How to Make an EPK for Musicians: Examples, Tips & What to Include

Young N' LoudLevel Up1 hour ago2 Views

An EPK (electronic press kit) is a digital collection of your music, artist bio, photos, videos, career highlights, press coverage, and contact information. It gives booking agents, journalists, promoters, labels, playlist curators, and other music industry professionals an easy way to learn about you and your music.

Think of an EPK as a digital resume for your music career. A good EPK doesn’t need to be complicated. It needs to quickly answer a few important questions:

Who are you?
What does your music sound like?
What have you accomplished?
What are you currently promoting?
Where can someone find your music and content?
How can someone contact you?

In this guide, we’ll show you how to create an EPK, what to include, what to leave out, and how to tailor your press kit depending on who you’re pitching.

EPK Checklist: What Should Be Included?

If you’re building an EPK from scratch, start with these essentials:

1) Artist bio: A short introduction to you, your music, and your story

2) Music: 3 to 5 of your strongest or most relevant tracks

3) Videos: Music videos, live performances, or DJ sets

4) Press Photos: Professional, downloadable portrait and landscape images

5) Career Highlights: Notable shows, collaborations, streams, awards, or milestones

6) Press Coverage: Interviews, reviews, features, and notable quotes

7) Current Activity: Upcoming releases, shows, tours or projects

8) Artist Links: Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, and other relevant platforms

9) Contact Information: Booking, press, management, or artist contact details

You don’t need an impressive achievement for every category. Especially if you’re a newer artist, a concise EPK with great music and accurate information beats one padded with irrelevant accomplishments.

What Is an EPK and Why Do Musicians Need One?

EPK stands for electronic press kit. It’s a digital resource musicians use to provide industry professionals with the information and promotional assets they may need in one convenient place.

EPKs are commonly shared with:

Booking agents and venues
Music journalists and bloggers
Radio stations
Promoters and festivals
Record labels
Managers
Playlist curators
Other music industry professionals

The purpose of an EPK isn’t simply to show off your accomplishments. It’s to make the recipient’s job easier.

A journalist shouldn’t have to dig through Instagram to find a usable press photo. A promoter shouldn’t have to search YouTube to figure out what your live show looks like. A booking agent shouldn’t have to hunt for an email address. Your EPK should provide those answers quickly.

It also gives you more control over how your artist project is presented. Instead of relying on someone to piece together your identity from Spotify, TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, and Google, you can decide which music, visuals, achievements, and stories best represent you.

What Should You Include in an EPK?

A musician’s EPK should include an artist bio, your best music, videos, professional press photos, career highlights, press coverage, upcoming activity, artist links, and contact information. Here’s a detailed breakdown:

1) A Clear Artist Introduction

Someone opening your EPK should understand who you are almost immediately. At the top of the page, include your:

Artist or band name
Genre or musical style
Location, if relevant
Short artist description

Try to communicate what makes your music distinct, rather than relying entirely on broad genres.

For example: John Doe is an Austin based indie pop artist combining intimate songwriting with atmospheric electronic production and dance influenced rhythms.

That gives the reader more context than simply writing “Indie Pop.” Keep this introduction short. Its job is to give someone a quick understanding of your artist identity before they explore the rest of the EPK.

2) Artist Bio

Your artist bio gives you more room to explain your story, sound, and career. A strong EPK bio might cover:

Your musical background
Your sound and influences
Your story or artistic perspective
Important career achievements
Notable collaborations
Recent releases
What you’re currently working on

Consider providing a short bio of roughly 75 to 150 words that can be read quickly or used by promoters and media outlets. More established artists may also want to provide an optional longer bio for journalists, festivals, and other industry professionals who need additional background.

Avoid filling your bio with generic descriptions like “unique,” “groundbreaking,” or “genre-defying.” Specific details about your music and career are usually much more memorable.

3) Your Best Music

Make listening to your music effortless. Feature around 3 to 5 of your strongest or most relevant tracks rather than linking to your entire discography.

The music you prioritize should depend on what you’re pitching. If you’re promoting a new single, put that song first. If you’re approaching a label or manager, feature the tracks that best represent your current direction.

You can link to platforms such as:

Spotify
Apple Music
SoundCloud
YouTube
Bandcamp

If you’re building a web-based EPK, consider embedding a music player so someone can listen without leaving the page. You can also add 1-2 sentences explaining the story, sound, or context behind an important release when that information adds value.

