How to Make a Great Press Kit: A Guide for Musicians
Legal LawAs the owner of an independent record label, I am often asked how to put together a great press kit. I have found that young musicians understand their music, but are often intimidated by the business side of the business. In this article, I’ll help you figure out how to position yourself, whether you’re a Latina vocalist building her foundation or a new garage band just looking for a break.
What is a press dossier?
First of all, there’s nothing magical about the term “press kit.” All we’re talking about is a bit of history about you/your band, some basic facts, good quotes about your music, a couple of good photos, and a sample of your music. You’ll use this to send to newspapers, lawyers, radio stations, A&R reps, promoters, and anyone else willing to spend five minutes reviewing your material. In addition, on the Internet you will hear about an electronic press kit or EPS. An EPS is exactly the same as a conventional press kit, except that it can be downloaded as an electronic file instead of a paper form that must be submitted by post.
The main purpose of the press kit is to generate interest in the artist and their music.
What to include:
Please include a limited amount of background information about yourself. It’s okay to say where you’re from, but no one really wants to hear about every singing performance you did during grade school. Sometimes, less is more.
Talk about your music. Who do you sound like and who does your music remind people of? The reader should be able to get a good idea of what your music sounds like just from your description. Please be considerate and feel free to be a little funny here (but stay professional). Saying something like your band sounds like a cross between “Maroon 5 and Green Day after 20 cups of coffee” helps the reader understand. Remember, if you don’t generate enough interest in the first minute, they will never listen to your demo.
Talk about what you’re good at. What makes your band special and different from the others? What skills and experiences do you bring to the table? Remember that if you’re looking for a record deal, you need to show your reader that you have all the right ingredients for them to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on your marketing. Releasing a new artist is risky, so you need to help the record executive understand why it’s a sound investment.
Include quotes and/or news clippings as you generate them. A good quote from a trusted source (not your brother-in-law) can add a lot of credibility to your press kit. It lets the reader know that you have already been reviewed and that your material is worth listening to. Unfortunately ninety percent of press kits end up in the trash, a few good quotes and positive reviews can create the momentum you need to get heard and who knows, maybe even become famous.
You can go with a dedicated bio page and a separate page focused on quotes about your music, or you can combine the two into what some people call a “one pager.” My personal preference is to wrap everything up in a single pager. My desk is messy and the papers are separated. If you have your quotes separate from your bio, there’s a chance you could miss one or the other. With the advent of digital photography and high-quality color printers, it’s even possible to include a small image on your pager to make it even more complete.
Make sure the general language and tone of the press kit is consistent with your image. If you have someone helping you write your biography, make sure they’ve heard your music and know what it’s about before handing you something that may sound cool, but isn’t about the real you.
Include a couple of different 8×10 images that show different characteristics about you and your band. Include shots that would be appropriate in a news article, but also highlight your key assets from a visual perspective. Your press kit should look professional, but your images should reflect your style and music, so your images can be that much crazier and more creative. Be sure to clearly label the image with your name and contact information.
If you don’t have good photos of your band, one of the best ways to get some is to go to a modeling agency and ask them to recommend a good local photographer. These photographers are often willing to do a great job for around $300 for the complete package. Make sure you get an agreement up front that you own the copyright after the shot, and get the high-resolution digital images on a CD (with a copyright release, you can print these photos at any major retailer). A photographer who works with models is very different from a photographer who takes family photos. They have a much better idea of what you want, will encourage your creativity, and are much more willing to give you the copyright.
A current gig sheet can also be useful to show where you have played recently and where you will be playing in the near future. This can show that the music is current and has a following in the community.
And of course, his music. Please send a high-quality demo CD, preferably mastered if your budget allows. Avoid burning your own CD on your home computer with a sticker on it – it looks cheap. There are many new CD duplication services on the internet that will make your CD with a color printed insert and on disc printing even if you only want a few copies (CD duplication is for batches of more than 1000, but CD duplication CD is for batches as small as 1). Expect to pay around $5 per retail-ready disc for 1-5 CDs, and prices will drop for larger lots. Be sure to clearly label the CD and box with your name and contact information. The worst thing that could happen in the world is that they love your music, but they already lost the rest of the press kit and can’t remember the name of the band.
What not to include:
Don’t oversell yourself. To say that you are the best band that ever existed may be true, but it probably isn’t. Be positive and promote yourself, but focus on statements that are believable. People in the music business hear hype all the time and are, for the most part, desensitized to it. Exaggeration is good to use with the general public in things like billboards (they often believe it), but the reader of your press kit is more sophisticated and will see it as cheap theater.
Including too much of your personal history can make you sound like an amateur with nothing more important to talk about. Your reader wants to understand your music today, only your psychologist needs to know every little detail of your childhood.
Don’t include anything that makes you sound too desperate. You want to give the impression of a quality professional artist. Remember, you make good music. If your band is called Chicken Heads, then it might be cute to include a rubber chicken in the box, but otherwise, I’d stick to the basics: bio, quotes, gig sheet, pictures, and music.
How to pack it:
Include a personalized, professional-looking cover letter addressed to the person you are sending the press kit to. Your message should be different if you’re sending it to an A&R rep at a label looking for a record deal, rather than sending it to your local newspaper for a review in their music section. Be short and to the point. Also, be clear and say exactly what you would like from them.
Put it all together in one organized package. Since you’ll most likely be mailing your press kits, make sure the CD doesn’t bend the photos and that your kit arrives looking the way you want it to. You might even want to try a press kit (send it across the country to the wrong address, then return to your return address) to assess your packaging.
Your music is art, but your press kit is business:
Remember, be professional. The person you’re sending this press kit to probably gets hundreds of them, most of them junk (and that’s where they end up, too). Your music may be crazy and wild, but your press kit should be more commercial. You are asking someone to spend valuable time reviewing your material. You may also be asking them to enter into a high-risk and expensive financial relationship with you. The person you’re dealing with is in the music business, they need to make a living. The only way they can do that is to deal with real talent. By presenting a professional package, you give them the confidence that you are dedicated to making great music, and not just wasting time.
A word about unsolicited press kits:
Avoid wasting time and money sending a press kit to someone you haven’t spoken to yet. Always call and make contact first, ask who you should send it to and what their process is. If possible, have someone who knows the person act as a go-between and make the initial introduction (this can work wonders). The music business is all about contacts, create and leverage your network. After you submit your press kit, call in a couple of weeks and follow up to make sure they received it and have had a chance to review it.
Example:
To see a good example of a press kit, visit the Legend Vega website at [http://www.legendvega.com].