How to Pitch Your Song to Spotify Editorial Playlists

You pitch a song to Spotify's editorial playlists for free, inside Spotify for Artists. Choose one unreleased song from an upcoming release, fill in the details about its genre, mood and instruments, and write a short description for the editors. Spotify says to submit at least 7 days before release. In practice, pitch several weeks ahead so the editors have time to actually hear it.

This guide covers how the pitch works, what to write, what editors look at and what you can realistically expect.

Before you can pitch

A few things need to be in place first:

1. Your release has been delivered by your distributor and is scheduled for a future date. Spotify only shows upcoming releases once it has received them, which is why submitting to your distributor early matters. See the release timeline checklist.
2. You have access to Spotify for Artists for your artist profile. If you haven't claimed it yet, do it at artists.spotify.com.
3. The song is unreleased. You can't pitch a song that's already out. If it was released earlier as a single, you pitch a different track from the new release.

One song per release

You can pitch one song per release. If your EP has five tracks, pick one. Choose the song that's the strongest first impression, not necessarily your personal favorite. Think about the song with the clearest hook, the best production or the one that fits an existing playlist's sound.

If you release singles one at a time, each single is its own release, so each one gets its own pitch.

When to pitch

Spotify's own guidance is to pitch at least 7 days before the release date. Treat that as a minimum, not a target:

• Editors receive a huge number of pitches. More time means your song is more likely to be heard before playlists are put together.
• Pitching at least 7 days ahead also matters for Release Radar, the personalized playlist that shows new music to people who follow you. Spotify ties getting into your followers' Release Radar to having pitched in time, so check the current wording in Spotify for Artists.
• You can't pitch after release. If you miss the window, the chance for that song is gone.

So submit your release to your distributor well ahead, and pitch as soon as the song appears in Spotify for Artists.

Filling in the pitch

The pitch form asks for structured information and a free-text description. Spotify changes the form from time to time, but it generally covers:

• Genre and subgenre. Pick the closest honest fit. Choosing a bigger genre to get more attention works against you, because it sends your song to the wrong editors.
• Moods and styles. Energetic, chill, melancholic, romantic and so on.
• Instruments. What you actually hear in the track.
• Song type details, like whether it's a cover, a remix or instrumental.
• Language of the lyrics.
• Your location and cultural background, which helps regional and local editors find you.
• A description of the song, with a character limit shown in the form.

Take the structured fields seriously. Editors search and filter by them.

What to write in the description

You only have a few sentences, so every one needs to count. A strong description answers four questions:

1. What is this song? Sound, mood, influences. Write concretely: "warm synth-pop with a Motown bassline and a spoken-word bridge" beats "a unique sound you've never heard before".
2. What's the story? One line about what it's about or why you wrote it.
3. What's happening around it? Press coverage lined up, a tour, a music video, a sync placement, radio support, a notable collaborator.
4. Where has your audience come from? If previous songs grew on certain playlists or in certain cities, say so briefly.

Here's the shape of a good description:

"Late-night indie-pop about leaving your hometown, built on a looping 12-string guitar and a drum machine. Written after my first tour. Music video premieres release week; we're playing 12 dates across the Midwest in October. Our last single found its audience in Chicago and Minneapolis."

Avoid ALL CAPS, hype words, streaming numbers you can't back up and begging. Editors read a lot of pitches. Clear and specific stands out.

What editors look at

Spotify doesn't publish a formula, and no one outside Spotify can promise a placement. What's widely understood:

• The song itself. Quality, production and how well it fits existing playlists.
• The accuracy of your pitch. Correct genre and mood tags help the song reach the right editors.
• Context and momentum. Marketing plans, press, touring and audience engagement all help editors understand where a song fits.
• Your profile. An up-to-date artist profile with a photo, bio and consistent releases looks like an artist who's building something.

Realistic expectations

Most pitched songs don't get an editorial placement. That's normal. It doesn't mean the song is bad, and it isn't the end of the release.

A pitch still helps: pitching in time gets your release into your followers' Release Radar, and your streams and saves feed Spotify's algorithmic playlists, like Discover Weekly and Radio. Those often matter more to independent artists than editorial lists.

So pitch every release, then put your energy into what you control: sharing a smart link, running a pre-save (see pre-save campaigns and smart links), pitching independent curators and giving fans reasons to save and share the song.

Common mistakes

• Pitching late, or not at all because the release was submitted to the distributor too late.
• Picking the wrong genre to reach a bigger playlist.
• A generic description that could describe any song.
• Paying for placements. Services that promise streams or playlist spots can lead to artificial streams, which can get your music removed. Spotify's rules forbid artificial streaming.
• Wrong metadata. If the artist name or title is wrong in the delivery, fix it before you pitch. See metadata mistakes that get releases rejected.

Checklist

• Submit your release to your distributor weeks ahead.
• Claim Spotify for Artists and complete your profile.
• Pick one unreleased song per release.
• Fill in genre, mood and instruments honestly.
• Write a specific description: sound, story, context, audience.
• Pitch at least 7 days before release, and ideally several weeks.

How Stillmore Group helps

At Stillmore Group, release dates are at least 10 days after submission, and we recommend planning further ahead so your release shows up in Spotify for Artists in plenty of time to pitch. Members also compare notes on pitching in the Stillmore Group community.