4) Music Videos and Live Performances

Video can demonstrate aspects of your artist project that a recording can’t. Depending on your goals, you might include:

Official music videos
Live performances
Festival footage
Acoustic performances
DJ sets
Other high-quality performance content

If you’re pitching venues, festivals, or booking agents, prioritize footage that shows what someone can expect from your live performance. Quality matters more than quantity. One great live video is more useful than five mediocre ones.

5) Professional Press Photos

Include high-quality promotional images that journalists, promoters, festivals, venues, and other industry professionals can actually use. At minimum, it’s helpful to provide:

Portrait orientation
Landscape orientation
High-resolution downloads

Your press photos should feel consistent with your broader visual identity, including your cover art and artist branding. Clearly label downloadable files so people don’t have to guess which version to use.

6) Career Highlights

Your EPK should show the momentum you’ve built. Depending on your career, highlights might include:

Major performances or festivals
Supporting established artists
Meaningful streaming milestones
Notable playlist placements
Radio support
Awards or nominations
Collaborations
Sold-out shows
Sync placements
Significant audience growth

Three impressive and relevant accomplishments are usually more effective than fifteen minor ones. Fewer legitimate accomplishments build more credibility than a long list of vanity metrics.

If Spotify is an important part of your growth strategy, meaningful playlist placements can also help demonstrate that your music is reaching listeners beyond your existing audience.

7) Press and Media Coverage

If your music has been covered by publications, blogs, radio stations, podcasts, or other reputable media, showcase some of your strongest coverage. For each feature, you can include:

Publication name
Short quote
Article or interview title
Link to the original coverage

Don’t copy an entire review into your EPK. Pull out the most useful line and give the reader the option to view the full piece. If you haven’t received press coverage yet, that’s completely fine. You can simply leave this section out until you have something meaningful to include.

8) Upcoming Shows and Releases

Your EPK should communicate what you’re doing now, not only what you’ve accomplished in the past.

If you’re promoting a new release, your EPK can support the larger release campaign by giving press, curators, and industry professionals one place to find the music and promotional assets they need.

Song, EP, or album title
Release date
Cover artwork
Relevant credits
Short description
Streaming or private listening link

Keep this section current and remove dates or campaigns once they’re no longer relevant.

Make it easy for someone to explore your presence online. Depending on where you’re active, link to platforms such as:

Spotify
Apple Music
YouTube
Instagram
TikTok
SoundCloud
Bandcamp
Your official website

Before linking to your streaming profiles, make sure they’re current and professional. For example, optimizing your Spotify artist profile with strong images, an updated bio, and relevant social links can help create a more consistent impression when someone moves from your EPK to Spotify.

10) Contact Information

If someone likes what they see, the next step should be obvious. Include the appropriate contact information for:

General inquiries
Booking
Press
Management

If you don’t have a manager, booking agent, or publicist, using an artist or band email address is perfectly fine.

Tailor Your EPK to Your Goal

Not everyone opening your EPK is looking for the same thing. A venue evaluating you for a show has different priorities than a journalist considering covering your new single. You don’t necessarily need to build an entirely different EPK for every pitch, but you should make the most relevant information easy to find.

Examples:

1) Venues, Festivals, and Booking Agents

– Prioritize your live performances, music, previous shows, audience proof, booking contact

2) Press and Music Blogs – Prioritize your story, current release(s), press photos, bio, and notable achievements

3) Labels and Managers – Prioritize your best music, artist positioning, audience growth, and career momentum

The principle is simple: build your EPK around the decision you want the recipient to make. If you’re trying to get booked, prove that you’re worth seeing live. If you’re pitching a journalist, give them a compelling story and the assets needed to cover it.

The same principle applies to other types of music pitching. Whether you’re contacting press, reaching out to curators, or preparing to pitch your music to Spotify’s editorial team, tailor the information you provide to what that recipient actually needs.

How to Make an EPK Step by Step

Now that you know what belongs in an EPK, it’s time to turn those assets into something professional, easy to navigate, and easy to share.

Step 1: Decide Who You’re Pitching

Start with your goal. Are you trying to book shows, get press coverage, promote a new release, or connect with labels and managers?

Your audience should influence which parts of your EPK receive the most attention. You don’t necessarily need a completely different EPK for every person you contact, but the information most relevant to your goal should be easy to find.

