How are artists signed for a record label?

A&R stands for artist and repertoire and an executive is someone who would find new talent and work with the artists to become successful recording and performing artists.

Back before social media, artists were signed by A&R executives, who were people that would travel around and listen to small gigs or night clubs etc, basically anywhere where there was music.

However nowadays people who scout for talent tend to stay in their office and listen to tracks the artists send in, and their numbers on social media, aka how many followers they have. They focus a lot more on analysing data and patterns to make accurate guesses on how successful an artist will be. 

Lots of musical streaming platforms like Apple and Spotify invested in these data analysing companies as well. This however could be viewed negatively, as some musicians and artists are not chosen nowadays, simply because their numbers are ‘bad,’ aka they do not have a strong following on social media.

However, some A&R executives still like to go out and listen to bands and artists live rather than just watching them on YouTube. This is because they feel like it is a better way to get the ‘feel’ and style of the artist and whether they stand out from others. This is another key factor in what differentiates the artists who make it in the music business, and those who don’t.

What is a music campaign?

A campaign is essentially lots of different platforms and advertising methods coming together to promote one specific thing, in our case, an artist/ band to a target audience.

Each element promotes a different part of the overall message, each having a specific strength in doing so. 

All of the following can be used to promote a music artist:

1. Music videos - this can show the artists style of music and can set a clear portrayal of who the target audience may be.

2. Album artwork - this artwork is a clear indicator of the overall aesthetic of the artist. 

3. Social media - this is a highly effective way of keeping fans updated with recent activity and promoting the campaign.

These are just a few examples of the many ways you can promote an artist

For our A2 coursework, we have been asked to create a new campaign for an upcoming artist in the music industry. As a result of this, we will have to communicate the personality and style of this artist through various and appealing ways to the audience. 

An example of a real life campaign for an Australian alternative artist called 'Ruel,' shows that he has been promoted through interviews, album artwork etc...

 He has also released music videos on streaming platforms like YouTube (I have taken various screenshots from the music video 'painkiller,' which can be seen throughout this post.)

He has a huge following on social media, for example he has over 1.5 million followers on Instagram where he constantly updates his fans with upcoming songs and tours.

He also announced his new collaboration with clothing outlet 'Depop,' which is a site in which you can sell and buy vintage clothing. He did a live 'rooftop performance,' in which all the musicians and him were dressed in clothes sourced completely from Depop. He later sold this items pictured on the right. He has also toured worldwide.