🎶 How to Release and Promote Your Music Successfully

Step-by-Step Guide by Costa Rebel

In the digital era, releasing a song isn’t just about uploading it to Spotify.For your music to go far, you need strategy, planning, and consistency.

In this guide, I’ll share a proven release calendar, along with recommendations for distribution, promotion, and content creation — the same strategy I use with the artists I produce.

🔥 Before You Begin: The Key to Success

You don’t need expensive music videos or big artist collaborations to get results.What really drives growth today is consistency — releasing a new song every 4 to 6 weeks, combined with plenty of short-form content on Reels, TikTok, and YouTube Shorts.

Traditional music videos worked well back in the TV era or the early years of YouTube, but today short-form videos are what truly drive discovery and streams.

A disciplined artist with good music and a solid strategy can easily reach over 250K streams per song on Spotify in one year — that’s around $1,000 USD in streaming income.And when you add up several releases, those numbers multiply: some artists reach 500K or even 1 million streams per song, which equals roughly $2,000 to $4,000 USD respectively.

🗓️ Costa Rebel Release Calendar

Use this calendar as a model to plan your steps before, during, and after your release.

🗓️ Week 1

• Send the song to distribution.

• Record and prepare content for social media (Reels, TikToks, and YouTube Shorts).

  • Videos should be vertical and short (15–30 seconds, up to 59 seconds max).

  • Don’t post them yet — just keep them ready for the promotion phase.

  • Ideas: studio clips, lip-syncs, acoustic performances, behind-the-scenes moments, visualizers, reactions, etc.

    
    

🗓️ Week 2

• Do the Spotify Editors pitch from your Spotify for Artists account.

• Keep pre-recording content and organizing visuals.

  
  

🗓️ Week 3

• Prepare your press release, promo download, and pre-save link.

• Add a Canvas on Spotify (3–8 second visual loop).

• Keep preparing content to start posting next week.

  
  

🗓️ Week 4

• Start your public promotion.

• Publish your first social media videos.

• Share your pre-save link with your audience:

  • Add it to your bio on all profiles.

  • Share it in posts, stories, and reels.

• Send your press release by email with the pre-save and promo download to media, DJs, and contacts.

• Schedule interviews for Week 6.

• Update your social media profiles and cover images.

  
  

🗓️ Week 5

• Keep posting consistently and build anticipation for the release.

  
  

🗓️ Week 6 – Release Day 🎉

• Clear your schedule for this day. The release comes with multiple tasks, so you’ll need the time to focus and work with the team.

• Post launch-day content.

• Send an email reminder with the smart link and promo download.

• Update your website and the Artist’s Pick section on Spotify.

• Go live on TikTok and Instagram.

• Add lyrics on Musixmatch.

• Attend interviews or promo activities.

  
  

🗓️ Weeks 7, 8 & 9

• Keep promoting actively.

• Share milestones (e.g. “10K plays on Spotify”).

• Engage with your followers — reply to DMs, comments, and messages.

  
  

💿 How to Send Your Song to Distribution

To get your song on Spotify, Apple Music, Deezer, Amazon Music, and more, you’ll need a digital distributor.

Some of the most popular ones are TuneCore, CD Baby, and DistroKid.

🎧 Why I Recommend TuneCore

I recommend TuneCore for its:

• Transparency when it comes to pricing.

• Promotional tools and opportunities offered to artists.

Important: all distributors pay artists directly, with no intermediaries or extra commissions.

📦 How to Send Your Song Step-by-Step

1. Create an account with a distributor (for example, TuneCore.com).

2. Upload your song in WAV or FLAC format.

3. Add your metadata: artist name, title, composers, genre, etc.

4. Upload your cover art (minimum 3000x3000 px).

   • It can include just the artist’s name and song title, or even no text at all.

   • Avoid extra logos or text, as platforms may reject it.

5. Choose your release date.

   • We recommend scheduling it at least 5 weeks in advance, not only to pitch to Spotify Editors but also to ensure it comes out on the announced date.

   • Sometimes the distributor requests adjustments or stores perform manual reviews, which can delay the release if not planned early.

6. Submit your release. The distributor will review and deliver your song to all platforms.

7. Once your song generates streams, the payment will appear directly in your distributor’s dashboard, ready for withdrawal.

   
   

📣 Promotion Strategy: Step-by-Step

🎬 Before the Release

• Build anticipation with content about the creative process: recording, artwork, lyrics, stories.

• Send your press release and pre-save link to media, DJs, and contacts.

🚀 During the Release

• Post multiple clips on release day (reaction, performance, gratitude, etc.).

• Go live and encourage fans to share.

• Use your Smart Link in your Instagram and TikTok bio.

💪 After the Release

• Celebrate milestones (streams, playlist placements, etc.).

• Drop alternate versions: remix, dub, acoustic, or collab.

• Stay consistent — frequency matters more than perfection.

  
  

📰 How to Create a Good Press Release

Always include:

• A short bio with recent achievements.

• Details about the creative process and inspiration behind the song.

• Promotion and marketing plan.

• Useful links: pre-save or smart link, promo download, and official cover artwork.

Send your press release to media outlets, blogs, DJs, and key industry contacts.

📈 Final Recommendations

• Release 1 single every 4 to 6 weeks.

• Don’t wait for a music video or collaboration to release — the key is keeping a consistent flow of music and content.

• Use Spotify for Artists to claim your profile, view stats, and pitch to editors.

• Post content daily or several times a week.

💡 Example: Bugle, with his song “Thank You Lord” (winner of “Reggae Collab of the Year 2025” at the Caribbean Music Awards), posted 1–3 Reels per day for almost 5 months.

• Interact with your fans: reply, thank, and share.

• Consider organizing a release party, even virtually.

• It's important to drive as many people as possible from your social media and contacts to Spotify during the first hour and the first 24 hours of the release. Spotify's algorithm tracks how many listeners you bring in during that period and will promote the track accordingly to new users on the platform. The more people listen in the first hour and first day, the more exponential exposure your song will get.

  
  

🌍 Conclusion

Success in music releases today doesn’t depend on budget, but on planning and consistency.Follow this guide, stay active on social media, and distribute your music strategically.With discipline and a good song, results will come.

Bless up and keep creating.— Costa Rebel