Step 2: Choose Your EPK Format

Decide where your EPK will live. For most artists, a dedicated page on your website is a strong option because it’s easy to share, update, and access from different devices.

You can also use an EPK builder or create a PDF as a secondary downloadable version. The best format is the one that makes your EPK easy for someone else to access.

Step 3: Organize Your EPK

Put the information someone is most likely to care about near the top. A simple structure could look like:

1) Artist name and introduction
2) Latest or strongest music
3) Career highlights
4) Video
5) Artist bio
6) Press and promotional assets
7) Contact information

There’s no single required order. If you’re pitching for live shows, for example, you may want to move your performance video higher on the page. The goal is to make your strongest and most relevant material easy to find.

Step 4: Make It Easy to Scan

Industry professionals may not read every word of your EPK.

Be sure to use:

Clear headings
Short paragraphs
Simple navigation
Obvious buttons and links
Enough spacing between sections

Avoid turning your EPK into a wall of text. Someone should be able to scan the page quickly and understand the essentials of your artist project.

Step 5: Make Your Assets Easy to Access

Don’t just display your promotional materials. Make them easy for someone to actually use.

If you include press photos, provide downloadable high-resolution versions. If you link to your music, send people directly to the relevant song, release, or artist profile. If you provide artwork or other media assets, clearly label the files. Every unnecessary click creates friction.

Step 6: Test It on Desktop and Mobile

Before sending your EPK, open it on multiple devices.

Check that:

Music plays correctly
Videos load
Images download
Links work
Text is readable
The page loads properly
Contact information is accurate

It’s also worth sending the EPK link to yourself and opening it from an email or message. This lets you experience it the same way a booking agent, journalist, promoter, or other recipient might.

Step 7: Keep Your EPK Updated

Your EPK isn’t something you build once and forget about.

Update it when you:

Release new music
Announce important shows or tours
Receive notable press coverage
Reach a meaningful career milestone
Add new promotional photos
Change your artist branding
Change management or booking contacts

Even when nothing major has changed, review your EPK every few months for broken links, old dates, outdated statistics, and information that no longer represents your artist project.

Should Your EPK Be a Website or PDF?

For most musicians, a dedicated web page is the best primary EPK format, while a PDF works well as an optional downloadable version.

Web page = Primary EPK

A web-based EPK gives you one link to share easily. You can update the page without sending a new file, embed music and videos, and provide downloadable assets.

PDF = Optional Downloadable Version

A PDF still has advantages. It can be useful when someone specifically asks for a document or when you want to provide a downloadable version of your press kit. For many artists, a simple approach is:

Whichever format you choose, reduce friction. Someone receiving your pitch should be able to access the information they need without requesting permissions, downloading huge files, or searching through multiple folders.

How to Make an EPK as a New Artist

You don’t need thousands of followers, major press coverage, or millions of streams to create an EPK. If you’re early in your career, focus on the quality of what you do have: your music, visuals, artist story, live performance, and current project.

It’s also okay to leave sections out. If you’ve never received meaningful press coverage, you don’t need a Press section yet. If your streaming numbers aren’t particularly relevant, you don’t need to highlight them simply because you’ve seen other artists do it.

A short EPK with five strong sections is better than a long EPK padded with weak accomplishments. As your career develops, you can add press coverage, notable performances, collaborations, audience milestones, and other achievements.

With that said, your EPK is only one part of building your presence as an independent musician. As you release more music, combine it with a broader plan to promote your music online and grow the audience behind your project.

What Should You Leave Out of an EPK?

Knowing what not to include is just as important as knowing what belongs in your press kit.

Your Entire Discography: Your EPK isn’t a music archive. Feature the songs most relevant to your current pitch and provide a link to your artist profile for anyone who wants to explore further.

An Extremely Long Bio: Your life story doesn’t need to be the first thing someone sees. Start with a concise bio. You can always make a longer version available for journalists and others who need additional background.

Every Achievement You’ve Ever Had: Focus on accomplishments that demonstrate current momentum, credibility, or relevance. An impressive achievement from five years ago may still be worth mentioning. Fifteen minor accomplishments probably aren’t.

Vanity Metrics: Numbers are most useful when they provide meaningful context. Don’t fill your EPK with every follower count, view total, and streaming statistic available simply because they’re numbers.

