I posted a review for this, but I thought this would be very helpful to others as well.

Music Kickup Records is a free service to allow artists to distribute their music. You can release a single, an EP, or an entire album for free.

I know the first thing most people think is: "This can't really be free, there must be a catch!"

I will admit, I was skeptical at first too. But after I signed up and started looking around, I was impressed.

I noticed that there was no catch, this is truly a free service! You will need to have a paypal account to receive your payments, and you will need to have a dropbox account to submit your releases.

Commonly asked questions are:

Question - How many releases can you have for free? Answer - Unlimited releases!

Question - How much of the royalties will they keep? Answer - You keep 100% of your royalties!

Question - What stores are the releases sent to? Answer - Spotify, iTunes, Deezer, Google Play, Rdio, Xbox Music and more to come.

I read through all the info, and decided to go with them. The setup was very easy, and you can link your Facebook, Twitter, and Youtube accounts.

The submission process was very easy. Your music should be in WAV and/or AIFF format (44.1Khz, 16 bit samples, no compression). Then you need a JPG file for your album artwork. That's it, Music Kickup does the rest. The next thought is "Ok, now I have to wait a month from my music to be submitted". Of course different stores can take different times to accept and release the album, EP, or single. But from my experience, it only took a couple days for the releases to be posted in the stores, or on the sites. And a few of them were only one day.

There is an option for a pro account as well. And unlike other sites, where there is a monthly fee, this is a one time fee to become a Pro Account. The price for a Pro Account is only 44,90€ or $54.71 (US). Very affordable, and the advantages are great to become pro. You get personal support, Global Analytics, and Daily Performance Analytics.

There is now even an option to start your own label. For 99 € or $120.63 (US), you can add up to 10 artists and be able to have free distribution for them all, and still keep 100% of the royalties.

If you are currently using another distribution service, or are thinking about releasing an album, but think you don't have the money to do it, give Music Kickup a look.

https://www.musickickup.com/

Written by Bufinjer

Are you an electronic musician?

Do you get frustrated because there is nowhere to get

exposure for your music?

Does getting your music on a radio rotation seem like an impossible feat for your style of music?

Well luckily there is a new place dedicated to electronic artists.

They are building a community, and offer 24/7 radio rotation.

Welcome to WEATNU!

WEATNU stands for We Are The New Underground.

WEATNU is the brainchild of electronic artist Almark.

He realized a lack of opportunities for electronic artists,and

decided to change that.

First he created a Soundcloud group.

That grew into a website to help other electronic artists gain exposure, then the 24/7 radio feed was born.

WEATNU is still growing both in numbers and in popularity.

Stop by, give WEATNU a listen, see what you think, sign

up, and get more exposure.

www.weatnu.com

• On Twitter https://twitter.com/weatnu

• On Soundcloud https://soundcloud.com/groups/the-new-underground-2

• On Facebook www.facebook.com/WEATNU

Some of you may use Soundcloud. Some have not tried it as of yet.

For me it's a great site to promote your music and get more people to hear you.

One thing I have discovered is how to get more plays.

Once you post your song, the first step is to share it. I share to all the options, facebook, twitter, google plus, tumblr, and pinterest. This will get your music out to your followers.

But the real trick to getting plays is to use the groups.

Below your song one of your buttons is the "add to group" button. Before hitting that, you will need to go to the search bar at the top, and search for some groups that fit your music style. Start with your genre, for example "Dubstep". When the search completes, you will see a list on the left. Look for the groups which is usually the bottom one and click it. This will now filter all groups that have something to do with "Dubstep". Look for groups with a lot of followers to maximize your play opportunities. You can then choose all groups that you want to join. Do this search for other things like "unsigned", or "labels", etc. Once you are done joining groups go back to your profile and song. Click the "add to group" button, and all the groups you just joined will be listed. Add yourself to as many as you'd like, but you can only do up to 75 groups per song.

Now here is the real trick, after a day or two, go back into the add to groups lists and remove yourself from all groups. Refresh your page, and then go back to the add to groups and add to them again. This puts your song at the top of the list for that group again. This way your song doesn't get lost by going down the list when others add their songs.

I have managed to get over 2000 plays for my song "Synical" without having to use one of those pay for play services.

Don't get me wrong, getting help is nice. I also belong to a group on facebook called Soundcloud Plays. It is a facebook page promoting their service, and once in a while they offer a chance for free plays. I jump on that when I can. Using that I've managed anywhere from 2000 to 3000 plays on other songs.

Personally I'm not one to pay for plays, but when they are free, why not?

I hope this helps you get more plays and exposure for your music.

And remember, we have free promotion here too, so send in your embed codes to be added!

Written By Bufinjer

One of my goals as an artist is to continue to search and learn about how to get my music out to the masses and how to get it noticed.

I am constantly looking for music labels to submit my music to.

In my search I came accross a few websites with lists of music labels.

The one below looks to be an almost complete list of record labels from 0-9 and  from A to Z

Check out the link below to see the list.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_record_labels

Now the next two links are specifically for independant labels. http://musicians.about.com/u/sty/companyprofiles/submitindielabel/

and

http://pigeonsandplanes.com/2013/02/best-independent-record-labels/

There are so many labels out there now, and of course not all labels will accept submissions or are for your specific genre.

It's always good to research the label before you submit your music.

I also read some good advice on submitting music. Don't submit to lots of labels all at the same time. You run the risk of actually over promoting yourself and then the labels will not be interested.

