Access the EPK in full: Home | Bethharwoodmusic

When constructing my Electronic Press Kit, I aimed to create a professional, coherent platform that will appeal to a range of viewers. I wanted the EPK to showcase my skills and experience to reflect who I am musically, whilst also encouraging opportunities for working within the industry by appealing to potential listeners to industry professionals such as promoters, venue bookers, and collaborators. 

To achieve this, I have focused on several key components. This includes carefully curated photography, a concise yet expressive artist bio, links to music I’ve released, and videos of home and live performances. Each element was selected to communicate a sense of identity and to create a professional online presence that reflects my experience and supports future growth in the music industry.

Photography

When curating and selecting photography for my EPK, I focused on choosing imagery that reflects the tone of my music which is primarily acoustic contemporary folk. When generating ideas, I took inspiration from the visuals of folk artists such as Laura Marling and Adrianne Lenker, whose images often feature natural settings and an understated personal presence. 

To reflect this, I organised a photo shoot in a forest, where I was shown interacting with nature in my surroundings. This allowed me to create a peaceful atmosphere which felt candid and authentic, reflecting the stripped-back, intimate nature of my acoustic covers.

These photos also convey a polished, cohesive visual identity that will likely appeal to both fans and industry professionals. This is important as it may increase the chance of making a strong first impression, especially when considering the perspectives of those working within the music industry.

At the end of the EPK, I have included older images of ensemble performances from the past few years, showing my roles within the line-ups mentioned in my bio. Although these photos have a purpose, they are not cohesive with the images from the photoshoot used throughout my EPK and lack the consistency and polish the others evoke. Looking forward, I plan to improve this by organising some group photo sessions to create images that will align with the overall aesthetic of the EPK more closely.

Artist Bio

For my artist bio, I have focused on using vibrant, engaging language while still maintaining a tone that aligns with the calm and natural aesthetic established by the photography and colour palette my EPK uses. Furthermore, I wanted this to feel authentic, reflecting my personality and musical style without appearing overly self-promotional. To achieve this, I have included an outline of my performance experience, encapsulating my musical versatility, and technical achievements. I have included details about the various ensembles I perform with, such as Answers on a Postcard, the Manor Hill Jazz Band, and Inconclusive, to give readers a fuller picture of my collaborative work and adaptability as a performer.

However, an area I’ve found more difficult to discuss is my development as a songwriter. Over the past year, I have been expanding my songwriting skills and working on creating originals, however, I currently do not have any original material publicly released. Due to this, I have decided to keep this aspect of my music more understated in the current version of my bio. This has allowed me to portray an image of myself that is more truthful and not one that’s ahead of where I am in my journey. To address this, in the future, I plan to record a small collection of my original songs to establish myself as an artist. From this, I hope to upload these tracks to streaming services and feature them in my social media content. 

Music tracks and videos

In my EPK, I have included links to some covers of songs that I have previously uploaded to SoundCloud. These tracks were selected to link with the acoustic folk aesthetic I have established throughout the site, whilst also demonstrating my musical versatility. The covers convey a range of styles including traditional folk, acoustic rock, and soul. This variety conveys my ability to adapt my playing and vocal delivery to suit different genres, which I believe is a key strength in collaborative and live performance settings. I also used cover art that reflects the natural imagery in my EPK photography, creating a cohesive look that reinforces the acoustic sound of my music.

In addition, I have also embedded two video performances that feature my playing on YouTube. The first is a cover of ‘Anything’ by Adrianne Lenker, which embodies my contemporary folk influences. The second video is a live recording of ‘Smooth Operator’ by Sade, performed with my folk duo, Answers on a Postcard. My next steps for development involve uploading videos and sound recordings of my original compositions helping to establish myself as both a songwriter and performer.

Stylistic Presentation

When designing my EPK, I explored creating visuals that complimented the tone of my music and my photography. I focused my colour scheme around natural, earthy tones, mainly using shades of green, white and brown, to create a sense of cohesion with my images. 

For the typography, I have used fonts that I feel have some subtle individuality without overwhelming the content. Furthermore, in some sections, I have also made the intentional choice to not use capital letters, due to an aesthetic preference, as I felt it created a more soft, understated look that matched the overall mood of the site. This minimal, informal styling was designed to feel more personal and reflective of the intimate nature of my music.

At the end of the EPK, I have included a contact form to encourage interaction from site visitors. I wanted to create an easy way for people such as potential listeners, collaborators, or industry professionals to get in contact. The form is simple and accessible, and I feel that including this feature adds a layer of professionalism and approachability to the EPK.

Group discussion

During a group discussion on Electronic Press Kits, we considered how EPKs compare to more commonly used platforms such as Instagram. A key component of this was that although EPKs are useful for presenting a polished and professional image, they are often less visible than social media platforms. Amongst the group, it was agreed that Instagram, in particular, is more likely to be discovered organically. This is due to its accessibility, and the increased likeliness that audiences and industry professionals will browse social media first when looking into artists and musicians. This led me to place links to my social media at the top of my EPK, and also reflect on how my EPK could relate to and function alongside my presence online.

After considering the relationship between the content of my EPK and the content posted to my online platforms, I decided to embed videos from my Instagram into the EPK itself. I felt this created consistency and a sense of familiarity, and that the continuity between platforms would successfully establish a more cohesive picture of myself and my musical identity. Moreover, I also chose one of the professional photographs taken for my EPK to use as my TikTok profile image, further establishing a sense of cohesion. These steps may help to strengthen my overall brand and look, and help people who encounter me online to recognise me and my content more easily. 

Another important element discussed during the group session was the financial investment involved in maintaining an EPK, which revolves around the cost of purchasing and owning a domain. I have personally chosen to use a free web-building platform that was available, but the group discussion did encourage me to consider how having a custom domain name could make my EPK appear more professional and trustworthy. After researching this, I found that most domain providers charge annual fees, with discounted rates for multi-year plans. Although this is not currently a personal priority, when considering how to appeal to industry professionals and present a serious image, having a custom domain is likely beneficial. In the future, registering for a custom domain may become important to me and my development, as it may help increase accessibility and interaction with my EPK. 

The idea of legal issues and how they could relate to an EPK was also a key topic of discussion. This was significant as we explored how this could include the use of cover songs and copyrighted materials within an EPK.  Because my current EPK includes performances of covers, I was worried about how this could relate to intellectual property law and whether I had the appropriate permissions to share this material publicly. After researching this, I found that YouTube has licensing agreements for cover content. Because the content is posted on this site, I was able to embed the videos and be generally safe from copyright law as the existing music licenses still apply. 

Overall, I found this group discussion provided insight and direction that was highly beneficial for constructing my EPK. It led me to consider elements that I had not previously given much thought to, allowing me to approach them with more information and ideas. 

To conclude, the process of creating my Electronic Press Kit has allowed me to create a professional and cohesive representation of myself as a musician. After carefully considering my use of visual elements, written content, and links to other media, I feel I have encapsulated my current identity accurately and begun to consider my aspirations for the future. Furthermore, creating my EPK has also encouraged me to evaluate how I present myself to a range of people, including potential listeners, collaborators, and industry professionals.

The feedback and ideas gained from group discussions were also especially valuable.  These encouraged me to navigate creating a sense of consistency between my EPK and my social media, as well as the practicalities of domain ownership, and the legal use of content. 

In the future, I plan on expanding my EPK to feature original songs that I have been working on, and through this establish my identity more as a songwriter, In addition, I will continue to refine the visual elements and the information within my artist bio as I gain more experience and develop my career working in the industry. Overall, the project has been rewarding and informative, allowing me to attain a more in-depth understanding of working in the music industry.