BBC Radio 1 Pitch Email Templates for Artists | TAP
Radio 1 pitch email templates
By TAP Editorial Team
Quick answer
A Radio 1 pitch email should run to about 120 words: who you are, what the track is, when it is out, one line naming something the show actually played, one checkable fact and a private link. Write to a named show rather than the station. For UK artists the BBC's own published route is the BBC Introducing Uploader.
Radio 1 has one door the BBC publishes and a lot of doors it does not. The published one is the BBC Introducing Uploader, which is where a UK artist should start whatever else they do. The unpublished ones are the individual shows, and those open to a short, specific email from somebody who has clearly listened. These are frames to fill in and then rewrite in your own words. Sending any of them unchanged is worse than sending three clumsy sentences that sound like a person.
First Email to a Specialist Show
Writing to one of Radio 1's evening or late-night shows about a record you think fits it
Subject: [ARTIST NAME] - [TRACK TITLE] (out [DATE]) Hello [SHOW NAME], I'm [YOUR NAME] and I make music as [ARTIST NAME]. [TRACK TITLE] is out on [DATE]. It's [ONE LINE ON WHAT IT SOUNDS LIKE, said the way you would say it to a friend]. I sent it here because you played [RECENT TRACK FROM THAT SHOW] and this comes from the same place. [ONE CHECKABLE FACT: who produced it, who you have played with, where it was recorded, a show that sold out.] Listen: [PRIVATE LINK] Thanks for the show. [YOUR NAME]
Under 120 words. The line naming something they actually played is the whole email; without it this is a circular. Link rather than attach, and make sure the link opens without a login. Check bbc.co.uk/schedules for the current line-up first, because Radio 1's evening shows change more often than most lists of them do.
BBC Introducing, Done Properly
The published route for UK artists, and the notes that go with the upload rather than an email
PROFILE (the fields that are required) Artist name: [NAME] Real name: [NAME] Phone and email: [YOURS, checked] Postcode: [YOURS, because it sets which Introducing show gets the track] Genre: [PICK CAREFULLY, it is fixed once a track is uploaded] One social link: [THE ONE YOU ACTUALLY UPDATE] Connection to the local area: [A LINE OR TWO. 'I have lived here all my life' is a fine answer.] Lyrics: [REQUIRED] BIOGRAPHY (this is the part that gets read out on air) [Three or four sentences a presenter could say aloud without editing. Who you are, where you are, what the record is, one thing that is actually interesting.] BEFORE YOU UPLOAD WAV or MP3, under 100MB, 320kbps if you can Clean edit, no explicit language Original material, no covers Happy for it to be played from today, because it can be
The Uploader is at bbc.co.uk/introducing/uploader and you need a BBC ID. You get two tracks every 30 days, so send your best rather than everything. Uploading the same track twice gains nothing, because the system recognises it and it inherits its old history. The BBC says it can take up to six months to be heard and sometimes longer, and that a listen does not guarantee a play.
Following Up Once
A single short note about ten days after the first email, in the same thread
Subject: Re: [ARTIST NAME] - [TRACK TITLE] Hello again, Just checking this reached you. No pressure at all, and if it is not for the show that is completely fine. If it helps, [ONE NEW THING: a live video, a session version, dates coming up near you]. [YOUR NAME]
Once, and then stop. Reply into the original thread so the track link is directly underneath. The tone that works is one that would be equally comfortable with no reply at all, because that is the most likely outcome and it is not a verdict on the record. After this, only come back with something new.
Asking for a Session
Offering to come in and play, once a show has already shown some interest in the record
Subject: [ARTIST NAME] session, [MONTH] Hello [SHOW NAME], Thank you for playing [TRACK TITLE]. If a session would be useful, I would love to come in. What I would bring: [FULL BAND / TRIO / SOLO], playing [SONG] and [SONG OR COVER]. When I'm free: [THREE SEPARATE WEEKS] Where I'd be travelling from: [PLACE] Recent live footage: [LINK] And if a session is not on the cards, no problem at all. [YOUR NAME]
Ask after a play rather than before one, because then you are asking for a second yes rather than a first. Live footage is the part that decides it, so film one good performance properly and use it for a year. Give three separate weeks rather than a single date, and check your own diary before you offer any of them.
Coming Back When Something Has Changed
Returning to a show that did not bite, once something has moved that they can verify
Subject: [ARTIST NAME] - [TRACK TITLE] update Hello, Short update on [TRACK TITLE]: [WHAT ACTUALLY CHANGED, named and checkable. A play somewhere else, a support slot, a run of dates that sold, a review, a different and better song.] Sending it again in case it lands differently now. [PRIVATE LINK] Either way, thank you for the first listen. [YOUR NAME]
Only send this when the change is real and somebody could check it in one click. Time on its own is not a change. If the honest answer is that nothing has happened, the better move is to make something happen or to come back with the next record instead.
