One of the fundamentals of the modern band and band web site is the Band Bio. Many bands struggle to write an effective bio.
With a little thought and by paying attention to the following guidelines your bio will stand out by it's quality alone.
5 Critical Elements Of Your Band Bio
1. Who Are You?
The most important elements to include are fundamental to any bio. You should include:
First impressions really, really count. Your bio is often the first impression that people get of your band. Simply put, the first paragraph of your bio is very important.
Your first paragraph has to grab attention and hold it. It has to be interesting, informative and engaging.
Don't make huge unfounded claims about how fantastic you are, that sort of bio text does not give a good impression. In fact unrealistic or fantastic claims actually work against you as people often read it as "unrealistic". Far better to tell them the facts in an interesting way and let them be impressed by that.
2. What is your Band Doing Currently?
You should also include some info on your current band activities. For example do you have a planned tour or are you touring just now? Are you releasing a new album? Or busy recording songs towards a new album? Are you writing new material? You get the idea.
3. Background
If you include any other background information, make sure that it is relevant.One of the most common mistakes is to include information along the lines of “Rick has been playing violin since he was 4 years old. At 7 he began learning the guitar and performed his first gig at only 9 years old. At 10..."
Uggh.....
Industry pros will just toss your bio in the trash as soon as they stop yawning.
By all means include something about your relevant musical history but be brief, keep it interesting and present it in a way that it doesn't simply become a list!
4. Highlights and Achievements
You definitely want to list your successes. You may have had your music played on the radio, have collaborated with a musician or music producer, won a battle of the bands or similar competition.
Make sure that the most attention grabbing, flattering story about your band is featured in your bio!
5. Your Band in the Press and Media
You can include press quotes in other parts of your bio, for example to help describe your band sound, or the power of your performances, but you should try and include at least one press clip in your bio.
General Band Bio Tips
Apart from the critical elements of your bio mentioned above there are some more general things that you should be aware of:
No Typos
If you think that a typo or two would not count against you, think again. A simple rule: NO TYPOS (now that I have mentioned that, I bet someone finds some in this post!)
Honesty
Under no circumstances make up things to enhance your bio. It will be found out, and when it is the consequences are simply that professionals will not work with you and your reputation can quickly be ruined.
I'll say that again, don't make stuff up!
Create More Than One Version of Your Band Bio
You should make several versions of your bio so that it suits the purpose and needs of the moment. You should create the following versions:
- Elevator Pitch - Be able to describe your music in 30 seconds, i.e. only a couple of sentences.
- Short Bio - 1 paragraph
- Medium Bio- 3 paragraphs
- Long Bio - 1 full page
The various media outlets, festivals and conferences all have different requirements. Being prepared with different versions to hand means that you can react quickly to opportunities with a minimum of stress. Writing on spec when you are presented with an opportunity will lead to sub-standard pitches, which will do you absolutely no favors.
Images
If you include any images alongside your band bio, make sure they fit well with your band image and they are of a good quality. Images help to break up the text a bit. You do not need lots. One, possibly two, will do as you will have some form of folio in your press kit or website (I hope). Images can also bring a distinctive quality to a bio, so make sure it stands out for all the right reasons!
Useful Related Links
Electronic Press Kits
Songstuff Music Industry Articles
Songstuff Music Business Brief
Conclusion
It really doesn't take much effort to put together a good Band Bio and it is well worth the time to make it as good a quality as you can.
