
Gain insights from a 25-year music veteran on releasing music, budgeting, and artist development, drawing on experiences with major publishers and his own label.
Plan a release with a written rollout tailored to each artist, noting that results are not guaranteed and depend on hard work, material and audience reach.
Outline a five-to-six-week release blueprint that works backward from a projected release date, detailing modules, timelines, and post-release monitoring to ensure a smooth launch.
Navigate digital service providers and distributors to release music, manage the master and PR, and leverage synchronization, playlists, one sheet, and PROs for placements and royalties.
Navigate a crowded release climate, set realistic goals, and build a catalog to stand out. Release every 6–10 weeks with diverse content, targeting 100k Spotify streams as a win.
Artists should recognize the theoretical value of their time, delegating tasks to focus on their unique abilities and pursuing only Hellyeah opportunities.
Discover how your sonic identity, embracing the Purple Cow mindset, helps you stand out from the crowd and connect with fringe fans through culture-driven music.
Choose an artist name not already taken, secure the domain and congruent social handles, and optimize for search engines to avoid confusion and trademark issues.
Organize your music release with Trello project boards to track tasks, assign team members, and attach files, while using Dropbox to store assets in shared, non-expiring folders for easy access.
Learn to set up a smart link with Feature FM and run a pre-save campaign to drive streams across Spotify, Apple Music, and other services.
Master social media scheduling and best practices for music releases, optimizing YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook with tools like Sprout Social and Hootsuite, and improving channel SEO and analytics.
Kick off the course by using a Trello floating reference links card to organize key release links—SoundCloud, video, YouTube, Spotify, iTunes, artwork, and one sheets—saving time before release.
Start release planning five to six weeks before release to meet distributor four-week timelines and enable playlist pitching on DSPs; anticipate artwork and delivery checks.
Create a centralized folder of project assets—audio, artwork, lyrics, one sheet, PR images, and behind-the-scenes clips—to streamline uploading, sharing with your team, and ongoing promotion.
Learn how to upload a single by choosing a digital distributor, obtaining an ICRC code, preparing a 3000x3000 jpeg rgb artwork, and setting a release date.
Upload a single by preparing artwork and wave audio, map the artist and writers to profiles, set a release plan and date, and review territories before submitting.
Plan and execute an EP or album release by staggering singles, leveraging existing tracks, and coordinating artwork and uploads in your digital distribution deck.
Discover how to submit a release to Awal and other distributors by completing the pitch form, detailing the artist, track, press highlights, editorial playlists, and social links.
Learn how to submit your music video via the awl video pitch form to Apple and other platforms, plan release timing, and leverage a budget-friendly video to boost editorial attention.
Learn to service sync licensing by timing pitches three months before the release and with publishers and music supervisors, and manage master and publishing rights, fees, and clearances.
Create a written marketing plan five weeks before release, assigning tasks and dates using a Trello board or a shared Google document to align the team and deliverables.
Plan a release day gig or release party to align with your release and attract music supervisors, editors, media, and fans in LA and New York.
Brainstorm nontraditional release events and craft a compelling, perennial-seller mindset story that the artist drives, using inventive stunts like cemetery VIP events or burning the PR budget.
Hire a publicist to pitch your music to blogs and media for pickups and premieres. Weigh costs, the lack of guaranteed placements, and fit with your project before investing.
Discover how to submit music videos to Apple using the Awal video pitch form, align audio and video releases, and leverage editorial playlists and blogs for greater exposure.
Learn to submit and claim your Spotify and Apple artist profiles, and use Pandora AMP to manage playlists, release radar visibility, and bios before release.
Learn how to obtain Spotify and Apple URLs from your digital distributor, and use them to build pre-save and smart links for curators, playlists, and fans.
Share Spotify URI and Apple URL with your team four weeks before release. Maintain a Google Sheets document with the internal catalog number and all links for easy pitching.
Upload your music to micro sync agencies like music bed, marmoset music, and pump audio (Getty Images) for licensing to film, TV, and ads.
Coordinate with your digital distributor and global offices to maximize release reach by engaging your team, sharing key links, and communicating why curators should care.
Discover Jake Huddle's 50 ways to promote a single, including lyric videos, standout artwork, lyric annotations on Genius, YouTube video strategies, and Spotify Artists Pick.
Set up Google Alerts four weeks before your release to monitor mentions of your artist project or single, then engage by tagging supporters and linking to stories and playlists.
Stockpile on-brand video clips, memes, GIFs, and behind-the-scenes photos for Facebook and Instagram, prep ready-to-use assets for release day, and leverage lyric pins on Pinterest to promote your music.
Create or update a one sheet three weeks before release, using a compact PDF to showcase artwork, release date, social proof, quotes, and key press points for distributors and media.
