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How Are Singles Chosen?


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Just out of curiosity...I've zero experience in the music industry and I've never released anything. I am asking this as a fan.

 

I have a vague understanding that singles are chosen on the basis that they'll 1) be a hit, 2) represent the band and its latest album, 3) build anticipation surrounding the artist

 

but what really is the process/processes that go behind what song is actually chosen? How much of a single's selection is based on it being perceived as the best song? How much input does the artist supply, typically that is, as well by the producer, record company, etc.? Is length or accessibility still a primary concern? (I've noticed that songs that are singles these days seem to be longer than one might expect which seems like a benefit for the artist. Though I heard one single by Arcade Fire that was 7 or 8 minutes long and it nearly put me to sleep...way too long, even for art rock.)

 

What have your experiences taught you? What do you think should be the way singles are selected?

 

Thanks for any insight!

 

Also, did you have any songs you thought should have been singles but were rejected?

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Details vary from record label to record label, and it has evolved. Where as once upon a time the A&R and Record company executives would round table bringing together taste, impressions and a few basic metrics, the modern label uses things like focus groups... but that is just a more formal version of the tried and tested "Play it to an audience and get feedback". Bigger labels tend to use a number of marketing metrics in combination with the feedback from such groups. The marketing department feeds in information about the target market that would be relevant.

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Just out of curiosity...I've zero experience in the music industry and I've never released anything. I am asking this as a fan.

 

I have a vague understanding that singles are chosen on the basis that they'll 1) be a hit, 2) represent the band and its latest album, 3) build anticipation surrounding the artist

 

but what really is the process/processes that go behind what song is actually chosen? How much of a single's selection is based on it being perceived as the best song? How much input does the artist supply, typically that is, as well by the producer, record company, etc.? Is length or accessibility still a primary concern? (I've noticed that songs that are singles these days seem to be longer than one might expect which seems like a benefit for the artist. Though I heard one single by Arcade Fire that was 7 or 8 minutes long and it nearly put me to sleep...way too long, even for art rock.)

 

What have your experiences taught you? What do you think should be the way singles are selected?

 

Thanks for any insight!

 

Also, did you have any songs you thought should have been singles but were rejected?

Hooks rule the world. You need to impress someone enough to put some of their money into it. Really, THAT's your goal...selling it. A great hook takes people somewhere else. At work, anyway. Write something that makes "the right guy" in an A&R dep't pick up the phone and call you...

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Hmm, guess it depends on the goal with it. If you are free from any record labels, pick the one with the greatest hook like Tonyy is suggesting. 

I released  my single because I did'nt have any other song ;) Easy pick! But my goal was not to get someone to pick up the phone...If I had several songs to choose from I'd most likely pick the one that meant the most to ME and what I wanted to show my fans. 

//MMR

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Hey

 

Not necessarily Maria. On your average album you will have 4 singles.

 

Thinking strategically you may want to preserve your biggest hook for the moment of peak interest, which is usually the second or third single.

 

The lead single seeds interest. It is normally released about a month prior to album release.

 

When you release the second single it is often within a week or two of the album release, ensuring heavy coverage. The 3rd single from the album also tends to get a lot of attention, often about two months after the album release.

 

I have been working on a Songstuff product component which is a study of the release schedules and patterns and supporting PR for many mainstream artists covering large established artists, relatively new artists and breakthrough artists. It also looks at the costs of breaking through for small indie artists through to the single and album cost break downs for Rihanna. It makes for interesting reading :)

 

It doesn't exactly cover the question but quite a bit of it is aimed at helping you to decide what to choose as a single and when they should be released in relation to each other. Taken in conjunction with other components of the product you can put together a full release plan with a checklist and breakdown of resources needed / desired. While you may not be able to have the $1.5 million Rihanna single release budget, it is a good idea to include the basic components... but just spend much less on  them. Each component is there for a reason

 

More on that later.

 

The point is that having knowledge about your market segment, and having an opinion about your best songs for each market can help you create a suitable a release plan. Things like the time of year you release at will also affect which is the best choice. For example, you might have a song with a great hook all about surfing... well chances are that Christmas is not the optimum release time.

 

There are quite a lot of variables involved. Chances are you informally take a lot into your decision. The idea is to use knowledge to make informed decisions to aid all the informal touchy feely stuff.

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Hmm, guess it depends on the goal with it. If you are free from any record labels, pick the one with the greatest hook like Tonyy is suggesting. 

I released  my single because I did'nt have any other song ;) Easy pick! But my goal was not to get someone to pick up the phone...If I had several songs to choose from I'd most likely pick the one that meant the most to ME and what I wanted to show my fans. 

//MMR

Hiya...I think you got what I meant by using the word, "goal". I meant, if you are truly focussing on the BUSINESS aspect of music. Of yourself, sure...whatever pleases you is what rules. But that kid in Oshkosh needs a hook if you want to sell somethin'...

 

(BTW: don't worry about the added "y"...the regular version of my name seemed to already be taken, here!)

