Pitching Music Blogs

Finding the Right Blogs

The blogs that matter are the ones your fans already read. Start with a Google search:

• "best [your genre] music blogs"
• "independent music blogs that review [genre]"
• "[Genre] music journalism sites"

Then dive into the blogs themselves:

• Read the review section—do they cover artists at your level?
• Check publish dates—active blogs post weekly; dead ones post quarterly
• Find contact info—usually in About, Contact, or under each writer's bio

Use Pitchfork's archives and Stereogum as quality benchmarks. Even tiny blogs can drive real listeners if their audience matches yours.

SubmitHub vs Direct Outreach

SubmitHub is a pitching platform. For $0.99–$4.99 per submission, you upload your track and a short pitch to music blogs, curators, and playlists. It's convenient and you reach verified contacts.

Direct outreach means emailing the blog editor or writer directly. It's free, more personal, and more likely to get a response if your pitch is thoughtful. The downside: you need to dig for email addresses and wade through spam filters.

Hybrid approach: Use SubmitHub for quantity (100+ submissions to niche blogs), and direct email for quality (10–15 pitches to blogs you genuinely admire).

The Perfect Pitch Email

Subject: [Artist Name] – [Track Title] – Premiere (short, scannable)

Body:

• Personalize the greeting ("Hi Sarah" beats "Hello Editor")
• One sentence intro: "I'm [name], an indie [genre] artist from [city]"
• Why now: "I'm premiering [track] on [date/publication goal]"
• Why them: "[Blog name] covered [similar artist], and your audience would dig this"
• One-liner description: "Dreamy lo-fi hip-hop beats with jazz samples and introspective lyrics"
• Link: Streamable embed or private SoundCloud link (not Spotify—they can't skip ahead)
• Press kit link: One sentence with a link to your EPK or one-sheet
• Signature: Your name, socials, artist bio (2–3 sentences max)

Keep it under 150 words. No walls of text. Editors get 100+ pitches a week.

Timing and Follow-Ups

Pitch 2–3 weeks before release. Blogs need time to review, write, and schedule the post. Too early = they forget; too late = they can't cover it.

Wait 7–10 days before a gentle follow-up. Don't send the same email twice—reference your original pitch and ask if they got it or have questions.

Stop after two follow-ups. No means no. Move on to the next blog.