With so many moving parts in the music industry, finding the right time to release an album that works for you and your team can be a challenge. Here we breaks down some key statistics gathered during 2019 to help inform the optimal 2020 release strategy.
The release date. It is a constant tension between artists and labels, departments, vendors and team members. Production wants an evenly balanced schedule, press wants to release in a quiet period but not too quiet, the artists want to release yesterday and marketing wants to leverage the right cultural moment.
How the heck do you choose the best release date for your album?
I analyzed all the US album releases from 2019 to figure out the optimal release weeks for 2020, which can help you get an idea of how to plan your album campaigns.
The results were super-duper interesting.
In this piece you’ll find:
- 5 best and 5 worst dates to release an album
- How Ariana Grande and Taylor Swift have bigger impact than Christmas and July 4
- Why looking at the sun isn’t as woo-woo as it sounds
Cultural planning
Knowing what’s going on is key to knowing when to release. E.g.: if you release your record smack bang in the middle of Coachella, will that have any implication for your audience or category?
To stay on top of that here’s two I-cannot-believe-this-is-free resources for your 2020 planning.
1) Key Entertainment and Sports Events Calendar by Shore Fire PR. The most comprehensive list of events, deadlines, awards and holidays impacting music and you can add it directly to iCal or Google Calendar.
2) Cultural Moment Encyclopedia by Brooklyn strategist, Sean Choi detailing global music, arts and etch events. He’s gone the extra mile to estimate the reach potential so you can weigh up the vale for activating at such events