To send a demo to a record label, pick labels that already release music like yours, find each one's demo policy on its website (a submission form, a demo email address or a portal), and send your best finished track as a private streaming link, never an attachment. Write a short personal note: who you are, the track, why this label, and links to your profiles. Follow up once after two or three weeks, then move on.

Labels get far more demos than they can answer. What gets yours heard is fit, a track that sounds finished, and an email that takes ten seconds to act on.

1. Pick the right labels

• Listen to what they released this year, not what they are famous for. Labels change direction.
• Start with labels your size. A small label that releases artists like you is more likely to listen than a major with a closed inbox.
• Make a list of 10 to 20, with the name of the person who reviews demos where you can find it.

2. Follow each label's own rules

Most labels say how they want demos: a form on their site, a demo email address, or a portal. Use it. A demo sent through the wrong channel, or to a staff member's personal inbox, is the easiest one to ignore. If a label says it takes no unsolicited demos, respect that.

3. Send one finished track

• Your best track, finished. Mixed and mastered as well as you can. One strong track beats an EP of five.
• Unreleased. Labels sign music they can release. A track already out on streaming services is a different conversation.
• As a private link. A streaming link with plays tracked and downloads off. Attachments get stripped or never opened.
• With the details in the link. Title, BPM, key and credits, so nobody has to ask.

4. Write a short email

Three or four sentences:

1. Who you are and where you are based.
2. The track, in one line: genre and what makes it yours.
3. Why this label: a release of theirs it sits next to.
4. One link to the track, one to your artist profile.

Address the person by name where you can. Never send the same email to twenty labels with everyone in copy.

5. Follow up once, and keep track

Wait two or three weeks, then send one short follow-up in the same thread. If there is no answer after that, take the label off your list for this track. Keep one list of who got which track, when, and whether they opened or played it, so you never pitch the same track twice or forget a reply.

Send demos from Aden

Many labels take demos on Aden: their demo page lives at aden.space/o/<label>/demos. Signed in, you see a demo readiness checklist (profile photo, Spotify connected, social links, a track in your library) before you submit, because labels look up the artist behind the demo.

For labels that take demos by email, open a track and choose Send a pitch. Aden drafts the email in your own style and sends it from your own Gmail or Outlook, with one share link per label, so you see who opened your email and who listened. When a label replies, the Pitches widget on your dashboard reads the reply and sets the status for you. Create your Aden account to send your first pitch.

FAQ

Should I send a WAV or an MP3 to a label?

Neither, at first. Send a private streaming link. If the label wants the track, it will ask for a WAV, and you can turn downloads on for that link.

How many tracks should a demo have?

One. Send your strongest finished track. If the label likes it, it will ask what else you have.

How long do labels take to answer a demo?

Anywhere from a few days to a few months, and many never answer. Follow up once after two or three weeks, then move on to the next label.

Can I send the same demo to several labels at once?

Yes, as long as each label gets its own email. If one label offers to sign the track, tell the others before you accept.

Related: How to give effective track feedback and PRO vs publisher vs record label.