How to plan your Song Releases

Song Release Plan

The following screen shows an example of the monthly overview with a current status of songs. The classification is made according to the process status of the song. Contract o.k. means that the song has been signed to a label and the release date is known and planned. Contract pending means that the song has been produced and completed and is being sent to potential labels with the aim of getting a label contract. Under construction (i.e. still in progress). Here the songs are listed with the collaboration partners that are not yet finished.

Plan for a Single Release

The precondition for this is that we either have a distribution partner (Distrokid or label) that uploads the song to all music platforms and promotes it in the best possible way. For a song release without a label contract, the way to go is to upload the song to the various music platforms via a distribution partner and to take the promotion of the song into your own hands.

"DistroKid is the easiest way for musicians to get music on Spotify, Apple, Amazon, Tidal, TikTok, YouTube and more. Unlimited uploads, keep 100% of your earnings." 

The song release with a label has the advantage, that the marketing is in the hands of the label. In return, the label gets a share of the revenues that the song generates on the rolled-out music platforms. Depending on the marketing power of the label for the song, the artist’s reach on the music platforms can also increase. The aim is to find a label that will post and promote the song on as many platforms as possible so that it is heard, saved and listened to repeatedly by the maximum possible audience. The goal is that the music user not only likes the song, but also searches for the artist on social networks and music platforms and listens to other songs or follows the artist so as not to miss new releases. For both release options, the action plan is the same for all music and social platforms. The picture wall shows the To Do list around the release day. The example of the picture wall shown here has been prepared for the release of the song “Do It To Me Back” on 20.08.2022

A “Release Day To do List Template” needs to be created for future releases, and can be updated for each release.

Summary

It is super important to document the song releases and the process for a single release in a content plan. Take the time to structure it properly. It definitely is worth it!