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How to Get Your Band in Flagpole
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"W* the spirit of our "Back to School" issue, this
article is geared towards incoming freshmen and
XXI Athens' future musicians, but I think even some
more established artists might benefit from a quick refresher in
PR 101. I get asked about this kind of stuff all the time: "How
do I get my band in Flagpole? Why did you write about this
band but not that band?" Well, there's no magical password
or sure-fire way to get a feature, but here are a few tips on
increasing your chances, plus a little insight on what I look for
in a potential story.
1. The Basic Press Kit
Alright, so you've got a band together and you feel like
you're ready for some media attention. At the very minimum,
you should have these items available: a bio, a demo and a
high-resolution photograph. How you present this informa
tion is up to you, but I personally prefer a solid, easy to find
Facebook page or Bandcamp profile rather than a clunky folder
full of card stock you pieced together at Kinko's. Streamline
your presentation and make sure to include contact informa
tion, so that if we want to talk to you, we can. The bio should
at least include the full names of all bandmembers and the
instruments they play, plus a point of reference as to what
genre of music you're working in. The demo can be a YouTube
clip of a live show, streaming audio or a professionally pro
duced CD, but we've got to be able to hear the music. If you
don't have some sort of audio
sample available, most likely
you're not ready for expo
sure, anyway. And, finally, we
never run a story without a
photograph, and sometimes
a photograph is all we have
room to run. If we have time,
Flagpole can certainly assign
a photographer to get a photo
of your band, but in a crunch,
it's immensely helpful to have
an image on file that's ready
to go.
2. Be
Proactive!
Your Band Here
I know, sometimes self
promotion feels dirty, and lots
of artists absolutely hate it,
but if you want exposure and
you don't have a publicist
working for you, you have to
take the initiative and put
yourself out there. In a small
town like Athens, it really
doesn't take much to get
some attention from the local
weekly (Hi!). Once you've got
your press kit and web presence established, drop us a line
and let us know it's there. We really want to hear from you!
News items and updates can be sent directly to Gordon Lamb
at threatsandpromises@flagpole.com, show listings should be
sent to calendar@flagpole.com and all other inquiries about
all things music can be sent to me at music@flagpole.com.
Never assume that a venue, promoter or another band on a
show bill will do the work for you! This is particularly true
for Calendar listings. Sometimes all a venue will provide us is a
name, and we have to rely on the whims of Google to track you
down, so if you have a show coming up, take a second to get
in touch. It'll make things easier for everyone.
3. Respect the Deadline
Perhaps even more important than getting in touch is
when you get in touch. Even the most innovative, charismatic,
exciting band will get a pass if we get the info past deadline.
Generally, the music section operates on a three-week lead
time for features and a two-week lead time for news items.
With the exception of holidays. Calendar listings must be in by
5 p.m. on Friday the week prior to publication. Basically, the
earlier you get in touch, the more likely you'll be considered
for in-depth coverage. Also, keep our production schedules in
mind. If you call on Monday when we're trying to wrap up an
issue, you won't be able to get an editor on the phone.
4. Persistence Pays Off
There is a fine line between pestering and persistence,
but as someone who worked as a publicist before coming to
Flagpole, I know that it's a line you have to learn to walk. As
music editor, I get an average of about 200 emails a day—
many are mass emails from national publicists that end up in
the trash folder unopened, but unfortunately for you, dear local
artist, that means a lot of clutter and competition. So, follow
up and keeping following up until you get a response. Don't be
afraid to pick up the phone and call or make an appointment
for a visit. (That just goes for Flagpole, of course... many edi
tors don't take calls at all or only at certain times.)
5. The Art of the Pitch
So, you've got your press kit and you've got my attention,
now what are you going to say to get a story? Well, first things
first: the music speaks the loudest. The bottom line is always
going to be the tunes. Of course, what an editor thinks is good
or interesting is always going to be subjective, but I try to
keep in mind the interests of
our readers more than my own
personal taste. When I hear
a new band, I think: Is there
an audience for this music in
Athens? Is this something our
readers will want to learn more
about?
Also keep in mind that
on any given week, there are
upwards of 100 other bands
playing in town, and Flagpole
only has room to highlight a
handful. So, even among the
most exciting acts coming
to town, it's competitive. We
have to be selective. Priority is
given to artists who are doing
something newsworthy—for
example: releasing an album,
going on tour, changing up
their lineup, putting on a par
ticularly unique performance,
etc. It is not effective to send
an email that just says: "We
would like you to write about
us/ review our CD because we
are playing a show." Guess
what, those other 100 bands
are all playing shows, too, and
they would also benefit from
coverage. The thing a lot of young artists don't understand
about news media is that we are not your publicist. We cover
shows; we don't promote them. We write for our readers, not
to further your agenda. So, if you send us a CD to review, we
will be writing about it critically—it won't necessarily be all
positive, and, in fact, if it's not up to snuff, we might very well
pass on coverage all together.
That should cover the basics, but do know there will always
be exceptions. There will be plenty of bands that won't fol
low any of these guidelines and they'll still get coverage just
because a writer or myself stumbled across their music and was
excited by what we heard. There will also be bands that follow
these suggestions by the letter and they still won't get a fea
ture because either the tunes just aren't strong enough to war
rant coverage or it was a busy week and other acts happened
to take priority. Shoot for coverage but never expect it; a false
sense of entitlement isn't a good look on anybody. But if you
want something—go after it. We want to hear from you!
Michelle Gilzenrat music@flagpole.com
16 FLAGPOLE.COM-AUGUST 10, 2011
