Hello, it's Tom Robinson back on the BBC Introducing Mixtape after three months' absence. This is my return episode, broadcast on Monday 14 November 2022 on BBC Radio 6 Music. You can listen again for 30 days after broadcast via this link. It features 60 minutes tunes uploaded to the BBC Introducing website by independent artists and handpicked by me, this week featuring:
LAU.RA, SVEN STEARS, BALDERDASH, HANG LINTON, POST COAL PROM QUEEN, GAG SALON, FIONA SOE PAING, BENEFITS, CHEWY SHE, PROPS, TAMU MASSIF, JEMMA FREEMAN & THE COSMIC SOMETHING, TOM HOUSTON, RETROPXSSY, CHALK, KATHERINE PRIDDY & JOHN SMITH, NEL UNLIT, and J. KAS
Why Subscribe?
This mixtape drops every Monday morning across all platforms. It's available as a radio show at 4am on BBC Radio 6 Music and then via the normal BBC Sounds schedule for the next 30 days. But you can also download the permanently by subscrbing to our podcast: either via BBC Sounds podcasts or by searching "BBC Introducing Mixtape" on your platform of choice. The show will automatically be waiting on your device every Monday morning.
Why buy?
If you fall in love any of these tunes you can suport independent music by lashing out a pound or two to buy them direct from the artist wherever possible. Times are tough for grassroots musicians everywhere - and bills still have to be paid. Literally every quid you can spare will make a difference.
Playlist
LAU.RA X RYE RYE - I See You [starts 00:12]
https://linktr.ee/lau.ra.lau.ra.lau.ra
SVEN STEARS - Lock Picks [starts 04:10]
https://linktr.ee/svenstears
BALDERDASCH - Waster [starts 08:09]
https://linktr.ee/balderdasch
HANG LINTON ft LEBRON AGGRESSIVE - Sale [starts 11:41]
https://linktr.ee/hanglinton
POST COAL PROM QUEEN - Free Radio Phobos [starts 16:31]
https://linktr.ee/PCPQ
GAG SALON - Germs [starts 19:33]
https://linktr.ee/gagsalonband
FIONA SOE PAING - The Ballad Of John Hosie [starts 23:026]
https://www.fionasoepaing.co.uk
BENEFITS - Thump [starts 28:21]
https://www.benefitstheband.com
CHEWY SHE - Mustard [starts 31:28]
https://www.chewyshe.com
PROPS - Before You Let Go [starts 33:32]
https://lnk.bio/26LW
TAMU MASSIF - Reaping What You Sow [starts 35:33]
https://www.tamumassif.co.uk
JEMMA FREEMAN & THE COSMIC SOMETHING - Easy Peeler [starts 38:45]
https://linktr.ee/Thecosmicsomething
TOM HOUSTON - Haberdashery Floor 7 [starts 42:21]
https://www.tomhouston.org
RETROPXSSY - Fading [starts 45:05]
https://retropxssy.tumblr.com
CHALK - Velodrome [starts 48:37]
https://linktr.ee/chalkbelfast
KATHERINE PRIDDY & JOHN SMITH - Talk to Me of Mendocino [starts 50:50]
https://www.katherinepriddy.co.uk
NEL UNLIT ft FAITHFUL JOHANNES - Mirrow [starts 54:01]
https://nelunlit.com
J. KAS - Celebrate Royalty [starts 57:08]
https://linktr.ee/Jkasmusic
PS FOR ARTISTS:
What happens next? Radio airplay is a great affirmation of your work. It's great to be able to mention it on your CV and social media. But radio play won't make as much longterm difference as you may think - it comes, and then it goes. The trouble is that radio can accellerate a career that's already got momentum - but it can't kickstart a career from scratch.
Bulding an audience for your music (and continuing to write great songs) takes time and effort. The good news is that, unlike radio play, it's entirely within your own power to achieve and costs next to nothing. And although this only one man's opinion, you'll find a few suggestions about how to do this this in my closing talk for BBC Introducing Live 2019.
Hiring a radio plugger in the hope of getting more airplay is an expensive gamble - and only worth considering when there's already a buzz about your latest song and a growing audience for your music. But early on in their career, most emerging artists get MUCH better results themselves than by hiring a plugger. For suggestions on how to do your own music promotion see the free advice section at my Fresh On The Net blog (freshonthenet.co.uk).
Once an artist's career does start building momentumn - with views, plays and comments growing measurably each week - that's when an expertly run radio campaign can be a great way of putting a foot on the accelerator. Once you do choose to go down that route, the next problem is how to find a trustworthy promo company? One possibility might be to copy and keep the weekly playlists published by your target radio stations every week, and look up which small labels are regularly getting featured. Then google those labels, drop them an email, and ask which radio pluggers they use. [NB bigger labels tend to have their own in-house promo teams.]
And however things pan out, don't forget to carry on uploading your new releases to BBC Introducing so that we can carry on supporting you as your career unfolds.
AND FINALLY...
We only get enough airtime on this show to feature artists - even our absolute favourites - about four times a year, however much we love their work. So after you've been been on the Mixtape, please wait 12 weeks before sending me your next brilliant track. This leaves us time to help a load of other deserving artists meanwhile.
The best way of getting a tune direct to me is via Fresh On The Net using Soundcloud. From 10m on Monday mornings anybody is welcome to send us a track and we keep the inbox open until 200 submissions have arrived - so it's best to get in early. We publish all 200 tunes on our Soundcloud each week, and a dozen of us then listen to every single track. And be sure to also upload your tune to BBC Introducing, to make it eligible for Introducing airplay...
Tom Robinson
