With the excitement of the radio release of Blake’s first single, “Break Anotha,” we thought it would be helpful to put together some helpful hints for contacting radio stations. We hope these basic guidelines will help us promote the song without pissing off DJ’s and Program Directors.
Do’s:
Always be polite. If a DJ says they don’t have the song, thank them and end the call.
If you email, provide a link to the song streaming online. I suggest the AOL link.
Mention Ryan Tedder of One Republic’s involvement with the song. You might even want to reference their hit with Timbaland, “Apologize.” This lends some credibility to Blake as well as cross-promotes One Republic.
Make sure the song fits in with the station’s format. To find your local stations, here’s a handy station locator.
If you listen to the station and like the programming, say so. Personalize all communications by mentioning the DJ’s name and/or something you may have heard on their show. This lets them know you are a real listener! However, don’t do this if you really don’t listen to the station.
Don’ts:
Don’t call outside your local area. Nothing pisses DJ’s off more than to think that they are being ambushed by organized fans.
Don’t call or email the same station more than once a day. Don’t email the same DJ more than once a week.
Don’t be confrontational if the DJ’s say no.
Don’t mention you are a big Blake fan. Put the emphasis on how much you like the song. If they think you are streat teaming, they will take your request less seriously. Use your real name and don’t send a request from an email address like pjLuvsBlake@yahoo.com. That might tip them off. Heh.
If you can think of any other helpful tips, let us know. We will eventually add the radio request strategy as a tab at the top. Thanks!
Wow, the news is coming at us fast and furious today! Ken Barnes of USA Today’s Idol Chatter was one of apparently many recipients of a press release from 19 Entertainment, announcing Blake’s debut single…
Season 6 runner-up Blake Lewis emerges from the cocoon of silence that has mostly enveloped him (tour aside) since the end of the show. 19 Entertainment has announced a Dec. 4 release date for his still-untitled album, and a leadoff single, Break Anotha, goes out to radio Tuesday.
The thoughtful folks at 19 also included a link for lucky recipients of the press release to hear the single, which I did. It sounds like a clever maximizing of Blake’s musical inclinations in a contemporary pop context. Or, in plainer English, it’s a heavily produced pop-soul tune featuring a chanted chorus with a striking strings figure and a bit of beatboxing and other vocal gymnastics. Seems to be aimed straight at the Justin Timberlake market, and — with a properly warm radio reception — it could hit the jackpot.
Sounds like Ken thinks there’s some hit potential here! And it’s great that they’re getting it to radio so quickly. Stations will be adding Christmas music to their playlists soon, so it makes it a little more difficult for a new song to build momentum during the holiday season. Way to go, Team Blake! I can’t wait to hear this tomorrow!
ASCAP shows that this tune was penned by Ryan Tedder and Sam Watters.
Okay, not really, but I did get some scoopage from him at the Elliott Yamin concert at the Orlando House of Blues tonight. For those who don’t know… Josh is currently touring with Elliott Yamin. He is one of two opening acts, and he’s very available to the fans afterward, so I got a chance to talk with him and ask him about the song(s) we’d heard that he’d written that Blake had recorded.
So, I heart Josh Hoge, and he deserves major props for talking to me about Blake at the concert. He totally didn’t have to, so that was really nice, I thought. So, in return, check out his myspace and add him as a friend. I did!
Between The Last Goodnight’s set and Elliott’s set, my roommate and I decided to get our last drink for the night. Well, we get to the bar, and there’s Josh Hoge standing right there. Nice! No work at all on our parts. So, we approach him, and I ask him as we’re taking a pic if I can ask him a question and he says sure. So… I lead in with “so I’ve heard that you’ve written some songs that Blake Lewis has recorded…” And off he goes… The gist of what he said, after the break!
