How To Create A Music Epk
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An EPK, or electronic press kit, is a great tool to help artists promote their music. It gives promoters, radio DJs, venue bookers, music writers and podcasters all they need to know. While creating an EPK is time-consuming, it's an essential resource that defines who you are as an artist to important decision-makers.
An EPK for music is like a singer or musician's CV. It is a digital press kit that can be made for free and easily sent to people in the music industry. There are plenty of free templates that make creating an EPK super easy, so all singers should have one on their website.
Singers and musicians should create their own EPKs containing their personal biography, any details about music releases or gigs and all relevant marketing material. Here is everything you need to know about creating your EPK.
How to make an EPK
Follow these steps to create your own electronic press kit. Remember to make an EPK that showcases your finest musical and artistic achievements.
- Write a short EPK bio
- Include links to music
- Add gig dates and details
- Include any press releases in your EPK
- Use professional photos
- Embed music videos
- Note any relevant mentions
- Provide any contact details
What is an EPK?
EPK stands for electronic press kit and it is a CV-like document used to promote yourself and your work. Electronic press kits are a professional way for people to quickly summarise their accomplishments and grab the attention of anyone who can help promote you.
What is an electronic press kit for music?
An EPK is perfect for releasing an EP or album because it will contain everything a writer or promoter needs to know about you. It can also be used for going on tour, releasing merchandise or any other event that you want to bring attention to. An electronic press kit can be tailored to your press release. It can be very visual for a music video or it could talk more about tour dates and previous shows.
How do you create an electronic press kit for music
Making an EPK doesn't have to cost a fortune. Here is what you should put in an EPK to build up your profile with the press.
#1 Write a short EPK bio
Your bio is a short section summarising who you are. It shouldn't be very wordy — two paragraphs is ideal.
In your bio, make sure you answer the following questions:
- What kind of music do you make?
- When did you start making music?
- What are your biggest achievements to date?
#2 Include links to music files
The most important section, your music! Make this area as inviting as you can, and your songs easily accessible.
To make it easy for them, it may be best to host your music on a reputable streaming platform providing links to your songs. This way, they won't need to download all of your music in order to listen to it.
If you don't, yet, want your music in the public domain, platforms such as YouTube and Vimeo can host your music privately while providing link-only access.
#3 Add gig dates and details
If you have any gigs lined up, make sure you list all of them, including the city and venue details — this demonstrates how often you're performing, the type of venue and the probable size of your audience.
#4 Include any press releases in your EPK
You will most likely not have a press release at this stage. This will come with time but document any official press releases for your music here.
What should be in an EPK
#5 Use professional photos
Make sure you include some hi-res photographs that can be downloaded. A good idea is to paste some digitised photos into your press kit and include a link to the hi-res photos that are available to download. Include any cover art imagery, if you have any.
#6 Embed music videos
Include any music videos or clips of live performances in this section – this helps them to get a feel for who you are as an artist and your image.
#7 Note any relevant mentions
Have you ever been covered in previous publications or blogs? As above, you might not have anything to show here yet. Paste any quotes directly into this section and include links to the full articles.
#8 Provide contact details
Include all of your details here, including your:
- Email address
- Social media profiles
- Website URL
- Soundcloud etc.
How much does an electronic press kit cost
The cost of a press kit can really vary depending on how much your spending on the content featured in it. For example, if you are doing a shoot for your press kit then there are costs involving the clothing and photographer. However, a standard press kit can be made for free.
How do I get an EPK
You can choose to make your own from scratch but this can be difficult if you don't have great graphic design skills. Fortunately, there are great sites out there that can help you create your press kit.
Sonicbids EPK
Sonicbids is a great platform that will help you put together a professional press kit. It will be formatted for both mobile and desktops and includes loads of cool features. You can integrate your social media channels and music, as well as any press mentions.
Is Sonicbids free
There is a free tier but it is limited. You can only send it to 5 people and include 2 videos, photos and songs. There is a paid tier for $5 a month that has no limits and also has some extra features such as a pro badge and special EPK link.