Saying Hello With Nothing to Ask For
Introducing yourself months before there is a record, so the first real email is not also the first contact
Hello [SHOW NAME], I'm [YOUR NAME], I make records as [ARTIST NAME] and I listen to the show most weeks. [ONE SPECIFIC, ACCURATE LINE ABOUT SOMETHING THEY PLAYED OR SAID RECENTLY.] No ask here. I have something coming in [MONTH] and I would rather you had heard my name once before it turns up. Thanks for what you play. [YOUR NAME]
Do not sneak a pitch into the last line, because that is exactly what makes these emails annoying. Send it once, not quarterly. The single reference to something they played has to be accurate and recent, and if you cannot write one honestly then you have not listened enough to be sending this yet.
Replying When They Play You
The short note after a play, which almost nobody sends and which is the cheapest relationship-building there is
Hello [SHOW NAME], Thank you for playing [TRACK TITLE] on [DATE]. It meant a lot, and a few people got in touch off the back of it. [ONE SENTENCE ONLY, and only if true: what happened because of it.] Nothing to ask, just wanted to say thanks properly. [YOUR NAME]
Three lines, sent within a couple of days, with nothing attached to it. This is the email most likely to be remembered next time you send one, precisely because so few artists bother. Do not use it as a hook for the next pitch. That comes later, in a different email.
Telling a Show What Is Coming
Giving a show that has supported you before some notice, so a release is not a surprise
Hello [SHOW NAME], A heads-up rather than a pitch. [ALBUM OR SINGLE] is out on [DATE] and the track I think is yours is [TITLE]. I can send it any time from [DATE]. If it is easier to have it now, say the word and it is with you today. [TOUR DATES OR ANYTHING ELSE HAPPENING AROUND IT] [YOUR NAME]
This only works with shows that have played you before, and it works well. It gives them the chance to plan rather than react, and it makes you the artist who is easy to work with. Keep the dates accurate, and if the release moves, tell them the day you know.
Frequently asked questions
When should I send a pitch relative to my release date?
Two to three weeks ahead for most shows, which gives somebody time to listen without the record being so far off that it gets forgotten. The BBC Introducing Uploader is the exception and should go much earlier: the BBC says it can take up to six months for a track to be heard, and it warns that a producer may play it before your release date, so only upload something you are happy to have on the radio from that day.
Should I email several Radio 1 shows at once?
Write to them separately and differently, or write to one. A single email addressed to nobody in particular reads as a mailout, and people who work on adjacent shows talk to each other. Two properly written emails to two shows you have actually listened to beat eight copies of the same paragraph.
Should I mention playlist adds on Spotify or Apple Music?
Only as one line among the checkable facts, and never as the reason they should play you. A radio show is choosing for its own audience rather than following a streaming service, and leading with a playlist add reads as pressure. It works better later, in a follow-up, as evidence that other people have made a decision on the record.
What is the difference between pitching daytime and a specialist show?
Daytime music is chosen for the station as a whole and you can see the outcome in the weekly published playlist. A specialist show is much closer to one presenter's taste and the run of records they have been playing lately. For an independent artist without an existing relationship, the specialist show is the realistic target, and almost every first Radio 1 play arrives that way.
How long should I wait before pitching the same show again?
Until the next record, or until something has changed that they could verify in one click. Sending the same track again a month later reads as not having listened to the silence. There is no penalty for coming back six months later with a better song, and there is a real cost to coming back next week with the same one.
From the field
Proof points
- Named contact reply rate vs studio@: 5x higher (Liberty Music PR campaign data, 2024-2026)
- Best UK send window: Tue/Wed 09:00-10:00 UK (Across 60+ campaigns)
- Optimal follow-up cadence: +7 days from initial pitch (Liberty internal data)
- Reply visibility blind spot: Stations add to rotation without replying (WARM monitoring vs email reply rate)
What actually happened
Eyes Glued, BBC Radio 6 Music: 153 plays across 6 weeks, accelerating in week 4. Track-led pitch with a single playable line. (March 2025)
Radio 1 is a younger-skew daytime playlist meeting and a long list of specialist shows. The daytime list barely opens to plugger pitches. Specialist is where independent acts land. I write a different pitch for each show, lead with the one playable thirty-second moment, and never copy in the daytime team on a specialist mail. The mistake I see most often is treating Radio 1 as one inbox.
Chris Schofield, Radio plugger, Liberty Music PR
Related resources
Further reading
- TAP Blog — In-depth guides, comparisons and advice for independent artists running their own promotion.
- UK Music — The voice of the UK music industry, representing labels, publishers, and collecting societies.
- Music Week — Industry news, charts, and analysis for music professionals.
- The Music Network — Global music business intelligence and networking.
Get your free release plan in 60 seconds
Tell TAP your track and release date. It builds your 4-week timeline, drafts personalised outreach for your contacts, and tracks replies in one place. First release is free, no card required.