Welcome [back] to another week of your weekly dose 🎶

Every Tuesday, I’ll be sharing tips, updates, and must-know music marketing insights to help you get your music heard!

By Finch Bergling 🎅

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Your Weekly Reel Idea

It's almost 2026! Time to refresh your highlights and 3 pinned posts on Instagram.

One of those pinned posts needs to be an introduction video - you sharing who you are, what you do, and why people should follow you.

Here's my favorite introduction format from 2025 - one that actually makes people want to follow:

📝 Content Summary: In this reel, A musician introduces herself by comparing herself to 3 famous artists, saying "imagine you could say you were following them before anybody else." Then walks through different spots in her home/studio while explaining who she is and what she makes, ending with a live performance snippet.

🎦 How to create a similar Reel:

1. Start with naming 3 artists in your genre who blew up - "Billie Eilish, Olivia Rodrigo, Sabrina Carpenter..."
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2. Say: "Imagine you could say you were following them before anybody else"
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3. Cut to you in different locations (bedroom, kitchen, studio) while talking:
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   - Who you are
   - What kind of music you make
   - Why you're different
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4. Keep moving between locations every 3-5 seconds (movement keeps attention)
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5. End with 5-10 seconds of your best song (live or recorded)
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🤔 Why does it work so well?

1. By comparing yourself to successful artists, you're setting expectations for your genre/vibe without saying "I'm the next Billie Eilish."
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2. The location changes every few seconds keep viewers engaged. Static videos get swiped. Movement holds attention.
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3. After all that buildup, viewers are curious. That final song snippet is perfectly timed - they're primed to actually listen instead of immediately swiping.
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4. This format owns the self-promotion instead of hiding it. The confidence of comparing yourself to famous artists (even hypothetically) is magnetic - and honestly that's why it's such a great hook.

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Your Weekly Tip

Before we begin - reply to this email with a link to your Spotify profile, and I’ll reply with a score from 1 to 10 based on how much I like it!
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In 2025, I reviewed over 15,000 songs - about 40 per day.

Here's what's keeping me up at night: More and more AI songs are slipping through. Some sound so good, I can only tell they're fake when I check the artist's profile.

That's when it hit me - your Spotify profile is your first proof of humanity.

Curators, fans, potential collaborators - we all judge your legitimacy based on your profile. One glance decides if you're worth our time.

So let's make sure you look 100% human (and professional) before your next promotion push.
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​1. Header Image

Most musicians don't know they have one.

Open Spotify on desktop - do you see that blank space behind your name? That's the header image.
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​2. Profile Picture

It really depends on your brand and genre, but the more authentic you look, the easier it will be for people to connect.
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​3. Monthly Listeners

If you have a low monthly listener count, that's fine. Only 19% of Spotify artists have over 1,000.

But if you have 500K streams and only 47 monthly listeners?

🚩🚩🚩

That screams "I bought bot streams." Focus on placing your music on real playlists and running your own ads.
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​4. Artist Bio

Three approaches that work:

Type 1 - The Personality: Short, funny, memorable "I make sad songs for happy people". Or just "I make music".

Type 2 - The Professional: Just the facts "Alternative rock from Seattle. Influenced by Nirvana and heartbreak. New album 'Restless' out now."

Type 3 - The Wikipedia: Full story for superfans Includes background, achievements, upcoming projects

Must-haves for any bio:

• Where you're from
• What you sound like
• Current project/release
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5. Social Media Links

30% of profiles I review have no Instagram linked.

Connect everything: Instagram, TikTok, Facebook. It takes 2 minutes in Spotify for Artists.
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​6. Image Gallery (Show you exist IRL)

Live shots, studio sessions, band photos - anything that proves you're more than a profile picture.

AI can't perform live (yet). Show that you can.
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​More things that you can add to your profile​
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Your personal playlists, artist pick, upcoming shows, and merch that you sell. All of those will make your profile look fuller and more interesting.
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Start with whatever's easiest. Even one change makes you look more legit than 50% of artists out there.

Because here's the truth: I want to playlist real artists making real music. But if your profile looks like it was generated by ChatGPT, I might move on to the next submission.

Make it easy for us to believe in you.

Finch

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P.S. Merry Xmas!!!!!!!!

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Let's work together 🤝

• ​Submit your music to my Spotify Playlists.
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• Grow your music career with Your First Hit Song 2026.
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• ​Book a 1-1 consultation.
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• Learn how to become a professional playlist curator.

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Discounts & Links 🔗

• Get 10% off on SubmitHub​
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• Get ​7.5% off your first campaign on Playlist Push - use code finch
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• Get 40% off your first month on PlaylistSupply - use code finch40
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• Get 40% off your first month on Booking-Agent.io - use code finch40
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• Get 40% off your first month on RadioPromo.io - use code finch40​
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• Get 7% off on DistroKid​
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• Get 7-day free pro on Hypeddit​

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That’s it for this week! Hope today’s email gave you something useful to work with.

Until next week, Finch 🎶

P.S. Newsletters aren’t social media - I can’t see what you’re enjoying unless you tell me. Hit reply and let me know what you liked (or didn’t) - I’d love to hear from you! 😊

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