From sharing stages to exchanging emails, a lot of networking in the music industry is organic and spontaneous. It’s why common advice is to stay active: play and attend shows in your area, follow music journalists, post routinely on social media, and you’ll find your community.
But networking can also be strategic and goal-oriented—without feeling forced. This checklist provides you with some essential networking tips to help you get oriented and approach networking more intentionally.
Set networking goals
The best way to ensure you’re networking intentionally is by aligning your efforts with your goals. Consider what you want to accomplish in the following areas:
- Music production: Are you looking for a studio, engineer, or producer to work with?
- Music Release: Is there a label you’d love to work with? Do you have certain milestones you’re looking to reach with your release?
- Performance: Where are you trying to play next? Who would you like to share a stage with?
- Collaboration: Who would you like to write music with?
- Press: What journalists/publications would you love to feature or review your music?
Know your story
An essential aspect of networking is knowing who you are and what sets you apart. A compelling and confident story drives curiosity and interest in your work. You should know your story as an artist and be able to present it in long-form (EPK) and short-form (elevator pitch).
Your artist story should include:
- Your genre and location
- 1-2 aspects that set you apart
- The feeling or mood your music inspires
- One or two comparable artists
- An artists statement: why you make music, what inspires you, or what you hope your music accomplishes
Optimize your EPK and online presence
Ahead of conducting any outreach, you’ll want to optimize your EPK with the following:
- Your artist bio (both short and long versions, includes a hook, description, notable achievements and comparable artists)
- High‑resolution, updated promotional photos in various orientations (live shots, posed promo, square/landscape/portrait)
- A curated selection of music (your latest single or strongest tracks, clearly labeled and streamable)
- Album release details (credits, liner notes, links to lyrics, quick streaming statistics)
- A representative video (live performance or official video depending on your goals)
- Compelling press quotes or testimonials (brief one‑liners linked to full reviews), plus easy‑to‑find contact details and your main social media links.
These components ensure industry professionals, press or bookers have everything they need to assess and promote your music efficiently. It’s best to have a PDF and plain text version of your EPK, so you can attach or copy it into emails, submission forms, DMs, etc.
Routinely brushing up your socials helps as well. Our quick social makeover can help ensure your profile on any platform looks well-maintained, professional and exciting in a day’s work.
Have an updated link in bio
Using a link repository tool is key for making all your pages (streaming, socials, website, merch, etc.) easily findable for your fans and industry professionals alike. Popular options are LinkTree and and Lnk.Bio.
If you have an upcoming release, you might want to include links to pre-save/pre-add pages to let people save your music ahead of time.
Identify Your Target Network
It’s helpful to maintain a spreadsheet of familiar and aspirational contacts. This can be a mix of documenting organic connections you develop (so you have contacts readily available for booking tours or recording projects) and future connections aligned with goals (e.g. a feature in a publication, a headline at a venue, etc.).
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- Local artists
- Producers/engineers
- Music bloggers, journalists, and curators
- Booking agents and venue owners
- Independent labels/distributors
Network Online
You can gain valuable and inspiring connections by staying active in online communities. Here are a few recommendations for online communities to join.
Reddit:
- r/listentothis
- r/wearethemusicmakers
- r/musicmarketing
Music newsletters:
- Record labels within your genre
- Thought leaders you admire
- Other artists
You can make more targeted outreach by engaging over social media, reaching out over email, and connecting on industry and professional forums.
Network In-Person
Alongside staying active online, show up to the following in-person events for chances to meet industry professionals and other artists.
A few examples:
- Introduce yourself to other artists at local shows
- Go to open mics, showcases, and music-interest meetups
- Attend conferences at festivals and sign up for workshops, residencies, and collaboration sessions
Whatever event you attend, it’s often helpful to send a message to the organizer, performer, or host thanking them or expressing what you enjoyed about the event. Kind messages demonstrating shared appreciation for the craft can be the start to a new friendship.
Build and maintain relationships
In a competitive industry, it’s important to treat your network with respect. Remember, support must flows both ways. Don’t reach out just when you need something. Routinely checking in and show up for your friends: at the shows, on social media, and when they’re not in the room. At every level of your career, do your best to pay it forward and you’ll find that generosity reflected back to you.
Avoid these common networking mistakes
This blog post is intending to provide you with inspiration and direction in your networking. The best connections come through shared passions and strategic work. With that, avoid over-strategizing your networking itself. Focusing too much on your progression toward goals can sour experiences and thwart efforts to build genuine relationships.
Similarly, avoid networking “up” without paying attention to peers. Your relationships with other artists and industry workers at and beneath your career level are just as important and can help shape your career as well as knowledge of the industry. Constantly shooting to build relationships with higher-ups can be fatiguing and come across as overly calculated.
Lastly, don’t overlook the “give” for the “get.” Seek to establish yourself as a collaborator, supporter, organizer, and/or participant within your community. You’ll find your efforts to support and empower your fellow artist bring their own fulfillment rewards down the road.
Monthly networking maintenance
If you’re just beginning to “put yourself out there,” keeping some general monthly goals around networking can help ensure you’re staying active!
- Reach out to 2–3 new people
- Reconnect with 1–2 existing contacts for a coffee or a show
- Attend at least one event (online or in-person)
- Share your progress and music news with friends in your network (new releases, accomplishments, ideas, etc.)
Conclusion
The music industry is truly one of the best sectors to network because the work so closely aligns with your routine. Attending shows, meeting other artists, pitching new collaborations — it’s all stuff you’re doing anyway! Use this guide to optimize your networking efforts, build and nurture industry relationships, and progress toward your goals with a community supporting you at every step.