We want your demo
Before you send us your demo please reed our kindly words before we start.
Throughout the years, countless dance music producers have tried to get their music signed to their favorite record label. But in most of these cases, their songs didn’t even reach the ears of an A&R manager at all. We hear you thinking: “How is this even possible?” Bear with us as we explain.
Take into account that an A&R manager is already working full-time to ensure the success of his current artist roster. This leaves little time for actually listening to music from unknown artists, simply because there’s no guarantee that the effort put in will actually pay off. Now add to this the fact that record labels could be receiving over a hundred(!) demo submissions a day. See the problem?
The A&R managers have to comb through an endless list of demo submissions, knowing they only have time to listen to a handful of songs. They have to be extremely picky, and there’s only one thing they can base their first selection on: the first impression.
OUR FIRST IMPRESSION
life is like a box of chocolates you never know what you're gonna get! Many of you have never been in contact with the label’s A&R manager before, so you’ll have to make a very good first impression when sending him your music. For starters, you need to know where to send your hit-single-to-be and to whom.
You can use a famous tool like Google. Once you’re on the right web page, you’ll find out how the label likes to receive all demos. In our case, we have just want to receive a dowload link (Dropbox, Soundcloud etc). No worrie, your music is safe!
THE DON’TS WHEN SUBMITTING YOUR DEMO
1. Please, do not attach your demo directly to the email!
We don't want it that way and we don't want data explosoins @ our inbox! Whenever you attach audio files directly to the e-mail, it will only make the A&R manager’s e-mail account run out of disk space in no time. We wouldn’t want that, now would we?
2. Please, do not send unfinished work!
Make sure the record is completely finished and preferably mastered, not “still in need of minor tweaks”. And don’t submit any bootlegs or mashups either. All legal explanations aside, those productions simply can’t be released.
3. Language
Keep in mind, try to wright your e-mail in English, it's not a pitty if it's not totally correct but just try.
THE DO'S WHEN SUBMITTING YOUR DEMO
A. File delivery via Private SoundCloud link + optional download
Out of all the available options, sending an e-mail to the suggested mail box with a private SoundCloud link is the best possible move by far. In short, the A&R Manager will be one click away from listening to your music. In addition, he’s able to check out some of your other works if he feels like it and his mail box doesn’t get jammed due to huge .wav files. PERFECT!
B. Short introduction and track description
The A&R manager doesn’t need to know the size of your pinky toe or how wide your nostrils are. A short introduction and some relevant information is all he needs. The introduction text should be short and include a few lines about:
- Yourself;
- Any notable musical achievements so far;
- The track itself;
- Your style of music;
- Why you think this track suits the label.
If you can summarize this in less than ten sentences, you are good to go as far as text is concerned. If you still wish to write a novel regardless, you might just have to reconsider your current career choice.
C. Being kind and pleasant to work with
Keep in mind that A&R managers are human beings above all else. They can have good days and lousy days, just like everybody else. As much as rude emails could worsen their mood, a bit of gentleman-like behavior could brighten their day. Besides, you don’t want to come off as an arrogant or resentful person, now do you? A&R managers are dealing with their artists on a daily basis, so being difficult to work with won’t increase your odds of getting signed.
DUBBEL CHECK
If you’ve made it this far, you now know how to sent your demo the right way. The world doesn't end if there isn't a match with Music Movement Records. Keep making music, keep sending your music and never give up!