As an aspiring musician, it can be a scary thought to begin promoting your music. Where do you start if you have no contacts in the industry? What if you have a low budget? Learning which apps are best is the first step you can take in tackling promotion. Which are the best apps for promoting your music? There are many, many apps out there that can help you find new fans and grow an audience.
Here are our 7 favorite apps that are helping new musicians succeed and get in touch with their contemporaries:
1. Last.fm
This app is great for promotion; it recommends music to the user due to personal preference. Instead of being purely based on luck if your music is liked or not, Last.fm ensures it is being played by someone with similar tastes. As one of the biggest online radio services, Last.fm provides a great service to promote music. They offer various ways to handle your music; from a 30 second preview to the full download. They run promotional campaigns and a personal page to gain followers and new fans.
2. GigTown
Providing musicians with an opportunity to market themselves for free on a broader stage, GigTown brings musicians, venues and party planners together. The real power and strength of this app is in its ability to connect musicians, fans and venues in a brilliant manner.
Moreover, with the option to search musician profiles, this app is a great way to establish connections beyond the already established world of music. The app allows musicians to upload audio tracks, video performances and personal information, which besides helping them promote themselves, also connects them with other artists who share similar interests.
3. Musicr
If you are looking for awesome musicians to jam out with, this app will help you do just that. Musicr is designed to bring local musicians together for the love of music.
Users of the app simply fill a profile that showcases their interests and proficiency and the instruments that they like to play. Musicians can then search for people with similar music interests and connect with them, form a band together, practice with each other and also share music tricks and tips.
4. Songkick
Songkick is a ticket purchasing app by nature; yet promotes artists to its users. Advertisements for musicians pop up to the user based on location and musical taste. It reaches a large demographic, keeps users up to date with touring musicians and offers suggestions for new music. This is a great low cost app to promote music for those with budget issues. Songkick also collates information from Google Play Music, Spotify etc; allowing for greater possibility of your music being promoted.
5. Jambro
Referred to as a ‘Tinder for musicians’, the app’s goal is to be the best possible solution for musicians at a time when quite often they are not given due worth, respect and opportunities.
Since one of the major obstacles musicians face is the lack of space to get together and play music, the founders of Jambro decided to help musicians get over this major obstacle. The makers of this app spoke about the vision behind Jambro and said that they want local musicians to get out of their comfort zones and get together as a community that loves and creates music.
6. Soundcloud
Soundcloud is still one of the best apps to link with your social media profile. The app was designed for simplicity; store your music and share easily with Facebook etc. They also offer giveaways e.g. giving away tracks for free. Your profile on the app also works as social media; listeners can post comments on what they like, providing easy feedback without them having to be on Soundcloud.
7. Instagram
Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Youtube. These are the big guns for free music promotion. They all have their separate uses, they all have millions of users. Download all, create profiles and keep them updated! Word of mouth is one of the most effective promotional campaigns you can get. Using social media is extremely simple and great for those with little or no budget. Just make sure to post lots of samples, photos and stories. You want to connect with fans on a personal level. The relative new kid on the block is Instagram, and if you’re not on there already it’s definitely worth checking out. It’s free to use and has a special knack of making your fans feel close to you. Getting up front and personal with fans is a great way to build an affinity with your audience. Instagram nails that.
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