Learn how to leverage Wabo for music promotion, set up campaigns weeks before release, target regions and demographics, and manage costs with hype machine ad widgets.
Learn how your PR person secures premieres and top placements in music blogs, why Tuesday or Wednesday releases beat Friday, and how to prepare timely assets for a successful release.
Pitch your music to EDM District’s network of YouTube distribution channels to gain exposure, proper master and publishing clearances, and potential sync opportunities through curated channels.
Learn to commission a lyric video with kinetic typography, plan five or six weeks before release, budget from hundreds to thousands, and find creators on Upworthy, Creative Commission, and Fiverr.
Explore when and how to hire a digital marketer or freelancer to manage your music marketing campaigns, optimize ads on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube, and scale with lookalike audiences.
Create Instagram and YouTube teaser clips by pairing artwork with audio, using the movie app and O'Shay for quick, engaging visuals.
Design social media skins for your release and explore Google banner ads, using freelancers from Upwork or oDesk, and organize assets in Dropbox for a polished rollout.
Leverage Spotify user generated content playlists to boost exposure, signal to the algorithm, and research, contact curators, and submit via hubs like Submit Hub and indie mono.
Learn how TikTok challenges and influencer campaigns drive music exposure, including choreographing dances, seeding audio, and paying creators to boost Spotify streams and ROI.
Reach out to friends, influencers, and blogs a week before your release for shout-outs and reminders, and track blog placements with a spreadsheet.
Explore how an approved presser, or press release, from a PR firm serves as a media one-sheet with artwork, quotes, release details, streaming links, and social proof.
Learn to use link tree on Instagram to replace single links with a mobile menu, then add new labeled links, drag to reorder, and track with a pixel.
Deliver all release assets to shareable folders and finalize the presser materials. Coordinate a premiere, engage influencers, and set up pre-save campaigns with a Langtry link.
Coordinate with your team and write down who does what, when, and the expected results. Assign roles (manager, digital marketing, PR, publisher, label) and ensure assets go live release day.
Set up a pre save and pre add ad campaign with smart URLs using Feature FM, targeting fans a week before release to boost saves and signal to the algorithm.
Learn how to upload and schedule your song on SoundCloud and Bandcamp, manage releases across YouTube and Hype Machine, and craft a compelling description with links.
Learn to prepare and upload your music video assets to YouTube ahead of release, optimizing file names, thumbnails, descriptions, and metadata for SEO, with cards, playlists, and end screens.
Explore Audius as a decentralized music platform that could rival SoundCloud, with robust copyright management and a 90 percent creator payout model for remixes, live sets, and mix tapes.
Are you a music artist struggling with a real plan on how to promote your music? Do you have your music release ready - but don’t know where to start? Are you overwhelmed with even where to begin, how to get your music online, which digital distributor to use, how to get Spotify and Apple editorial playlisting, how to hire a PR person, or how to run your digital advertising, let alone all the tips and tricks that the pros use?
Or is it release day and suddenly there’s 50 things you forgot to do. Or do you even have a plan? HINT: “Let’s just put it out” – is not a plan!
We have the solution! Get and learn the exact release plan that’s garnered our own label over 150 million streams.
Yes! Enter the Digital Release Blueprint. My name is Benjamin Groff. I’ve been in the music business for over 25 years, working for the majors but also hired to start the 1st U.S. office of Kobalt Music where I helped build the company for 10 years as Executive VP of Creative, where I signed much of the key roster at the time. Some of my favorite key artist signings include: Grimes, The Lumineers, Kelly Clarkson, SOPHIE, Overcoats, Tiesto, Cut Copy, Big Freedia, Ryan Tedder, TOKiMONSTA, Caroline Polachek, Ariel Pink, and OneRepublic to name just a few. Most recently, I’ve been running my own publishing company, Brill Building, where a few of the above are on my current roster.
I’ve also had over 100 releases on my label, We Are: The Guard, which have garnered over 100 Million streams on Spotify alone! I’ve learned all my lessons the hard way – meaning spending my own money, figuring out new strategies, what works and what doesn’t - all on my own dime. I’ve had some big wins, but also by learning through mistakes, I’ve formulated and created a release plan for our label that just works.
What I’m offering is my entire release plan along with detailed step by step instruction – for you! That’s right. After 100 music releases, I’ve created a systematic plan on EXACTLY what you need to do 6 weeks before the release, 5 weeks, 4 weeks, etc… all the way up to days before the release, the day of release, and post release activities.
The number 1 rule is you need a plan! And a plan that’s mapped out, written down, shareable, and communicable with your team - so you know who’s doing what. This is the course that will show you how to release music as a professional!