Los Angeles, California Jun 9, 2023 (Issuewire.com) - Hundreds of music marketing companies are vying for independent artists' services. Some are well-established and have a track record of success, some are legit but aren't worth it, and others are scams.
In this article, we cut through the clutter and fill you in on the ten best music marketing companies in 2023.
Before we get to the list, here are a few words on what we're discussing here.
Music marketing is a notoriously broad term that can mean many different things. In essence, it brings music to the people – or, if you will, the market.
There are many different ways to bring your music to people. The most popular are playlist promotion, press promotion (PR), digital advertising, and Influencer marketing. So we know our terms and what we're judging these companies based on, here is a brief description of each:
- Playlist Promotion A principal way musicians get noticed by fans, venue owners, and record labels is by getting high numbers of streams of their songs. This both brings fans to your music and shows that people want to hear it. Spotify is the biggest target for playlist promotion.
- Press Promotion (or PR, Public Relations) If someone Googles your name, the ideal position as an artist is for articles to appear immediately in premium magazines, music blogs, and podcasts. Marketing companies dealing with press promotion help you make this ideal a reality.
- Influencer Marketing If you want to be on the cutting edge of music marketing, Influencer Marketing is where you want to be. Videos, Tik Tok, and reels on Instagram are many people's primary way of using social media, so getting in that space is becoming increasingly important.
- Digital Advertising online is another meaningful way for musicians to market their music. This is most commonly done on Google Ads and Facebook Ads Manager, though other avenues exist.
With that critical information, let's get to the best music marketing companies in 2023!
Promising "music marketing for the modern artist," iSpyTunes was founded by musician Brendan Bremser.
They work much differently than most other companies on our list, as you can submit your songs for free. If they find you a good fit, you'll have opportunities to get placed on their playlists, and they'll also submit your music to their sync licensing library, where they'll find media companies that'll use your music. They also offer social media marketing with targeted ad promotion.
Though no prices are listed, their website says they can work within most budgets.
Playlist Push has been in the playlisting game for longer than almost anyone. Featured in Rolling Stone, Fortune, Time, and more, their reputation proceeds itself. They've helped over 500,000 songs reach over 150,000,000 people.
The process is simple: you upload your song, answer a few questions, and Playlist Push sends it to curators based on your answers.
While the average Spotify campaign for playlisting is $450, prices range from $300 to over $1,000, depending on your preferences.
Though they also offer Tik Tok marketing, like Indie Music Academy, their limited scope is a drawback.
Since they don't control who accepts your songs, it's also possible that your pieces can get placed on playlists that aren't tailored to your prospective audience.
Lastly, there's less of a personal touch than with some other options on our list.
MPT Agency has over 5,000 successful campaigns under its belt. They specialize in social media, press, and Spotify marketing and work with everyone from up-and-coming artists to more prominent names like Jojo and Tyga.
Featured in Forbes, Lyrical Lemonade, EARMILK, and more, prices range from $50 for a virtual publicist call to over $5000 for an entire Press and Social Media Growth campaign.
YouGrow is another company that specializes in Spotify playlisting. At YouGrow, a member of their team of musicians finds Spotify playlists to place your song on, much like the other companies on our list that specialize in this sort of marketing.
One advantage of YouGrow is that you'll work with a natural person who keeps you abreast of what playlists you're being put on and your streams. They're also affordable, with packages starting at $77 for 2,000-6,000 streams and up to over $1,000 for 65,000-100,000 streams.
They also offer Tik Tok influencer promotion and YouTube ads.
A long-time standard for music marketing, Omari MC has a proven track record of success.
Founded in 2014 by Nathaniel (Omari) Moore, they've helped over 15,000 artists with their music marketing needs, with services including social media marketing, Spotify playlisting, press coverage, and more. They also have dozens of other ancillary services, including AI singers, rappers, songwriters, eBooks and courses, and more.
Like iSpy, Omari takes submissions and then works with each artist to give them the tools they need to grow their audience.
The most remarkable thing about Two Story Media is that they are very personally based. Though numbers and growing an audience for artists is essential, they focus on building connections with artists over the long term.
"We're transparent enough to acknowledge that most artists won't be famous next month – or the month after," it states on its website. "The game is a steady series of steps. We help artists take the right ones, consistently."
The proper steps for artists that they provide include consulting, brand development, Spotify promotion and playlist promotion, press campaigns, and more.
Consulting work with them is $100/hour, and their packages start at $500.
They work closely with only a handful of clients, which makes their approach even more unique, but it means they only have a few spots available.
Crafted by music industry veteran Cody Patrick, who helped produce videos by 2 Chainz and Mac Miller, Organic Music Marketing offers many services. They include organic (go figure) Spotify playlist pitching, YouTube ad and Soundcloud promotion, consultation, and more.
Though they've worked with many big-name acts, including Drake, Future, and Nicki Minaj, the pricing for their services is still affordable, with most packages starting at $100-$150.
Their website is easy to navigate, with packages and what they contain laid out in a simple, user-friendly way, which can be a problem with some music marketing companies.
If you're looking for Spotify playlisting, Indie Music Academy should be on your radar.
Founded by Emmy-award-winning musician Ryan Waczek, Indie Music Academy gets your songs heard by placing them on Spotify playlists based on mood, genre, and more.
They pitch your songs to actual playlists through their relationships with record labels, promotion companies, and more, so you can be assured that real people, not bots, are hearing your songs.
Campaigns start at $297 for 10,000 streams, making them affordable for honest, quality streams.
Independent musician Dawn Jones created Pressed PR "to empower other independent artists to succeed" as she has.
Pressed PR gets artists’ placement in some premium press outlets, including Billboard, Forbes, Huffington Post, EARMILK, and more.
At Pressed PR, a personalized team works with artists to build their brands, get press placement, and provide fan experience with engaging content. "Our goal is simple," their website states, "to get you known."
Because they offer various services, the price depends on the type and extent of each project.
Though all the companies listed here have merits, Los Angeles-based c4n2 is the best one-stop shop for everything music marketing.
Sidon Farris, signed to Pulse Entertainment Group (which also features Ty Dolla Sign, Rich the Kid, and Kehlani), began c4n2 in 2020. Since then, he and his team have helped over 1,500 clients with premium Spotify playlisting, high-end press placement, A&R Advisory and Consulting, and more.
One thing that sets c4n2 apart is the personal aspect. A publicist on their team will contact you at every step of the journey. Campaigns begin with a personal call or Zoom, with a member of their team tailoring what you need with the services they provide.
The top services c4n2 offers are Spotify playlisting, artist branding, press placement, and A&R Advisory and Consulting Services. They can access hundreds of high-quality playlists spanning many genres and moods and tailor each song to its niche.
For musicians and artists, having a clear "brand" is critical for defining their look, direction in life, and sound. But what does that mean? To answer this question, it all comes down to telling your story - how you express yourself through everything you do!
Some high-end press outlets they can access include Rolling Stone, Forbes, EARMILK, Lyrical Lemonade, and dozens of others.
Their A&R Advisory and Consulting services offer unprecedented support to up-and-coming artists and industry leaders. They provide exclusive access to crucial information and strategic insights, helping clients to stay ahead of the curve in a constantly evolving marketplace.
In addition to playlisting and press, c4n2 also offers YouTube and Tik Tok marketing, TikTok Brand Ambassador Program, web design, SEO services, coaching, and more.
c4n2's breadth of services, variety of high-end connections, and personal quality make them stand out as the one-stop-shop for music marketing.
Media Contact
Alex Ahmadi team@c4n2.com http://www.c4n2.com
