Setting the proper foundation for yourself as an indie creative is truly essential to your success in creating the best and most profitable business model that will ultimately result in sustaining longevity in the industry. As an indie artist without an established brand you have an uphill battle in creating revenue-generating situations for your business. In today’s current music landscape, companies are really only interested in partnering with indie creatives that can help them reach a desired target audience in which they can market their product to. Product placement can be a great revenue source for an indie artist that can help offset various expenses for a variety of different things when putting a project together. The question is how do you get people, potential fans, and companies interested in what you are doing and want to help you grow your business? I believe it starts with having the proper material that can give whoever is watching it all the information needed to make the best informed decision on wanting to work with you.
The first thing that you as an creative should be mindful of when putting together an EPK is making sure that you keep it between five to eight minutes. Remember that an EPK is a quick snapshot into which you are and what you want your brand to be as an indie creative. The goal is to give the viewer enough to make an informed decision on whether they want to work with you or not. There are a few essential pieces that I as an industry professional would look for in an industry standard EPK. These essentials include: an interview, studio footage, show footage, a sample of your music, professional pictures, and any prominent press that you have been featured in. As an independent creative having a thorough interview portion of your EPK is essential because it’s basically setting for lack of a better term a “foundation” of who you are for the viewer. Tell us about how you got your start in the industry, and why we should pay attention to your artistry. Grabbing the viewer’s attention here is essential because this will ensure that you will keep their attention to ultimately make the best-informed decision on you as an artist.
The next key essential pieces in putting together a proper industry standard EPK is making sure that you include some authentic studio/show footage. The reason I feel that this is important is because a lot of people like to see your process on how you create your artistry. Show footage is extremely important because as an indie artist your live show can be one of your biggest revenue generators. When show promoters take a look at your EPK they want to see how an audience reacts to you. Within this portion of your EPK, it may also be a wise decision to film some of the audience members that have attended your shows and have them give an honest reflection of your show presence. This eliminates hesitation that promoters may have in wanting to book you and give you more exposure which will ultimately help you grow your business as an independent artist.
The last few essential pieces that I feel are needed for a proper EPK are samples of your music, professional pictures, and any prominent press that you have been a part of in the past. Decorating your EPK with samples of your music playing in the background of the interview portion of your EPK is a cool way to give the viewer a taste of your music. Also ending the EPK with more samples of your music leaves a lasting impression of your music with the viewer also. Including any prominent press that you have already been a part of is extremely important and key to giving the viewer the full scope of who you are. In my opinion this really shows the viewer as well as industry professionals that you have made an impact on a variety of different individuals who may be a part of these publications, which is why they have chosen to do a write up on you as an indie creative.
Putting all of these pieces collectively together will give you as the artist the best chance to gain more exposure and help the various industry professionals who are looking to make an investment in you extremely informed and all parties involved will get what they ultimately want.
For an example of these key essentials for an industry standard EPK click here!!!!!!!!
“Making A Difference In The Indie Creative Community”
Till Next Time
~Durell