Promote your music in the UK

Promotion fails when the trail goes cold. Before you post anything, make sure every new listener lands somewhere permanent that shows who you are and what you sound like.

• One link in every bio — not a different one per platform.
• A photo, a genre and a track that plays instantly.
• A free TuneCube tile does this job: a fixed spot on the artist grid with your picture, your music and a direct link to your Instagram.

UK scenes are local. A hundred people in your own town who turn up to gigs are worth more than ten thousand scattered streams. Geotag your posts, follow the venues, promoters and record shops near you, and comment like a person rather than a marketer.

Search "open mic", "new music night" and your town name — that's your first month of shows.

The most crowded scene in the country, so narrow your aim. Target one borough's small venues and their regulars rather than the whole city, tag the venue and the promoter in every clip, and follow up with the other acts on the bill — cross-posting between two support acts reaches more real Londoners than any paid boost.

A scene built on word of mouth and local radio. Send tracks to community and student stations, keep your Instagram geotagged to Manchester so the local suggestion feeds pick you up, and post from the gig itself — Manchester audiences share nights out more than they share studio shots.

Genre communities here are tight and welcoming, especially in grime, jazz and metal. Pick the one you actually belong to, show up to other artists' nights, and collaborate. One feature with an established Birmingham act moves more listeners than a month of solo posting.

Scotland's live circuit rewards consistency. Play the smaller rooms repeatedly rather than chasing one big support slot, build a mailing list at the merch table, and post the same night's footage while people are still tagged in it.

Bass, dub and electronic culture runs deep, and DJs are the gatekeepers. Cut a clean, loud two-minute edit for DJ use, send it directly rather than as a stream link, and credit every DJ who plays it — those reposts are your promotion.

A strong student audience refreshes every autumn. Time releases to term dates, work with student media and society nights, and keep a permanent link in your bio so the crowd you meet in freshers' week can still find you at Christmas.

Three posts a week for a year beats daily posting for a fortnight. Rotate a small set of formats so you never stare at a blank screen:

• Live clip from the last show.
• One line of the lyric and why you wrote it.
• Work in progress — voice note, demo, soundcheck.
• Someone else's music you love, with a proper reason.

BBC Introducing accepts uploads from unsigned UK artists through your regional station, and community and student radio across the country actively look for local acts. Keep the pitch to three sentences: who you are, where you're from, and the one track you want played.

Send it four to six weeks before release, not the day of.

Followers belong to the platform; email addresses and gig-goers belong to you. Collect emails at every show, and give people one clear next step in every caption — usually "listen" or "come to this".

For more depth, read our full promotion playbook.