Peermusic’s Gary Seeger shares his top five tips on presenting music to a publisher

Gary Seeger has been involved in the music and film business for more than 30 years. His experience across numerous music industry jobs - from music licensing and record labels to management and publishing - makes him an absolute hub of knowledge for artists and industry peers alike.

Below, the creative director at Peermusic shares his top five tips for presenting to a publisher.

1. Know your music direction... although this is likely to change

Find your style, work it hard and then deliver. Stay narrow and deep, and don’t venture too wide.  

2. Ask yourself what do you want from a publisher?  

Research each publisher and find their strengths, whether that’s in co-writing, global contacts, sync activity and a great well-oiled admin/royalty system. Ideally, you want all the above and a lot of love!

3. Deliver your songs along with a bio, lyrics and image

Three songs max. If you have a video, make sure there are no long intros.  Get to the music.  No mini movies.  Also, mention previous live shows and upcoming gigs.

4. Highlight to the publisher your interests and where you see your music placed

Is it as a composer? Or writing to brief for film and TVCs? It may be submitting your music to active artist/labels, or purely wanting your catalogue of music pitched for sync opportunities.

5. Have a plan

Whether it’s 12 months or 2 years or more. Even if it’s point form mentioning: rehearsals, writing, delivering demos, live shows, focusing on a tour agents or managers etc. Have high expectations, but keep it real. Out-of-the-box -creative ideas essential. A publisher loves an active creative writer/artist with a focus and high hopes.