What are the best practices for pitching your music to Spotify playlists and editors?

I’ve found Everynoise.com to be an extremely helpful tool when attempting to narrow down the sub-genres that might best fit an artists song. It takes some time to understand how to best utilize it, but my general belief is that small+specific is better than large+general when it comes to building momentum with Spotify’s algorithm. The goal of play-listing is to achieve better “listen-thru” + “save” rates. Not to mention, users skipping your song on a playlist will actually hurt it’s likelihood to get place in front of more people via the platforms “Discover” or “Recommend” algorithms.

It's crucial to understand what sort of playlists your music fits in to. An easy way of doing this is getting on spotify and searching for playlists in your track's mood and genre. Listen to the tracks included. Note the playlist size and start a list of small, medium and large playlists your track would be a good fit for. This requires you to be objective but is a great exercise in understanding the journey your music will take through to top playlists. By going through this process you will inevitably learn more about the type of music that does get featured, what playlists aren't for you and how to subsequently tailor your playlist pitch.

Research the names of the editorial staff at Spotify, and add a note in your Spotify For Artists pitch to "please be sure (editorial curator X) gets to hear this" - this way, whomever at Spotify is looking at the tens of thousands of submissions each week will know to forward your release to the appropriate curator.

Do you think that Spotify for Artists is just for pitching songs? Think again! It's a treasure trove of tools waiting to be explored. Beyond the Pitch: Pro Polish Your Profile A profile pic that hasn't changed since your first gig? Not a good look. Update it regularly to show your fans you're active and engaged. Your banner artwork is prime real estate. Freshen it up with eye-catching visuals that reflect your latest project or vibe. Craft a compelling bio that tells your story and connects with fans. Highlight your achievements and what makes your music unique. By keeping your profile dynamic, you signal to Spotify that you're a serious artist. This can potentially increase your visibility and land you in the spotlight!

Spotify for artist is the only and the best practice to pitch the song for editorial playlists. It takes 7-15 days but it is worthy enough to wait. Playlist placement can give exponential growth to your song.

Pitch your music using Spotify for Artists. This allows you to add as much information as possible to make sure your music reaches the right editors at Spotify and the right listeners in the longterm. You should submit your music as early as possible to give it a better chance of being heard prior to release and considered for editorial opportunities. If you submit an original song (not a remix) that has never been released previously. Make sure to submit at least 7 days prior. This way it can be delivered to the Release Radar playlist for your followers. There also may be an option to pin the song to the top of your "this is" artist playlist.

Great advice! Thank you for sharing your knowledge. I had not thought of adding a ore release to my artist ‘best of’ playlist, but this is such a good idea!

Aim for playlists that fit precisely your genre by doing a lil’ research before submitting. Don’t just submit, suggest specific playlists, like those who have a lil’ less followers but who are probably more loyal to it. This could not only show you dedication and attention to details, this makes you stand out among a very crowded space. Maybe an A&R that wasn’t seeing a fit would now see one.

Remember that a human is reading your pitch, so try to inject some personality into it. If you struggle with words, why not ask someone else to listen to the song and hand them a pen and paper. We did this with a collaborator on one of our songs and this is the pitch they wrote that led to two editorial playlist placements. "Love, just like the phone on which it’s often sparked, seems to fall prey to planned obsolescence. Long after the club lights cool, after all the sweaty clothes come off, after a dozen broken hearts and a hundred bad decisions, you wouldn’t fault a person these days for their suspicion of commitment. Then again, that might also be the moment someone’s finally ready."

Grab the reader's attention with your opening sentence making it catchy and very much a hook in to read more. In the body of your pitch be sure to include: - Description of the track and any music references, features or noteworthy points on the track itself. This is where you can mention your niche and the playlists you're aiming for. - Past and present highlights (including past editorial support, awards, notably venues played etc.) - Context (is this part of a bigger EP project, is it linked to any current events etc.) Most importantly BE CONCISE! Get others to proof read your pitch and aim to fit your points into 1 or two paragraphs.

Don't be disheartened if you weren't playlisted on your first few tracks - it takes time and every release is a pitch attempt and one step closer to an inclusion. Releasing your project as multiple singles (vs. dropping a whole album at once) gives you more chances to be pitched. Make sure you focus on building a well rounded career outside of streaming as this will also help with your chances of gettign featured. Remember why you chose to make music and keep true to yourself. Eventually the praise will come.