Irrelevant Links:You don’t need to link every social media account or platform you’ve ever used. Focus on your official website, major streaming profiles, and the social platforms where you’re active. Too many unnecessary links can distract from the places you actually want someone to visit.

Low-Quality Photos or Videos: Visual assets influence how professionally someone perceives your project. If you wouldn’t want a publication or festival using an image to represent you, don’t include it in your EPK.

Ultimately, every element of your EPK should have a purpose. If something doesn’t help a recipient understand your music, see your momentum, access an important asset, or contact you, consider leaving it out.

7 Common EPK Mistakes to Avoid

Even a good collection of music and assets can be undermined by a poorly organized EPK. Here are seven mistakes to watch for.

1) Burying Your Best Music

Your music is one of the main reasons someone is viewing your EPK, so don’t make it difficult to find. Put your strongest or most relevant release near the top of the page and make it easy to listen with as few clicks as possible.

2. Making Your EPK Difficult to Navigate

Someone shouldn’t have to search through a cluttered page to find your bio, music, photos, or contact information. Use clear headings, logical sections, and simple navigation so visitors can quickly jump to what they need.

3. Using Broken or Outdated Links

A broken Spotify link, missing video, or outdated website can immediately make your EPK feel neglected. Test every link before sending your EPK and review them regularly, especially after releasing new music or updating your website.

4. Ignoring Mobile Users

Don’t assume everyone will open your EPK on a computer. Booking agents, journalists, promoters, and other industry professionals may view it from their phone. Make sure your text is readable, videos display correctly, buttons are easy to tap, and the page works well on smaller screens.

5. Making Assets Difficult to Download

If a journalist wants a press photo or a promoter needs an artist image, don’t make them email you just to get it. Provide clearly labeled, high-resolution downloads for important promotional assets.

6. Hiding Your Contact Information

If someone is interested in working with you, the next step should be obvious. Make your booking, press, management, or general contact information easy to find. Don’t force someone to search through your website or social profiles for an email address.

7. Sending the Same Pitch to Everyone

Your core EPK can remain the same, but your outreach should reflect who you’re contacting and what you want from them. A booking agent may care most about your live performance and previous shows. A journalist may be more interested in your story, current release, and press photos. Tailor your pitch and make sure the most relevant parts of your EPK are easy for that recipient to find.

FAQs

What does EPK stand for?

EPK stands for electronic press kit. It’s a digital collection of an artist’s music, biography, promotional assets, career highlights, links, and contact information created primarily for music industry professionals.

What should an EPK include?

A musician’s EPK should typically include an artist bio, music, videos, professional press photos, career highlights, relevant press coverage, current releases or shows, social and streaming links, and contact information. The exact contents should depend on the artist’s career and the purpose of the EPK.

Do new artists need an EPK?

Yes. New artists can benefit from an EPK even without major press coverage or streaming numbers. Start with your strongest assets and add accomplishments as your career develops.

Can I make an EPK for free?

Yes. You can create an EPK using your existing artist website or free website and design tools. You don’t need an expensive platform to create an effective EPK. The quality of your music, visuals, information, and organization matters more than how much you spend building it.

Can I use Linktree instead of an EPK?

A Linktree or similar link-in-bio tool can organize your music, social profiles, and website, but it isn’t a full replacement for an EPK. An electronic press kit gives industry professionals additional context and assets, including your bio, press photos, career highlights, videos, release information, and contact details.

If you’re a new artist without an EPK, an organized link-in-bio page can work temporarily, but building a dedicated EPK is a better long-term option when you begin pitching venues, press, labels, or other industry professionals.

How long should an EPK be?

There’s no required length for an EPK. Focus on making it concise enough to scan quickly while still providing the information someone needs to evaluate your music. For most artists, a well-organized single web page is enough. If you offer a longer bio, additional photos, or technical documents, make them optional rather than forcing every visitor to read or download them.

Final Thoughts

A great EPK isn’t the one with the most information. It’s the one that makes it easiest for the right person to understand your music, see your momentum, find the assets they need, and contact you.

Start simple. Lead with your strongest material, tailor the information to the opportunity you’re pursuing, and remove anything that doesn’t strengthen your pitch. Most importantly, keep your EPK up to date. As your music, audience, and career grow, your electronic press kit should grow with you.