The music industry contacts guide for independent artists
Music promotion for independent artists comes down to one question: who do I send this to, and when? This guide answers it for every part of a release, from Spotify playlist curators and record labels to radio, blogs, DJs and bookers. It is the same playbook our customers use with DemoPool lists, written so you can use it even without them.
What music industry contacts are and who needs them
Music industry contacts are the direct emails of the people who decide what gets heard: playlist curators, label A&R and demo inboxes, radio programmers and show hosts, music journalists and bloggers, DJs who play new records, promoters, booking agents and artist managers. Social DMs get buried. A short email to the right inbox is still how most deals, placements and gigs start.
Who needs them? Independent artists promoting their own releases, small labels servicing records to DJs and press, managers and PR people building campaigns, and producers looking for vocalists, labels or sync. The difference between a campaign that works and one that doesn't is rarely the music alone. It is whether the right people saw it at the right time.
Who to pitch, and when: a release timeline
Most artists pitch everyone in release week. By then it is too late for labels and editorial playlists, and too early for bookers. Spread the outreach like this:
| When | Who to contact | What to send |
|---|---|---|
| 8 to 6 weeks before | Record labels and A&R | Private streaming link, two lines on why it fits their catalog |
| 4 to 2 weeks before | Music blogs, radio shows | Short pitch, press photo, release date, one-line story |
| 3 to 1 weeks before | Independent playlist curators | Spotify link or private link, genre, mood, comparable artists |
| At least 7 days before | Spotify editors, via Spotify for Artists | The pitch form for your unreleased track |
| Release week | DJs, SoundCloud repost channels | Download or promo link, BPM and key for DJs |
| After release | Clubs and festivals, promoters, booking agents | Results so far, a live set or mix, free dates |
How to get on Spotify playlists: finding and pitching curators
Spotify editorial playlists are closed: the only way in is the pitch form in Spotify for Artists. Independent playlist curators are different. They are people, small brands and labels who run playlists with real followers, and many of them accept music by email. Our Spotify playlist curator email list has 674 curators in 20 genres, for example 159 in hip-hop and trap, 116 in indie and rock and 106 in pop.
- Pitch the playlist, not the person. Name the playlist and say where your track would sit in it.
- Match the mood, not just the genre. A sad indie track does not belong on a workout playlist, even if both say “indie”.
- Never pay for a guaranteed placement. Spotify's rules ban buying placements, and bought streams can get tracks removed.
- Say thank you. Curators who add you once often add your next release too.
How to submit music to record labels
Labels sign music that fits their catalog and their audience. Before you write, listen to their last ten releases. If your track would sound out of place there, skip that label. Our record label contacts cover 13,930 labels with demo and A&R emails in 23 genres: 2,907 techno labels, 2,814 house, 1,650 tech house, 1,532 hip-hop and trap, 1,699 pop, 1,066 drum and bass, 1,023 trance and 948 indie and rock, among others.
- Use their demo inbox or demo page if they have one. A label's general inbox is the last resort.
- Send a private link (SoundCloud private, Dropbox, DISCO), never attachments.
- One track, finished and mastered. Send your best one, not your whole folder.
- Follow up once after one or two weeks. No reply after that means no.
Radio stations and music blogs that accept submissions
Radio still breaks records, especially college, community and online stations and specialist shows. Our list of 661 radio stations and shows is sorted by genre, so a jazz record goes to jazz shows and a house record goes to dance shows. For press, pitch music blogs that accept submissions and cover your scene. Give them a reason to write: a story, a video, a milestone, not just “new single out now”.
DJs, promo channels, clubs, promoters and booking agents
For electronic music, DJ support moves a record further than any ad. Send promos to DJs and producers who play your style, and post to 1,117 SoundCloud repost and promo channels for reach on release day. When you are ready to play live, pitch 2,890 clubs and festivals, 321 event promoters and 2,580 booking agents. If you are growing fast, one of 1,161 music managers can take the business side off your hands.
How to write a pitch that gets a reply
- Subject line: artist name, track title, genre. “Ana Sol, Night Drive (melodic house)” beats “Please listen!!”.
