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I’m going to wade into this paying for consulting & paying for playlisting thing.
People around me know, but I want my broader community to know more definitively where I stand + to share my own experiences in the hopes of helping emerging artists decide. First up; playlisting.
People around me know, but I want my broader community to know more definitively where I stand + to share my own experiences in the hopes of helping emerging artists decide. First up; playlisting.
First a clarification for folks not as fluent in the talks - every playlist from private individuals at home to smaller 3rd party companies/platforms to the major platforms themselves has an “editor” or “curator”, the person that actually programs the songs and makes choices.
“Editorial” playlists refers to playlists curated by the actual platforms themselves by curators officially working at/affiliated with & promoted by the platform. I.E. New Music Friday’s on Spotify or The New Toronto on Apple. These are generally the most influential playlists.
In my experience; for private individuals & 3rd party companies - it varies on can you pay to play.
For the major “Editorial” playlists, you absolutely can’t pay to get on those playlists. The curators are paid by the parent company & would be fired for taking money on the side.
For the major “Editorial” playlists, you absolutely can’t pay to get on those playlists. The curators are paid by the parent company & would be fired for taking money on the side.
What is possible is being able to hire a “record promoter” with the real world relationships to work that record for you across radio and/or digital platforms. Ultimately however, it is still entirely up to the discretion of the editorial team what to program and what to ignore.
There is a cottage industry/bunch of companies all over the world that have popped up over the last few years offering these services OR a hybrid of “PR”, digital marketing x record promotion services. The value of these companies is debatable & varies widely on a per case basis.
As someone who has tried out paying a couple of these companies (and individuals) here and abroad - I can say that I’ve never recouped on my dollars spent. Not once.
Here is a link with more detailed info on how you get paid per stream & rates in USD - https://soundcharts.com/blog/music-streaming-rates-payouts
Here is a link with more detailed info on how you get paid per stream & rates in USD - https://soundcharts.com/blog/music-streaming-rates-payouts
That also goes for the majority of publicists. And I’ve tried a lot of folks.
Where the value has been, if any depending on the company and experience, has been in kickstarting something that had genuine talent and merit that was otherwise stuck or without the fuel needed to get going.
First & foremost, this industry requires talent. Very often, in order to get talent recognized on the level most aspire to - you need to build your story/history w/ platforms, get buy in from people/platforms that can amplify your artistry & continue to work on the ground level.
Getting a premiere on one of the major sites doesn’t mean as much as it used to when it comes to getting spins of your song. Where it can help sometimes is leveraging the next opportunity.
In my experience, everyone wants to be a “day 1” but very few people are actually willing to be first. If you can point to someone supporting you, it’s easier for the next to justify to themselves (& especially to anyone they need to answer to) to throw their support behind you.
For example “it had a Complex premiere” so I don’t look as crazy stepping out on this one & also saying it’s cool. Leveraging that as you work hard to grow/gain momentum. The same goes for independently curated playlists (Playlists generated by private individuals and companies).
Where any pay to play scenario gets dangerous for EVERYONE involved is quality control. Curators/Writers/Editors have credibility with audiences cause they program great music.
Once you can pay to get front and centre, that quality control is lost and over time, so to can be the larger audience and the “clout” associated with being featured. Which in turn makes it pointless to spend dollars.
Some platforms are so big (worldstar for ex.) that it doesn’t matter. For the majority of platforms however this can equal inevitable decline & decay. This hurts everyone.
The music industry is constantly shifting. Hybrid models can emerge that make sense. Interested to see.
The music industry is constantly shifting. Hybrid models can emerge that make sense. Interested to see.
At any rate, as others have said on this app already - DO YOUR HOMEWORK. If this is your business and not your hobby - research. You shouldn’t do everything by yourself, but you should know who you are dealing with & ask for references + past successes. Price out spend vs reward.
