I am a solo pianist and I release my my albums about every 12-24 months. I'm in the process of releasing my sixteenth album, and in all the years I've been doing this, I've learned a few things about what needs to be done to effectively release a solo piano album as an independent musician. I am the queen of making lists, and over the years I've created a pretty thorough checklist of things I do to release my music. I have many musician friends who have asked to see my list, and so here I am, posting it on my blog for all the world to see. Obviously, this is not a master key or secret formula for album releases, but it works for me.
Solo Piano Album Release Checklist
- Write and compose the music
- Title the songs
- Title and theme the album
- Write the liner notes for the album
- Design the artwork for the album (I use Matt Strieby at NewLeaf Design)
- Design the artwork for the songbook (I use Matt Strieby at NewLeaf Design)
- Record the album
- Master and Engineer the album (I use Joe Bongiorno at Piano Haven Studios)
- Send recordings to transcriptionist to make the sheet music (I use Rebecca Oswald or John Zechiel)
- Have the transcriptions proofed for errors (I use Kathy Parsons at MainlyPiano)
- Set up the album on CD Baby (I prefer CD Baby over Tunecore)
- Send barcode to designer for final design
- Add ISRC codes to final master for manufacturing
- Send CD artwork and mastered files to manufacturer (I use Diskmakers)
- Send Songbook artwork and final PDF’s to printer (I use Shelton Turnbull)
- Add songs and artwork to All Music and Gracenote Database
- Setup pre-sale through iTunes, Bandcamp, Amazon and Website
- Add album and image files to Advantage Amazon account
- Add songs to PRO for both accounts (I'm with ASCAP)
- Add songs to SoundExchange Repertoire
- Send album to US Copyright Office (file online)
- Add album and all components to my business intellectual property database
- Create a pre-sale landing page on website for promotion
- Add album to website (I use 12South Music for my website design)
- Add songbook and sheet music to website
- Create website slider images for promotion
- Create promotion banners for Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Google+ and Instagram
- Create banner image for email blasts
- Add album to Bandcamp
- Add album to Bandage
- Add album to Reverberation
- Add album to Soundcloud
- Add sheet music to MusicNotes
- Add sheet music to Sheet Music Plus
- Add to Earbits
- Add to Noisetrade
- Announce the album via all social networking and mailing lists
- Write a blog post to promote
- Schedule Radio promotion campaign with a radio promoter (I use Ed Bonk at LAZZ Promotions or Kevin Wood at New Vision Promotions)
- Make a one-sheet and album bio
- Apply with Pandora advocate about possibly doing a Pandora Premiers
- Send album to Whisperings
- Send album to SoloPiano.com
- Send album to Pandora (wait at least a month after it's released, selling and has reviews)
- Create and order promotional postcards (I use Overnight Prints)
- Send promotional postcards to entire physical mailing list
- Send album to the following reviewers:
- Kathy Parsons (send songbook as well for review)
- Bill Binkelman
- RJ Lannan
- Alejandro at RNA
- Steve Sheppard at OWM
- Stephen Cairns at Piano Heaven
- Keith Hannaleck
- Dick Metcalf
- Heath Andrews
- Do a complete OWM Radio Package for (featured artist, album show, album review, artist interview, etc.)
- Do a 3 month Advertising banner on ZMR home page at the same time as radio campaign
- Do a 3 month Advertising scroll on ZMR pages at the same time as radio campaign
- Sign up as a ZMR Sponsor
- Send album to all music friends and family (complimentary)
- Enter album and songs into the following awards and music competitions:
- HMMA Awards
- USA Songwriting Competition
- International Acoustic Music Awards (IAMA’s)
- International Songwriting Competition (ISC’s)
- Just Plain Folks
- Global Peace Awards
- Indie Music Channel (IMC Awards)
- Independent Music Awards (IMA’s)
- John Lennon Songwriting Competition
- Grammy’s
- Do a 3 month online promotional campaign (I use CyberPR)
- Work with my marketing team to promote the album (I use 12South Music)
- Set up radio interviews
- Do a Live CD Release concert
- Do an Online CD Release concert with tipping incentives (I use Concert Window)
- Submit music for licensing in film and TV.
- Release album videos (YouTube, Vimeo, Facebook, etc.)
- Do Facebook and Google advertising campaigns for promotion
- Market and promote like crazy
- Tour to promote new album
So there you have it. With every album release I modify and tweak this list and I'm always learning of new outlets, new methods, and new things I could be doing/trying. As I said, this isn't the secret formula, and it's not a set in stone list for all musicians. Every musician is different, and there are so many styles/genres of music out there. This list works for me... an independent solo piano composer. Just making music and sharing it with the world!
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