Record Label Marketing

9	Publicity of Recorded Music

Paul Allen

A recording contract, simply stated, says that the artist will create recordings and the label will market the recordings. An important element of marketing planning and execution by a label is promotion, and publicity is typically a part of that overall promotional effort by the label. Labels typically handle publicity for the artist’s recording career and for news and press releases about the label itself. Sometimes an artist will hire a personal publicist to handle other areas of their life and career.

This chapter is designed to give an overview of the publicity department at a record label, including its responsibilities and how publicity contributes to the success of a recorded music project.