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  • 8 months later...
  • Noob

Sorry to bump an old thread, but I'd like to contribute my opinions on the matter.  From what I've seen, many singles were planned before the albums were ever released (they were even released before the albums themselves sometimes), and often planned while the songs for the rest of the album are being written.  At least that's what I'm told was done decades ago.

 

It was a pretty common practice back in the heyday of vinyl records for the B-sides 45 RPM singles to feature an exclusive track not otherwise offered on a given artist's albums, even though the A-side may feature an album cut (case in point--most of Elton's singles--here's one of them).  In other words, these "non-LP cuts" (as they are called) were only available to listeners who bought the 45 on which they appeared on. 

 

To me, it would suggest that if an artist or band and their producers went out of their way to write and record one or more tracks, neither of which is destined for an upcoming album, then these "extra" tracks are probably destined for a B-side, thus implying that they intend to release one or more singles. (Of course, there have also been single-only releases were BOTH sides are non-LP cuts.)  Obviously in modern times there are other ways for artists to give listeners bonus content, such as iTunes-exclusive tracks in the case of an album's iTunes release, but there's no denying the way bonus material was distributed in pre-CD times was effective.

 

EDIT: Earlier link replaced.

Edited by Aluminumfalcone
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  • Noob

One question....the link you posted goes to a commercial site offering music for sale.

Are you in any way affiliated with that site?

If not, would you mind terribly linking to a FREE streaming version of your example (YouTube perhaps), rather than a for profit entity?

Posts of that nature make me very nervous given the creative nature of spamming these days.

 

Thanks!

 

Tom

 

Replaced earlier link.  Problem solved.

Edited by Aluminumfalcone
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Sorry to bump an old thread, but I'd like to contribute my opinions on the matter.  From what I've seen, many singles were planned before the albums were ever released (they were even released before the albums themselves sometimes), and often planned while the songs for the rest of the album are being written.  At least that's what I'm told was done decades ago.

 

It was a pretty common practice back in the heyday of vinyl records for the B-sides 45 RPM singles to feature an exclusive track not otherwise offered on a given artist's albums, even though the A-side may feature an album cut (case in point--most of Elton's singles--here's one of them).  In other words, these "non-LP cuts" (as they are called) were only available to listeners who bought the 45 on which they appeared on. 

 

To me, it would suggest that if an artist or band and their producers went out of their way to write and record one or more tracks, neither of which is destined for an upcoming album, then these "extra" tracks are probably destined for a B-side, thus implying that they intend to release one or more singles. (Of course, there have also been single-only releases were BOTH sides are non-LP cuts.)  Obviously in modern times there are other ways for artists to give listeners bonus content, such as iTunes-exclusive tracks in the case of an album's iTunes release, but there's no denying the way bonus material was distributed in pre-CD times was effective.

 

EDIT: Earlier link replaced.

 

 

It is true that they are sometimes conceived and released before an album, but I have conducted a lot of research on the matter, analysing the release patterns of almost 700 artists, ranging from emerging artists, to the largest on the planet, as part of the research for a special ebook on how to conduct a release for Songstuff members.

 

It was quite revealing.

 

What as really interesting was spotting things like the number of singles and EPs released, and other content like video singles and video albums, and promo content, release announcements, pre-release to radio, and the time of year for the release of certain kinds of albums/EPs/singles etc. Not all info was always available, but there was plenty of evidence to establish trends.

 

While an album might not have been recorded, or even written, singles are not chosen in isolation.

 

For example, when a single is chosen to be recorded, record company excutives are aware of the band's existing catalog of songs. They are also aware of the timing, and they will have at least a draft plan in mind for releases. This is especially true for new artists. At the point of signing, the record company excutive will have seen them play on several occasions or at least have heard the majority of their material. They will be aware of the artist's main fan base and their overall demographic appeal giving them an idea of the TAM (Total Available Market).

 

So, before the first single is chosen they have a lot of the information they need to choose initial singles or EP. This includes limited releases to test market response and appeal.

 

In terms of writing new material, for new bands this tends to happen more if either they just keep writing and new songs "appear", or if the record exec isn't entirely happy with their catalog, in which case they may ask for specific types of songs. Depending on the label, the artist and the deal, the artist will do this with varying degrees of artistic freedom.

 

At any point catalog awareness is important. If new material appears, it is slotted in accordingly, either within the current album, or EP, or the next planned album or EP, depending on the length or type of deal. ie a 1 album deal or 2 album deal etc, will have an effect.

 

How artists that are not signed handle this, in my experience, tends to be ad hoc. The more organised do tend to do much of what the record exec does, just informally, more from sticking their finger in the air to see what way the wind is blowing rather than by measurement and statistics.

 

I say record company exec, but in truth it might involve people fulfiling different roles, from artist development to A&R.

 

Just a quickie on mty research findings... the patterns of release, release timings etc are amazingly similar... for good reasons. Just as artistically, an artist can emulate those they respect and are inspired by, in part because of the success of their writing, production and performance, you can learn from their business approach and their marketing and promotion choices. Learn from those who are successful and emulate what they do.

