Spotify playlist pitching tips
I recently watched the excellent Playlists and Music Discovery from Spotify and wanted to share some of the key takeaways.
The Spotify editors curated 150K artists for their playlists in 2021. The team looks for new music primarily through the playlist pitch on artists.spotify.com. The global team has 200 curators who review everything submitted.
Here are a few tips:
Submit at least 7 days before the release date. As well as helping you with editorial, it helps you to get your track on a personalized playlist such as release radar
Put in the location, the language, the genres, and the mood. These are checked by editors
The most important thing is the description. What should you include?
Include your social media accounts - it allows editors to learn more about your work
Make sure you tell your audience if you know them
You can add a playlist to the description of your track if you have one in mind
Include context as well. It helps your pitch stand out if you explain your background, what scene you come from as an emerging artist. For more established artists, what is your current situation, what is your strategy. Is there anything special about the release you're submitting?
Include any element outside of Spotfy like if you gonna be featured in magazines, have a TV/radio appearance or live shows, etc..
Do not underestimate the smaller play
Additional tips
Encourage people to follow you on Spotify by giving them a reason: A tour’s coming up, new tracks to come out, new merch drop
Spotify consider a catalog any tracks over 18 months old