How To Get An A&R To Represent You

I get this question asked to me all the time and my answer to artists is that it all depends on what you’re trying to do. A lot of artist think that an A&R does the same thing a manager does, and that is not quite true. In this music article I’m going to explain to you what an A&R does and after you gain knowledge on what an A&R’s primary functions are, you can decide whether you need one or not.

Who Are A&R’s and What Do They Do?

An A&R’s (Artist and Repertoire) basic function is to scout for talent to sign to a record label. There are A&R’s who work independently as freelancers and there are A&R’s that work within a record label. It doesn’t really matter which A&R you choose, your mission will be the same and that’s to send your demo or mixtape to this person in hopes of him connecting you to a record label. That is all an A&R does, that’s his primary function. So if you’re an artist that wants to get signed to a label this is the only way to do it.

How To Get An A&R To Hear Your Demo

Okay so a lot of artist get this part wrong and end up wasting their time and effort in getting their demo heard. Demos that are sent by mail to the A&R department at a record label almost never get listened to! You have to understand that there are literally hundreds of demos sent in every month and they go into a big box, only a handful get listened to. After the month is up that box full of demos gets thrown out and a new empty box takes its place. This process is repeated every month!

This is how it’s been for years; and sending your demo in a red or blue envelope doesn’t make your submission stand out from the rest because that’s how the majority of artist send in their demo thinking it makes a difference, when it doesn’t. Every submission gets treated the same. We as record labels have a business to run we’re not sitting around listening to hundreds of demos, even A&R’S are out scouting, going to meetings, music seminars, doing presentations, and traveling.

Record labels often let their secretary or intern listen to the demos and if they like a demo they pass it on to the managers so they can play it at the next meeting. But other than that this is not the best way to submit your demo. The best way to submit a demo is through a credible source such as a Dj, music producer, engineer, your music manager, or any other top music professional. These music professionals have connections to A&R’s and managers on major labels, and they are a trusted source in the industry.

If a Dj or a producer is hands me a demo you better believe I’m going to listen to it, because they don’t hand me demos all the time, they hand demos to me that they know are good! And good demos are very rare to come across. So use your contact list of professional industry personals to shop your demo to A&R’s because if a demo is coming from someone who has weight in the industry an A&R will definitely listen to it.

Where To Find Industry Professionals

The best place to start is by going through your close music contacts this is the dj’s, artists, and producers you currently work with. Ask them if they have connections to A&R’s at record labels. If they do have record label contacts ask them if they can shop your demo to their contact. The next places you can look are at music seminars and artist performances. These two places are a breeding ground for A&R’s because they’re there scouting for the next big artist. Always remember to bring your demo and approach A&R’S or any other music representative in a professional manner.

The A&R Enjoys My Music Now What?

If everything goes well and you get connected to an A&R and he loves your music he will then set up a meeting for you to do a private performance for the record label executives. This is your big shot and you really only have one shot at impressing the big shots, so give it all you got and perform with confidence and grace. If it goes well they will sign you and the rest is history. After you get signed you will no longer need an A&R to represent you, the record label will give you a manager and he will handle all your matters from there on in.