The Hardstyle track you made is ready for a label. Finally! You did it! But now what? How do you approach labels and how to write the perfect demo email? Here’s 5 tips to get you started!

Music is the most important part

First off, it should be clear that your music will do most of the talking for you on this one. When sending a demo, the music you send makes up 95% of the submission you are about to make. Familiarize yourself with the label! Is it Rawstyle? Hardstyle? Freestyle?Hardcore? What kind of Hardstyle? Would you like to see yourself and especially your music associated with the artists on the label? Are you sure you keep up to the quality standard of the label over an extended period of time? Would you be able to collab with the artists on the label without being permanently “carried” by them? Are you 100% sure about that? Ok, great! Render a unmastered(!) 16bit 44100 Hz wave file or a 320 kb/s mp3 and get ready!

Introduce yourself

Just a quick introduction is enough! No offence, but absolutely no need to tell them how you worked your ass off at the Supermarket to afford that Virus TI or how inspired you were by some NASA pictures – it is your music that does the talking today! Your name, alias and social media should be present in the email. No alias and social media yet?No problem – just note it in the mail! Also do not forget to give your email a good title, something like “(Alias) – Demo Submission – (Track Name)” is great and also easy to find in the A&R’s (the so-called ‘Artist and Repertoire Manager’) inbox, should he or she be looking for it.

Uploading your masterpiece

Provide the label with a valid, working link of your music. Double check! You should
preferably send a private(!) Soundcloud. Google Drive or Dropbox link with the option to download. While WeTransfer is a great and private option as well, the link will eventually die, quite unfortunate when the A&R is on vacation or demos are being checked irregularly. Avoid Zippyshare, Uploaded or other – nothing says “I do not care if someone steals my track” quite like a public, easy-to-find-on-google Zippyshare link.

Mail or Form?

Check the labels website; If there is a form for submitting demos, use the form instead of writing an email – there
is a system behind it making sure your track gets listened to and does not get lost in a messy inbox! If there is a specific demo email, use the demo email address to send your demo. Do not send out bulk mails, it comes along a good bit unprofessional – especially if the A&R can see his colleagues from other labels in the ‘Sent To’-header. Try to vary your email a bit every time in case you are sending your demo to several labels, some might share the same A&R.

Send!

Checked if the links are working? Right email address or correct submission form? All typos cleared out? Hit that ‘Send’, hit it hard and let the waiting game begin! Most labels answer in a time frame of about 7-30 days, sometimes it may take longer, other times you get an email the next day! Be patient!

No answer in two to three months? Send them your new tracks and a fresh email! Demo denied? Keep your head up! Maybe you got some feedback in the mail, maybe you got a formal “Thanks, but no thanks”-mail. Take your time and work on your music until there is a significant difference in quality to the better – then try again!

Example Demo Mail:

“Hello (Label),

My name is (name), I produce under the alias (alias).

After careful consideration I have decided to send you my tracks (Tack 1) and (Track 2).

(Track 1) is a euphoric Hardstyle track with influences from Oldschool Italian Hardstyle.

You will be able to find it here: (Link)

(Track 2) is also a euphoric track, my friend (Rapper) provided me with a Hip-Hop vocal for this one.

You can find it here: (link)

I have been DJ’ing since a few years now as well, for instance at (Club) and (Festival)!

In case you are interested here is a link of a mix I did recently: (Mixcloud link)

You can find a bit more information, such as my biography via my social media:

(social media links)

I hope you enjoyed my tracks and I hope to hear back from you soon!

Regards, (name)”

And that is it, really! No need for extensive life-stories or development background of the track, keep it clean, simple and easy on the eye. The Hardstyle Mag team wishes you all the best sending your demo! Good luck and keep working hard!