EPK for Musicians: What to Include (+ Free Template)

What is an EPK and why do you need one?

An EPK (Electronic Press Kit) is a single document or webpage that contains everything a journalist, label, playlist curator, or booking agent needs to know about you. Think of it as your professional résumé — minus it, you’re just another unsigned artist in an inbox of 200.

Every submission you send, every pitch you write, every inquiry you receive — an EPK answers the follow-up questions before they’re asked. Without one, you’ll spend hours answering the same questions over and over. With one, you send a single link and let it do the work.

The 8 elements every EPK must include

1. One-sentence description

At the top of your EPK, write one sentence that instantly tells someone who you are and what makes you worth attention. This is your “elevator pitch” and should be reusable in email subject lines.

Good: “Berlin-based melodic techno producer with 200K+ streams on Kompakt Records”

Good: “Lo-fi beatmaker from Tokyo blending jazz samples with boom-bap drums”

Bad: “Emerging artist exploring the intersection of genres with a unique sound”

2. Short bio (150-200 words)

Not your life story. Not a Wikipedia entry. A tight, compelling narrative: where you’re from, what you do, what makes you different, notable achievements. Write it in third person (“she” / “he” / “they”) because journalists will directly quote it.

3. 2-3 high-res press photos

Minimum 300dpi, no watermarks, professional or high-quality amateur shots. Include both landscape and portrait orientations so editors can use them in different contexts. Host them via a shared Google Drive or Dropbox folder — don’t embed massive image files.

4. Streaming links to your best 3-5 tracks

Links to Spotify, Apple Music, SoundCloud, or Bandcamp. Highlight which tracks are most representative of your current sound. Don’t dump your full discography — curate ruthlessly.

5. Press quotes and coverage

Include 2-4 quotes from blogs, publications, or industry figures who’ve covered or endorsed you. Format: “[Quote]” — [Publication/Person Name]. If you don’t have press yet, this is what we’ll solve in the next section.

6. Social media links + stats

Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Spotify for Artists. Include current stats: monthly listeners, follower counts. Only include platforms where you’re actually active — a dead Twitter account hurts more than helps.

7. Contact information

Email address (a professional one, not “xxdarklord99@gmail.com”), your management or booking contact if applicable, and your website URL.

8. Upcoming shows or releases

If you have dates, include them. Upcoming tour dates, release dates, festival appearances — anything that shows forward momentum. If you don’t have anything upcoming, skip this section rather than leaving it blank.

The free EPK template structure

Here’s a clean, proven EPK structure you can adapt to Notion, Canva, your own website, or a Google Doc:

═══════════════════════════════════
       [ARTIST NAME]
   [Genre] | [City, Country]
═══════════════════════════════════

"[Your one-sentence description]"

───────────────────────────────────
BIO
───────────────────────────────────
[150-200 word third-person bio]

───────────────────────────────────
FEATURED TRACKS
───────────────────────────────────
1. "[Track Title]" — [Platform links]
     [1-2 sentence description]

2. "[Track Title]" — [Platform links]
     [1-2 sentence description]

3. "[Track Title]" — [Platform links]
     [1-2 sentence description]

───────────────────────────────────
PRESS
───────────────────────────────────
"[Quote from publication]"
— [Publication Name]

"[Quote from publication]"
— [Publication Name]

───────────────────────────────────
PHOTOS
───────────────────────────────────
[Link to Google Drive/Dropbox folder
 with 3-5 high-res press photos]

───────────────────────────────────
STATS
───────────────────────────────────
Spotify: [X] monthly listeners
Instagram: [X]K followers
YouTube: [X]K subscribers

───────────────────────────────────
UPCOMING
───────────────────────────────────
[Release date — Description]
[Show date — Venue, City]

───────────────────────────────────
CONTACT
───────────────────────────────────
Email: your@email.com
Website: yourwebsite.com
Instagram: @yourhandle
Spotify: [Artist profile link]
═══════════════════════════════════

Where to host your EPK

You have several options, each with pros and cons:

• Your own website — Best for control and SEO. Create a page at yourdomain.com/epk. Updates easily
• Notion — Free, beautiful layouts, shareable as a public link. Many artists use this
• Linktree / Beacons / Koji — Simple, mobile-friendly, but limited in design
• Canva — Great visual design but harder to update dynamically
• Google Doc — Easiest to create and share, but least professional looking

My recommendation: Host it on your own website if you have one. If not, Notion is the best free option — it looks professional, loads fast, and you can update it without technical skills.

What NOT to include in your EPK

• More than 5 tracks — curate. If you dump 20 links, nobody will click any of them
• Low-res or amateur photos — blurry phone selfies signal you’re not professional
• Social platforms with zero followers — if your Twitter has 12 followers, don’t include it
• Humble-brag stats — “My last track got 200 streams” doesn’t impress. Only include metrics that are genuinely strong
• Personal drama or backstory overkill — “music saved me from depression” is meaningful but not a press kit element unless it’s genuinely the angle for a specific story
• Download links for huge files — always link to streaming platforms or host files on cloud storage

How to get press quotes for your EPK when you don’t have any

This is the chicken-and-egg problem: you need press to get more press. Here’s how to break the cycle:

1. Start with micro-blogs and niche publications — they’re more responsive and will quote your work
2. Use a guaranteed placement service — Get On Music Blogs publishes professional feature articles on active music blogs within 48 hours. Within a week you can have 2-4 real press quotes for your EPK
3. Reach out to local press — city magazines, college radio, community newspapers often feature local artists
4. Ask for testimonials from collaborators — if you’ve worked with other producers, vocalists, or DJs, ask them to write a 2-sentence quote about working with you

Within 2-4 weeks of active effort, any artist can accumulate 3-5 real press quotes. That transforms an EPK from amateur to professional.

How to use your EPK effectively

• Include the EPK link in every pitch email — “Full details in my EPK: [link]”
• Put it in your email signature — so every email you send doubles as promotion
• Link to it from your social bios — Spotify “about” sections, Instagram bio, etc.
• Update it every release — add new quotes, update stats, swap featured tracks
• Send it with booking inquiries — promoters need this info to decide whether to book you
• Share it with potential collaborators — makes you look professional and organized

Key takeaways

• An EPK is your professional one-page résumé for the music industry
• It must include: bio, photos, music links, press quotes, stats, contact info
• Keep it to one page / one long scroll — respect the reader’s time
• Host it on your own website (best) or Notion (best free option)
• If you lack press quotes, start building them immediately through blog outreach
• Share your EPK link in every pitch, email signature, and social bio
• Update it with every release — your EPK should evolve with your career