 500 characters here. Since people also work on the other side, it is, of course, great if you serve the texts bite-sized. It also makes sense on Spotify, for example, to directly reference playlists that would fit the music.
Beat / Now the thing is, Spotify only lets you pitch one track before release. This means that if an album contains ten tracks, nine tracks will not be considered for playlists. Is that why you recommend a release tactic of multiple pre-release singles?
Sven Seibert / Exactly, I would recommend this to every band. First, it‘s worth it for the pitches, second, it‘s also a good thing to incorporate into a marketing plan where you‘re trying to generate attention before album release. Here you have to pay attention to the lead time, so between each single and also to the album release, there should be enough time so that the pitch then makes sense. So, at the same time, when you finish an album, it also means approaching it with some patience and good planning.
The press text should be crisp, so should briefly outline the band or music and should ideally sound so that an editor can use it directly via copy & paste.
Beat / You also offer pitching services at AAA Media Solutions, but they are more comprehensive. What added value can you offer artists through your service? And what do you have to do to use your service?
Sven Seibert / I think a big factor for us is the service and the direct consultation with our artists. With the consultation, of course, we try to bring out a win-win situation for both parties. Since our business model is based on a share, that is, revenue sharing, we are happy about releases that are well received and achieve many streams or downloads. The pitches we offer also include other platforms like Apple Music, Deezer, YouTube, SoundCloud and Tidal. So, if you want to sample multiple platforms here, we offer the option.
Beat / Not to mention the possibility of finding the curators of the millions of private playlists via your own research and writing to them - provided your music fits the target scheme - or using services like Daily Playlists or SubmitHub. But it‘s Spotify‘s editorial playlists that offer the greatest reach. Outside of Spotify, are there any other ways that you can pitch a track yourself?
Sven Seibert / In addition to Spotify, Amazon now also offers the option of opening and pitching an artist profile. In my opinion, Apple Music and Deezer will also offer this option in the near future, since you can now also create artist profiles there.
Beat / If you Google the topic, you‘ll encounter countless enticements from providers who make promises regarding playlist placements. What is there to believe in this?
Sven Seibert / Difficult topic. Here I have both negative and positive testimonials. When it comes to this question, I leave the decision to my artists. I point out that you should look at the providers and also the playlists very carefully before you strike here. There is definitely potential here to „buy“ your way into a well-performing playlist via a platform that offers playlist placement, but like everywhere else in life, there are black sheep.
Beat / Thank you for your time!
www.aaa-media-solutions.de
