Famous in Five Steps

Your Repeatable Campaign Framework: Five Steps to Getting Your Music Heard

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There's something satisfying about having a system. After running countless campaigns across multiple projects, we've come to realise that whilst creativity is wonderfully chaotic, promotion doesn't have to be.

Whether you're releasing your first single or your fiftieth, you can follow the same five-step rhythm: Song, Visuals, Promotion, Outreach, and Feedback. You can add bits, subtract bits, make it your own, but the framework stays solid. It works whether you're doing everything yourself or you've got a team behind you.

Let me walk you through it.

Step One: The Song (Get Your Vision Crystal Clear)

Before you do anything else, you need a song that's ready to be heard. Not just finished, not just recorded, but properly ready to go out into the world and grab people's attention.

Start with a strong title. I'm talking about something that makes people think "Ooh, I'm intrigued" before they've even pressed play. Think Nine Inch Nails' "Every Day Is Exactly The Same" or The Verve's "The Drugs Don't Work" - you know exactly what you're getting, and there's already a story forming in your head. That's what you're after. I'm a huge fan of the "bumper sticker" title.

For Hana Piranha, our keywords have always been "dark", "dangerous", and "sexy". Three words that sum up everything we do. If you can distil your vision down to three keywords, you're already ahead. It doesn't mean you're pigeonholing yourself forever - you can evolve and change - but when you're trying to get heard, clarity is your best friend.

Find the right collaborators. This is about matching your sound to your vision and maybe getting some strategic kudos. We worked with one of Muse's early producers for a Birdeatsbaby album because we wanted that association and we were after that kind of sound. If you can find a producer who's worked with artists in your genre or artists you admire, that can help position you in the right scene.

Get feedback before you move forward. This is where having your dream team comes in handy. I'd suggest three people: someone with producer ears who can spot frequency clashes and production issues, someone who just loves listening to new music and can tell you how it makes them feel, and someone who knows the industry and can give you the corporate marketing perspective. Send your track to them, actually listen to what they say, and be willing to go back to the drawing board if needed. There's no point steaming ahead if people are spotting red flags.

Make sure your story, sound, and emotional tone all align. Everything should fit together as one cohesive package. The Velveteen Orchestra does this brilliantly with their dark songwriter folk - the font, the creepy puppetry cabaret artwork, song titles like "Raven at the Gates" with matching imagery, it all marries together perfectly.

Step Two: Video (Give Your Song a World)

I know some people will tell you the music video is dead and you should just make TikToks. Fine, do that if it works for your music. But I think there's still massive value in creating proper visual content, whether that's a full music video, a performance video, a visualiser, or short-form content.

The point is: make something visual that serves the song.

Your options range from full cinematic music videos (if you've got the budget) to DIY performance videos shot on multiple phones. Lyric videos are easy to knock together. Visualisers can be simple looping content. The format doesn't matter as much as the consistency of your visual language.

Sort out your visual identity now. Get your band logo done in multiple formats - horizontal, circular, vertical - so it works everywhere. Choose a font and stick with it. Make sure your single artwork is strong enough that when someone's scrolling through ten different artists, they click on yours. I cannot tell you how many times I've judged a track by its cover before listening, and I know I'm not alone in that.

PJ Harvey's "Down by the Water" is just her in a red dress looking absolutely striking with gorgeous filters. It's simple, but it's incredibly effective. You don't need complexity, you need impact.

Get eyes on your visual content before you release it. Just like with the song, having someone check your work - a videographer, a graphic designer, someone with a good eye - can save you from amateur-looking artwork or videos that don't quite land.

Step Three: Promotion (Show People What You've Made)

This is the bit that makes some of you want to run away. I get it. Promotion feels grubby and boring and like you're selling out. But it's also absolutely necessary if you want anyone to actually hear your music.

Create a content plan. Pick your two main platforms and learn how to use them. Still post on the others, but don't burn yourself out trying to master everything. We batch-create content in one day sessions, get it scheduled, and then we're just posting rather than constantly creating. It takes the sting out of the whole process.

You can either build anticipation with mysterious teasers or just surprise people with your release and then do a massive post-campaign. Both work. Watch what other artists are doing and see what feels right for you.

YouTube strategy is crucial. Make sure you've got the right thumbnail - usually the most striking or slightly risqué scene from your video. For "Welcome to The Bitchhouse" we used a shot of me holding Mishkin's boobs whilst covered in blood, because obviously that's going to make people click. Tag everything properly, and don't just use AI for your descriptions. We can all spot the ChatGPT double-hyphen immediately. Use AI to help with formatting and hashtags, but make sure the voice is actually yours.