 

I have been tied up for a while, but I have made changes that have freed me up, and given me back a lot of time. The release info should be available for members very soon. :)

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Oh and on "specials", they are created for a variety of reasons:

 

  • to test a market
  • to appeal to a fringe market and draw them in
  • to introduce a rarity or scarcity value to aid marketing and promotion, ie time or number or geographic limited releases
  • for business reasons that require limitation (such as a contract to cross promote, or to work with artists/writers who ahve their own restrictions
  • as a creative experiment (read marketing scenario in exec speak)
  • for a marketing and promotion reason such as "cause marketing", ie releases aligned to a charity or cause

 

there are others, but that just gives you an idea of the variation in justification.

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  • 11 months later...
  • Noob
On July 5, 2014 at 7:05 AM, White Soul Black Heart said:

Just out of curiosity...I've zero experience in the music industry and I've never released anything. I am asking this as a fan.

 

I have a vague understanding that singles are chosen on the basis that they'll 1) be a hit, 2) represent the band and its latest album, 3) build anticipation surrounding the artist

 

but what really is the process/processes that go behind what song is actually chosen? How much of a single's selection is based on it being perceived as the best song? How much input does the artist supply, typically that is, as well by the producer, record company, etc.? Is length or accessibility still a primary concern? (I've noticed that songs that are singles these days seem to be longer than one might expect which seems like a benefit for the artist. Though I heard one single by Arcade Fire that was 7 or 8 minutes long and it nearly put me to sleep...way too long, even for art rock.)

 

What have your experiences taught you? What do you think should be the way singles are selected?

 

Thanks for any insight!

 

Also, did you have any songs you thought should have been singles but were rejected?

Nashville is the single capital of the world!  Exaggeration, but the professional community has it down by the numbers.  

 

If your a writer with a Pub deal- Congrats!  You walked 3% of your journey to getting a huge cut. Most contracts state that you are obligated to write at least 15 songs a year and in return they pay you.  Usually around $2,000 a month.  Not hard, right?!  Well, you literally have to write 100's of songs a year to even compete with all the other hit factories in town.  So you're not doing yourself any favors by just writing 15.  It's like winning the lottery, your chance of winning is greatly improved by the more tickets you buy.  Get it? Ok!  Every week you sit at a round table with other writers, their publishers, and your A&R publisher.  As well as anybody higher up to make the big decision.  Everybody listens to their songs they wrote for the week that the writers deem worthy to be cast into a pile to be pitched.  Hopefully, your publisher hustles for you and you get a "Hold".  Meaning an artist wants to record it.  Lets say they do, and he/she is a big artist.  They'll "cut it" (record it).  Just when you think you can celebrate there is a good chance to be placed on the album, but it can still go in the trash.  Out of the year the big artist could have recorded 25-100 songs to filter down to the 10-12 songs that are gonna be on the record.  Let's say you make the cut.  The artist, A&R, label, management, and producers will then elect what they think will serve as the best single.  Then, they test it.  Focus groups/radio stations can be a decent indicator of the song if it is gonna do well (monetarily speaking).  They give their feedback and then the decision is made for the single to be chosen.

 

Now is this the case for everybody...nope.  Is there more to it...Yes.  In broad strokes this is my experience.  For a lot of the bigger labels yes this is a route that many go down.  Others go with their gut and say 'This is the next big thing,' and go for it!  Also, not just country uses the above model.  I know LA uses this too.  Again, not everybody.  

 

Hope that was enlightening! 

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And don't forget politics. I've been in a situation where the song made it all the way from being on hold to the artist recording it and wanting the song on the album, and then, there's a bigger shark involved in the project that simply says, sure you can get our three hit songs but then we wan't the rest of the album cuts, and then you're out! It's not about may the best song win a lot of the times, there's a lot of business related stuff going on behind the scenes you'd never even think about. But I firmly believe, it you've got a good enough song, eventually it will make a great cut! You just have to keep on grinding and never give up! =)

 

Cheers,

 

S

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Good contributions. Though I agree that 15 songs is way too few, it is better to have 15 great songs than 100 that suck. True, Suckiness is a matter of perspective, but then we do have to use our ability to discern what is appealling or not based on experience and intuition at some point in the process. :)

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  • 11 months later...

Singles can make or break artists can and shape long-term reputations. Yet I don't know much about how singles are chosen, and I bet neither do most people. I heard members of Daughtry discuss a little about it on a countdown show, basically saying they prefer their more adventurous songs be singles, but executives veto that in favor of more typical Daughtry (and hence people like me who only know the band's music by its singles think the songs are too similar and bland).

Record label executives meet and talk about possible singles and? I know sometimes radio station airplay is involved, and maybe powerful artists have some say. Also, I know the release dates and order can be different in foreign markets; I don't know how much of that is strategic, e.g., if it's a hit in the UK, then it will be released in the USA. Having seeing corporate-run online surveys conducted more and more, I believe that fan votes eventually will have a role in which singles are issued. In pop and rock genres, up-tempo first single followed by a ballad within six months seems to be the usual formula over the past 30 years, and obviously instrumentals and very long tracks are unlikely to be promoted. I am of the opinion that the selection process is flawed and that it's not rare for the wrong songs to be released.

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