How did you come up with the idea of setting up a label and what motivates you to continue doing this for a long time now with a lot of output?
The idea behind the label was initially to release my own music as well as that of DJ friends and to offer us a common platform. Gradually, the label grew and developed its own sound. Artists such as Arts & Leni and Wolfgang Lohr, who still release regularly on our label, have shaped this sound.
The motivation for me is to keep discovering and promoting interesting new artists and to offer them a platform to present their music to a wide audience. One of the discoveries was Felix Jaehn, who now has several number 1 hits worldwide. His first release "Sommer am Meer" appeared almost exactly 3 years ago on Ton liebt Klang. KlangKuenstler also released some of his first tracks on Ton liebt Klang and is now an important part of Stil vor Talent, one of the biggest German labels for electronic music.
I also find it very interesting how the sound of artists who have been on the label for a long time changes. As mentioned above, they help shape the label and are an important part of the further development of Ton liebt Klang.
How does A&R work at Ton liebt Klang? How do you look for musical trends that are usable for your label?
The A&R works on the one hand through tips from artists who have already released on Ton liebt Klang and have discovered someone whose sound could also suit us. I then listen to the demos and make a final decision as to whether a collaboration is possible. In many cases, the guys have a good feel for whether it might be a good fit or not.
Another important aspect is demo submissions by email. Here, however, the submissions must stand out from the crowd and be original. Unfortunately, with so many demos, it is not possible to pay attention to all emails.
What marketing measures do you use to promote your releases?
One important point is Soundcloud, where snippets of the individual tracks are gradually uploaded before the release. On the day of release, a playlist of the entire release is then created with links to the largest download portals and published via the Ton liebt Klang profile. Targeted reposts by the participating artists and remixers achieve a very wide reach.
What role does social media play in marketing your music?
Nowadays, social media plays a major role in marketing. The most important platform for the label is SoundCloud, as described above. But targeted posts on Facebook and Instagram, for example, are also an important part of marketing our tracks.
We are also in the process of expanding our YouTube presence, as we see great potential for us there in particular.
In view of the financial difficulties of various download portals, how important are download stores in electronic music? Is there a movement towards streaming here too?
We are also seeing a move towards streaming. The big services such as Spotify and Apple Music in particular have an ever-increasing share of license revenues.
However, the distribution is often very different. For example, the clubbier stuff is more popular on Beatport, whereas the more commercial releases tend to find more recognition on iTunes and the streaming services.
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