Community promotion is powerful. Even if you've only got ten people on your mailing list, that's ten people who care enough to want to hear from you. Write them a proper email, tell them about the song, and give them a clear call to action. Forward this to a friend. Comment on the YouTube video. Share the link. People will help you if you ask them to.

Boost your posts strategically. We've scrapped traditional PR and put that money into advertising instead, and it's worked far better for us. YouTube promotion is particularly powerful because people on YouTube are actually looking for music, whereas people on Instagram and TikTok are looking for entertainment whilst waiting for a bus.

One artist Mish helped put £200 into YouTube ads and went from 36 subscribers to 2,000 in two weeks. That's real people who actually wanted to subscribe, not click farms.

Step Four: Outreach (Build Real Connections)

Promotion is only half the picture. The other half is getting out from behind your screen and building actual relationships.

Play shows. Even if you can only sell 20 tickets, that's enough for a small venue. Do a launch party with another local band. If you're not ready for that or you're not confident, do a livestream or a listening party on Bandcamp. But the most powerful connections we've ever made have been face to face with real people.

Give out flyers at your shows that point people to your video or your mailing list. Offer free badges or stickers in exchange for email signups. Talk to people at the merch stand. You'd be surprised how many meaningful connections come from just being present and approachable.

Network without being insufferable about it. Go to gigs, chat to people, support other artists. If you're visible in the scene, people start to remember you. We've had friends recently get recognised in shops or at gigs, and that doesn't happen if you're at home the whole time.

Reach out to blogs, curators, radio playlists. If you're in the UK, BBC Introducing is brilliant - they listen to everything that gets uploaded. Find influencers whose content you actually like and engage with them over time. Follow them, comment, be part of their community. Eventually people will start recognising your name.

Mobilise your fans. The ones who really love your release want to help you. Ask them. Do they know anyone who runs a radio show? Do they write for blogs? What festivals do they love that you should be playing? People in the music community are remarkably helpful if you just ask.

You could do remixes, acoustic versions, behind-the-scenes content, contests where people sum up your song in three words to win a t-shirt. If your music aligns with a cause you care about, reach out to those communities. Mish has worked with PETA multiple times because she writes songs about animal rights, and they've helped promote each other's work.

Step Five: Feedback & Data (Learn What Actually Worked)

This is the step everyone misses, and it's possibly the most important one. You've done all this work, you've hustled like mad, and now you just want to move on to the next thing. But if you don't stop and analyse what actually happened, you're going to keep making the same mistakes.

Look at your data. Which posts got the most engagement? Not the most likes - the most actual conversations. What did your streaming platform analytics tell you about who's listening? We discovered that Crimson Veil's target market is basically men over 40 who have money for vinyl, and that's shaped how we think about campaigns.

Check your YouTube data, your Spotify for Artists data (which is free), your social media insights. Maybe you'll find something completely unexpected - Mish's first Birdeatsbaby song went almost viral in Mexico for unknown reasons, but it shaped their promotion strategy for years.

But also look beyond the numbers. One superfan who's properly into your music means more than 50 people who vaguely liked your post. Individual feedback and comments often tell you more than statistics ever could.

What worked? What didn't? Be specific. Maybe your song didn't get going quickly enough in the first 30 seconds. Maybe you needed to hustle the playlists harder. Maybe your video was brilliant but you didn't promote it well enough. Maybe social media felt absolutely horrific and you need to find someone to help you with it next time.

Keep a release journal or a spreadsheet (if you're into that sort of thing) of what you did and how it performed. Then you know what to repeat and what to bin.

And celebrate. Whatever that means for you - a day off, a party with friends, just acknowledging that you put something beautiful into the world.

The Cycle Continues

Once you've done it once, you can do it again. Each time you'll get a bit better at it, a bit more efficient, a bit clearer on what works for your particular audience and your particular music.

My favourite campaign was probably "Fucked Up Feeling" - bumper sticker title, hilarious music video with a really dysfunctional family theme, social media content that was actually fun to make, and it all fitted together perfectly. The irony is that it was the last single I released before getting signed to a sober record label, which just goes to show you never know where things will lead.

Mishkin's favourite was "Temple" with Birdeatsbaby - pure sleaze from start to finish, everything aligned, and it was empowering to just commit to being provocative and not care who it offended (sorry Dad). When everything clicks together like that, it's brilliant.

You don't need to get famous overnight. You just need a system. And now you've got one.