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Labels & demos · 6 min read

How to attract artists to your label

Artists send their best tracks to labels whose sound they recognise, whose releases get heard and who answer. Make the sound obvious, publish demo rules and fair terms, promote every release where artists can see it, and reply to every demo, even with a short no. A label that receives pitches through NeedlePool can also have a demo page, where artists upload an MP3 or WAV that reaches the label’s portal with a player.

Seven ways to get better demos

  1. 1Make the sound obviousProducers read a label from its catalogue. If your last ten releases sit together, the people who make that music see a home for it; if they don’t, you get demos of everything. Say it in one line on your site and on your demo page.
  2. 2Publish demo rulesWhat you release, originals only or remixes too, unreleased music only, how to send it and how long you take to answer. Clear rules cut the demos you would never sign and make the rest easier to judge.
  3. 3Show that your releases get heardProducers check who played a label’s last releases before they send it anything. Promote every release to DJs and radio and post the support you get: a line from a DJ people know says more than a follower count.
  4. 4Offer fair terms, in writingA short contract with the term, the split, the costs and when the rights come back. Send it before the release, pay statements on time, and never ask an artist for money to release their track. Artists compare notes on labels.
  5. 5Answer every demoA two-line no is better than silence, and a line on what you liked is better still. Producers bring the next track to the labels that answered the last one.
  6. 6Go looking yourselfThe inbox isn’t the only way in. Listen to the producers your DJs play, the artists on labels close to yours, and the people who already send you promos. A personal message from a label that knows the track carries weight.
  7. 7Look after the artists you haveReport back after every release and keep your promises small enough to keep. Signed artists recommend the label to their friends, and their friends are often the next roster.

What to put on a demo page

Keep it short and specific: the genres you sign, two or three releases that show the sound, originals or remixes, unreleased music only, the format you want, what to write in the note, and how long you take to reply.

Then put the link where producers look: your website, your social bios, the last line of every promo you send, and the auto-reply of your demo inbox.

A demo page on NeedlePool

A label that receives pitches through NeedlePool has a label portal, opened from the link in a pitch email, with a section called Your demo link. The page is created the first time you open that section. A label already in NeedlePool’s label pool gets it live straight away; any other label’s page is checked by the NeedlePool team first.

The page shows your label’s name, your logo and the genres NeedlePool has on file for you. An artist drops an MP3 or WAV of up to 100 MB, adds the artist name, the track title, the genre and a note, and sends it. Sending is free for the artist but needs a NeedlePool account with a confirmed email, and limits per artist and per day keep one person, or one busy day, from flooding the page.

Each demo reaches you the way pitches do: a personal link and a player in your portal, next to the tracks artists pitch to you. You can listen but not download the file. You reply from the portal, and your reply is emailed to the artist with your address to answer, so the conversation carries on between the two of you. The artist also gets an email the first time you play the track.

From the portal you can copy the link, rename the page, add your logo and pause demos; while the page is paused, artists who open the link see that it is not available. A page outside the pool goes back for a check after a rename or a new picture.

Promote what you sign

Artists judge a label by what happens to its releases. NeedlePool sends each release to DJs and radio of its genre under the artist’s name, and the campaign names who listened, downloaded and wrote back. That list is what you show the next artist you want to sign.

Promo pool for record labels →DJs and radio by genre for every release, and which plan fits a roster.

Questions

How do I get artists to send demos to my label?

Make your sound clear from the catalogue, publish demo rules, promote every release so producers can see it get played, and answer the demos you get. A demo page with a short form saves time on both sides.

Should a label charge artists to submit or release music?

No. A label that charges artists to be heard or to be released is selling a service, not signing music. Sending a demo through a NeedlePool demo page is free for the artist.

How fast should a label answer demos?

Say on your demo page how long you take and keep to it, even if it is a month. If the answer is no, a short no is still better than silence.

Is a demo page better than a demo email address?

A page asks every artist for the same details and keeps files out of your inbox. On a NeedlePool demo page the artist also gets an email the first time you play the track, so they don’t have to guess whether you heard it.

Can I pause the demo page?

Yes. Pause it in the label portal, and artists who open the link see that the page is not available. Turn demos back on when you are ready.

What does it cost?

Receiving demos through the page costs a label nothing, and artists send for free. Starting is free, with no card and no time limit: you send to your own contacts. Paid plans open our Promo pool in any genre and start at $14.99 a month (Starter).

Keep reading

Promote the releases artists judge you by

Start free with your own contacts and see by name who listened. No card. The Promo pool opens with Starter, $14.99 a month.

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