Well, it seems we finally have some single news to report! Check out this little blurb on Pure Tone Music’s main page:
Next Tuesday, 10/30/07, will be a big day for Blake Lewis fans. More details to follow, but make sure that you visit blakelewiscomingsoon.com and call the number listed to sign up, if you haven’t already! You just may hear Blake’s first single very, very soon…
If you recall, Pure Tone Music is the A&R firm that reps Blake. And this bit of news falls right into line with what Blake told MJ and me at the last concert in Manchester - though he told us October 31st, but close enough. :)
This doesn’t mean that you’re necessarily gonna hear the single on the radio immediately. Jordin’s was released a few weeks before it actually went for adds. But, the song will be out there, and surely will give us an advance taste of what the album is going to be like.
So, sign up at Blake’s official site if you haven’t already, so you can hear the single!
Last night, Blake sent out a myspace bulletin announcing the addition of his “masterpiece” “Audio Nightmare” to his page. Visit his profile to give it a listen. You can even download it! (Thanks Blake!!)
Some other miscellaneous stuff…
On November 10, catch Blake performing at the LG Action Sports Championship in Dallas, TX. Read more about the event here and get your tickets through Ticketmaster!
Check out the latest installment of Ethan’s Adventures featuring Erica Blake.
Finally, here’s a pretty amusing video of Blake and friends being followed by the paparazzi. It was probably awkward for B & his entourage, but they handled it well.
While we wait (patiently) for Blake’s first single and Audio Day Dream to drop, Sarah, Star and I will be making some small changes to the site. We’ve already moved the tour and contact information to the side bar to make room for a new tab at the top called “Blake Noise!”
The “Blake Noise” tab will be a place for us to park links to Blake’s music and video performances in 4 different categories: pre-AI performances, AI performances, “Best Of” tour performances, and publicly available recordings.
This is where we need your help. We’d like each of you to submit your top five Blake videos for consideration. They don’t have to be videos that you personally shot, but they must be publically available on video sharing sites such as youtube or gofish. Please limit your votes to five videos. We want these to be the best of the best! And what better way to kill time while we wait for new Blake noise than to take a trip down memory lane?
Blake Lewis Coming Soon! Check it out! Call the number listed on the page and Blake will let you know when his single is finished! You can also sign up for his mailing list, and grab a shibby-looking album countdown clock and add it to your myspace! Let me use some more exclamation points!!!!!!!!
Sounds like Audio Day Dream is being pushed back one week, according to Blake’s most recent Myspace blog:
Hey everyone… My album just got pushed back to December 4th. We think it will be a better day for the release and its also taking some pressure off me, for getting this album done. I can’t wait to get it out!!! I have been waiting to make a full length album for the longest time. This album is a mix of all the great pop music that has inspired me since the 80’s. Electro/funk/soul/pop I call it my 2080’s album. One mix from the start to finish, like a great Electronic or Hip-Hop mix tape.
More News:
I just got done making the documentry and shooting the pictures for the album cover. My two good friends, Ethan Newberry and Cisco McArthy have put together a nice 20 minute documentary, that hopefully will be packaged with the album. Its lookin great!
Gabrielle Revere shot the cover pictures and they turned out amazing! Also, Courtney James, a brilliant artist is helping me out with the design work for the cover. Everything is coming together smoothly and I couldn’t be more happy with this project.
Thank you all for your possitive energy you’ve been sending my way! I’ve needed it.
Love and Happiness - Blake
So we’ll have to wait an extra week, but I’m sure it’ll be worth it. BTW, Blake lists his current mood as ecstatic!
This Tuesday night, Blake will be a special guest at a show that’s part of the Vegas Music Experience, a dance music conference held annually in Las Vegas. Here are some further details about Blake’s appearance…
Venue: Moon Nightclub At The Palms Casino Resort
Time: 10:00pm-4:00am
Promotional Group: Vme / Billboard / N9ne Group
Event: Playboy Party Moon Tuesdays
Talent: main: Superstar Dave Navarro & dj Skribble Vegas premiere of their new musical set!
Special Guest Appearance: American Idol Finalist Blake Lewis
Also Appearing: dj P, Mark Stylz, Graham Funke and Digital Boy
Lounge: Keith Evan / Carlos Sanchez
Dave Navarro and Blake? Should be a night of interesting music! If you’re in the area and would like to attend, click here for tickets!