Adobe Spark EPK
Another great way to put together an EPK is to use Adobe Spark. Adobe products are used widely by professionals and Adobe Spark can be a great option for a professional press kit. Like Sonicbids, there is also a free tier to get you started. Adobe Spark is focused much more around graphic design so there aren't automatic ways to embed your socials or music. However, it is a great tool and can be looked at as an easy version of Photoshop.
Bandzoogle EPK
There is no free option for Bandzoogle but that doesn't mean it should be written off. It specialises in creating websites for musicians and artists so you will also be getting access to a great website builder if you sign up. You can choose to add a page to your site that is specifically tailored for an EPK. This can be a great option for anyone who is looking for a whole website along with their EPK.
Difference between a press kit and press release
A press release is an official statement used for a specific announcement. A press release in itself usually doesn't make a press kit. However, your press kit will often feature your press release. It will also feature a lot more information that isn't relevant to the specific release but is relevant to your history and the context behind the release.
Is an EPK a website
An EPK isn't a whole website but it should summarise a lot of the information you have on your site. A website is an all-encompassing platform that should contain multiple pages or sections with different information about you. Your press kit should be much more concise and typically on a single page.
Although your EPK shouldn't be your website, there is no reason why it shouldn't be on your website. Artists can have a page on their website dedicated to their EPK. You can replicate your EPK on this page, have a link to download the file or both. Alternatively, you can have a separate site for your EPK that is exclusively for the press.
What file for an electronic press kit
It is much better to have your EPK online. If you are sending your press kit then a PDF file may be the best option. It will be easy to open across pretty much all computers and will always be the same. If you send a word document, it could change if the person opening it is using pages or a different version or word.
If you are sending music then it is better to upload to SoundCloud or YouTube and send a private link. Sending too many files is a bad idea but if you are going to send an audio file then it should be compressed like an mp3 unless another format is specified.
Who to send an EPK to?
You should send your EPK to whoever you want to promote your music. This will most likely be journalists at music review publications. It's best to start with smaller blogs and work your way up rather than start with the biggest sites out there.
You could also send it to radio stations for an upcoming release to help you get airplay. Sending it to promoters at venues is another good idea because it could get you gigs or even a better slot at a show. There's never any guarantee that someone will even read your EPK but putting a great one together is a great first step.
EPK templates
Sonicbids, Adobe Spark and Bandzoogle all offer great templates that you can get started with. You could also look at some of the artists below for inspiration.
Here are some existing electronic press kits you may want to draw inspiration from:
- Daniel Duke EPK – http://www.danielduke.me/music/epk/
- Laura Davis EPK – https://www.lauradavisofficial.com/epk
- Jeramiah Ferrari EPK – https://www.jeramiahferrari.com/epk
- TAVISH EPK – https://www.briaghamctavish.com/epk
Stand out with your electronic press kit
Here are some great extras that you could add to your EPK to help it stand out.
Trivia and interesting facts
Include some facts about you that may not necessarily relate to your music, but could be interesting for a journalist.
List these concisely as bullet points and make sure that you don't reveal anything too personal, to avoid detracting attention from your music. Perhaps, include a story about how you came up with a song. Show them what you're about!
Ambitions for the future
It's nice for people to see that you have clear goals in mind for your music, and this will help give them an insight into how serious you are about your craft.
Where should my EPK be saved?
While EPK's used to be commonly sent out as PDFs, doing this has many downsides, as PDFs are not mobile-friendly, are hard to update, and don't allow you to stream clips or songs.
The ideal place to keep your electronic press kit is on your website away from the main content. If you don't have a website, you may choose to use specialist platforms such as presskit.to, which allow you to build your first EPK for free.
And lastly…
Remember to keep your EPK up-to-date, and have fun building it!
Have you created an electronic press kit? We would love to see it! Drop a link to your EPK in the comments below.
How To Create A Music Epk
Source: https://www.openmicuk.co.uk/advice/how-to-create-an-electronic-press-kit-epk/
Posted by: smithgert1936.blogspot.com
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