Whether you are an emerging artist or an established musician the necessity of an electronic press kit remains the same. No matter what level you are at in your career, an EPK acts as a professional resume for your music career. Similar to any other career, your resume is a necessary tool to help you grow your career.  Previously, musicians would send physical press packages to venues, labels etc. However, this has transitioned to a digital format in recent years making the process easier for everyone involved on all sides of the industry. An EPk should be available on, and an extension of, your offical website which should act as your artist hub on the internet.

Ultimately, an EPK is meant to showcase your music and brand in an easy to identify way for music industry professionals. An EP

This guide will detail the purposes of an EPK as well as why it is necessary for you to have an EPK.

What Are EPKs For?

Before building your own EPK, it is important to know what the purpose of this tool is. EPKs are used for a variety of things. However, all of the following facets have one thing in common: the purope of gaining exposure for you as an artist and your music. These purposes include:

Gaining Press Coverage

  • Reviews
  • Articles
  • Interviews

Getting Your Music Played

  • College radio

Booking Shows

  • Venues
  • Festivals
  • Private shows

Recruiting Team Members

  • Managers
  • Booking agents
  • Publicits
  • Record labels

As you can see, an EPK, when made correctly, acts as a gateway to the industry and can be the ultimate tool in both shaping and growing your career.

What Should Your EPK Include? 

There are many ways to make an EPK and it is important to consider your brand and aesthetic when designing your EPK. However, there are a few things that every EPK must include in order for it to have an effect on those you want to see it.

Biography

Your biography should be written in the third person so that any interested party can simply copy and paste it for their purposes. You should also Include different versions (in length and style) that will cater to the needs of different types of agencies looking at your EPK.

Visuals

Press photos are an important addition to any EPK so that those viewing your EPK can get a visual representation of you and your music. Include as many options as possible when it comes to photos and make sure the photos are downloadable and in high resolution.

Also include album covers that publications can use in reviews

Similar to press photos, include photos of live performances.

Music

Include your music with a consideration towards your most recent and your most popular tracks. Include links to all streaming platforms on which these tracks are available.

Also include downloadable tracks to links or full album downloads (if you don’t feel comfortable making downloads readily available, make sure to include contact information that people can use to personally redeem a download of promotional purposes.

Videos

Embed your music videos and any high quality live performances so as to give a clear impression of your music and performance to event and venue bookers.

Press

Include any relevant press or article related to you and your music. Pull the best quotes from these articles and then attach the link to the full article. Also consider adding the logos of each outlet so as to give viewers a clear impression of who has written about you. Make sure to only include links to articles and quotes from reputable sources.

 Notable Achievements

In this section you can include career highlights as well as any notable festival or tour appearances. It is also a good idea to include any award nominations in this section.

Contact Info

Finally, it is essential that you include detailed contact info including an email and phone number. If there are multiple members of your team, make sure to include their contact information in clear and concise way.

Also, be sure to embed links to all social media platforms you are active on. Do not post links to any and all platforms, only the ones your use regularly and the ones that have a reputable following.

Conclusion

Your EPK is not something that you create and then leave dormant. It should be maintained and updated regularly. Whenever new articles are posted about you, new music or videos are released, or new press photos are taken your EPK should be updated. Similar to a resume, an EPK that is visibly current is more likely to be noticed by those you wish to impress.

Without an EPK, and one that is actively being promoted and circulated, it is less likely that those in the music industry are going to take notice of you. If you want to grow your career, an EPK acts as an essential tool in the process. In following these steps, while staying true to your brand and aesthetic as an artist, you will surely take strides in taking your career to the next step whether that means playing a large festival, getting booked on a sizable tour, landing a record deal or all of the above.