What Is a Press Kit: Band Management Tips

Series Summary

Being in a band can be one of the most rewarding experiences of a lifetime. Getting up on stage and looking out at a crowd of face sends an exhilarating sensation down your spine, regardless of what type of music you play. It’s the reward that any entertainer gets from performing his or her craft skillfully.

Some musicians or groups look to move beyond small, infrequent gigs, naturally, hoping to progress from a working local band to outright sensations in whatever scene they happen to occupy. But being in the top tier of pop, rock or rap artists does require a bit of work outside of the normal scope of musicianship and songwriting ability. If you want to be a part of the music business, then you need to learn a few things about how that industry works. It’s all about marketing, being in the right place at the right time, networking, and knowing how to package what you and your group have to offer. If you hope to sell out stadium-size venues someday, it would behoove you to know a little something about sales, n’est-ce pas?

In this free music and marketing video series, learn how to make a professional press kit, which is any band’s calling card when it comes to promotions, getting gigs, and letting the industry know who you are. Our expert will walk you through how to package each element of the kit, as well as give you some creative ideas for your own press package. Enjoy.

Video Transcript

"A press kit is a means of promotional and marketing material to make you known in the industry. Press kits are created for bands once you have established yourself. They include certain things about your band, such as, music, CDs, bios, photos and other things that will promote your bands. You also should include lists of discographies, which are previous albums, lists of shows and other sorts of events and accomplishments that your band has done. Press kits can take a couple of different forms. There's the tangible press kit and there is also the electronic press kit. Tangible press kits are held in the hand and have photos and usually common folders. Electronic press kits are the future of press kits. These press kits are online and are great because they can be accessed anywhere and include music streaming online the entire time. Press kits are a great way to get your band gigs and get them known to the industry."