If you know of any labels not listed in these links, or you know of labels to avoid please let us know.

My goal is to help everyone as much as possible.

Written by Bufinjer

OK, so you've recorded your demo - now what? Now you need to get your demo in the hands of the people who can help you take it to the next level. But with so many people trying to get their demos heard, how can you make sure your demo won't get lost in the shuffle? Follow these simple steps to move your demo to the top of the pile.

Here's How:

• Do Your Research

  Before you start sending out your demo, you need to compile a list of labels who might be interested in hearing it. Sending your hip hop demo to an indie rock label is a waste of time and money. What bands do you like? What labels are they on? What labels deal with the kind of music you play? Spend some time online researching artists you consider to be similar to yourself and the labels that work with them. that way, your demo will land in the hands of people who "get" what you're doing.

• Learn Demo Policies

  One you have your short list of labels, you need to learn each label's policy on demos. Some labels, especially larger labels, will not accept unsolicited demos for legal reasons - they worry about people sending them demos, and then later suing them, claiming their songs have been stolen. Most labels have demo policies clearly displayed on their sites. Find out:

  • Are unsolicited demos accepted?

  • Acceptable demo formats (CD, mp3 clips)

  • Demo mailing address

  • Is there a specific demo (A&R) rep to whom you should address your package?

  • Follow up rules - OK to call? OK to email?

  • Keep it Short and Sweet

    Remember, even small labels are inundated with demos, and many labels do listen to everything they get. Making their job easier will only help your case. Your demo package should include:

    • A short demo. Go for two to three of your best songs. Anything longer won't get listened to.

    • Your demo should be clearly labeled with your name and email address (NOT your number - you're more likely to get a response via email).

    • SHORT band bio. Keep it on subject and to the point. No need to go for "My parents have known since birth I would be a musician..."

    • Press clippings, if available

• Follow Up

  Once you have sent your demo out to labels, you need to follow up with the labels to make sure they have received them, and to solicit their opinions. If the label has a demo follow up policy on their website, make sure you stick to that. Otherwise, an email a month after you have sent the demo is a good place to start. It may take months for a label to actually get around to playing your demo, but a friendly, occasional email will help your demo stand out from the pack. Unless you have been told differently by the label, DON'T call. It puts people on the spot and won't win you any friends. Stick to email.

• Steel Yourself

  Sending out demos can be a little frustrating. Often, despite your best attempts at a follow up, you just won't even hear back from some people. You are also likely to hear "no" a lot. Don't despair. If you hear "no" from someone, ask for feedback, advice, and suggestions of other labels who may like your music. Again, you won't get this advice from everyone, but asking never hurts, and you may end up with the piece of advice that turns everything around for you. Treat every "no" as a chance to learn something that could turn that "no" into a "yes" in the future.

• Keep in Touch

  When you do hear "no" from a label, that doesn't mean you have to scratch them off your list. Include labels you like on your emailing list, with their permission, to let them know what is happening with your band, and if you record a new round of songs, it is perfectly fine to send a new demo to a label that has rejected you in the past. If you're playing a show in the town in which a particular label is based, invite them to the show. Getting people to know your name is half the battle.

Tips:

• Don't fret too much about the recording quality of the demo - That doesn't mean just slop anything down, but record labels do not expect to hear professional recording quality on demos. Great songs WILL shine through and WILL get noticed.

• But have a professional presentation - Take the time to print up a band bio that is clearly written and free of spelling errors. Jotting a few things about your band on the back of a napkin and tossing it into a package won't cut it. If you have press clippings, make a copy of each one a separate piece of paper and bind the pages together.

• Make a database of contacts - Keep a list of every label to whom you send your demo and of every person you talk to about your demo, whether the conversation is positive or negative. You never know who will be able to help you sometime down the line.

• Pick songs with strong beginnings - When you demo goes into the CD player, if the song doesn't grab the listener out of the gate, then the listener is likely to press "next." Don't go for the slow burners on your demo. Pick the songs that grab people on the first listen, from the first note.

• Get more demo help - This free eCourse will walk you through everything you need to know about demos. Sign up here. Also, visit this Demos 101 guide to everything you need to know about issues that may come up during your demo process.
  
  This info is from a great article written by Heather McDonald on About.com Music Careers site.
  Original article link http://abt.cm/1bDOqlb

A fellow artist, Kuta Y,  has created a new site called The Fan Artist Movement, or F.A.M.

Not only is the site offering a new contest with great prizes, it is made with a similar idea as our site here, to help fellow artists.

Helping fellow artists with free promotion, and growing a community is the common goal, and that makes it a great collaboration between us.

There is a $25.00 fee to enter the contest, but when you see the prizes available it is worth the entry fee.

Joining the site is free, and the promotion is free as well, you just need to join.

The site is still growing and needs more entries before the contest begins, so enter today.

http://www.fanartistmovement.com/

This article is written by a user of beat100.

This is his opinion but brings up some very good points.

http://aridemopoulos.blogspot.co.uk/2014/04/beat100com-biggest-scam-music-site-on.html 

This is a great list of record labels to submit your music to.

Note: Soundcloud had disabled the option to submit using dropbox, so all of the demo submit links through dropbox will only take you to the profile now. But still a good list, and you can still try to submit via message on the profile.

http://monarchmastering.com/dubstep-label-leads