- First line: their name and why you chose them. One real detail shows you did your homework.
- Two lines about the track: genre, mood, one comparable artist, release date.
- One link. Streaming or private link, nothing to download.
- Sign-off: your name, one social link, one line on results if you have them.
Keep it under 120 words. Send from your own domain if you can, a few dozen emails a day, not hundreds at once. Personal, short and relevant wins every time.
Why verified emails matter: deliverability
Every bounce tells Gmail and Outlook that you are sending to addresses you do not know. Too many, and your next emails land in spam, including the ones to people who would have answered. Since 2024, Gmail and Yahoo require bulk senders to authenticate their domain (SPF, DKIM, DMARC), make unsubscribing easy and keep spam complaints low. A dead list breaks all of that.
That is why every email in a DemoPool file is checked before it goes in, the base is rebuilt every month and each row carries the date it was last verified. If more than 3% of your first send hard-bounces, we replace those contacts 1:1.
Contact lists vs submission platforms vs industry databases
| Free lists and spreadsheets | Pay-per-submission platforms | Industry databases | DemoPool | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cost | Free | Paid per pitch, adds up fast | High yearly subscription | From $19 once or $19/mo |
| Fresh emails | Rarely updated | n/a, you never see the email | Updated | Re-checked monthly, date on every row |
| Direct contact | Yes | No, through the platform | Yes | Yes, your inbox to theirs |
| Sorted by genre | Rarely | Yes | Partly | Yes, 23 genres |
| You keep the data | Yes | No | No, only while you pay | Yes, XLSX + CSV |
Submission platforms are useful for a guaranteed listen. Lists win when you want relationships: once a curator or label knows you, the next email costs nothing.
A 30-day music promotion plan for independent artists
You do not need a label or a big budget to promote a release properly. You need a plan and the right contacts. Here is a simple month that works for most genres:
- Days 1 to 3, prepare. Final master, cover art, a one-paragraph bio, two press photos, a private link and a release date at least four weeks away. Upload to your distributor and pitch Spotify editors as soon as the track appears in Spotify for Artists.
- Days 4 to 10, labels and press. Shortlist 20 to 40 labels and blogs that fit your sound. Personalize every first line. Send ten a day, not all at once.
- Days 11 to 20, radio and curators. Pitch radio shows in your genre and 30 to 60 playlist curators whose playlists match the mood of the track. Log every send in a simple sheet: name, date, reply.
- Days 21 to 28, release week. Send promos to DJs and repost channels, thank everyone who supported you, and share every add and play on social media. Proof brings more proof.
- Days 29 to 30, follow up and plan the next one. One polite follow-up to everyone who did not answer. Note who replied, so your next release starts warm.
Repeat this every six to eight weeks. Artists who release often and pitch consistently build relationships, and relationships are what turn a cold email into a placement.
Music contacts by genre
Pitching the wrong genre is the fastest way to be ignored, so every list is sorted by genre and you can buy just the part you need. Electronic music is the biggest group: 2,907 techno, 2,814 house, 1,849 deep and organic house, 1,295 melodic and progressive, 346 afro house and amapiano and 507 UK garage and breaks labels. Beyond electronic, the lists cover hip-hop and R&B, pop, Latin and reggae, rock, indie, metal and folk, plus jazz, classical and gospel. Each record label, curator and radio page shows live counts for every genre before you buy.
How DemoPool builds its music industry database
We do not resell old databases. Every contact passes four checks: we find it where the person says they accept music, match it to real recent activity, verify the email on the mail server and re-check it every month. Contacts that stop working are removed, new ones are added, and the file you download always shows the date each email was last verified. That is the difference between a music industry directory that is right today and one that was right two years ago.
Using music contacts the right way
Every contact in our lists is a business address that the person or company published for music, press or booking enquiries. Use them the way they were meant to be used: write relevant, personal pitches, say who you are, offer an easy opt-out and remove anyone who asks. Anyone can ask us to remove their contact on our removal page.
Ready to start? Test 25 contacts free, pick one list, or get every list with All Access.
Planning a release? Try our free tools for musicians: a streaming royalty calculator, a pitch email generator and a release plan generator.