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Radio & TV plugger

Aside from the rather silly name, radio and TV pluggers actually perform a vital job for any artist/ band. It is vitally important that radio and TV stations play music before its release date, so that fans of the music can see and hear it before buying.
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Aside from the rather silly name, radio and TV pluggers actually perform a vital job for any artist/ band.  It is vitally important that radio and TV stations play music before its release date, so that fans of the music can see and hear it before buying.  It is the plugger’s job to get the music into the hands and ears of the DJ’s and music controllers. 

Key duties and facts about being a radio & TV plugger

  1. A well connected and respected plugger can get almost any record played on radio and TV, which is an essential part of a successful promotion plan.
  2. The plugger will usually have meetings with the heads of music (these people decide the station’s playlists), show producers and key tastemaker DJ’s (think Pete Tong, Zane Lowe) at most radio stations on a weekly basis to promote the latest music and artists they are working with.
  3. There are usually four levels on the playlist - A, B, C and specialist list. Music on the A-list gets the most plays at peak times, therefore gaining more exposure for the artist. This will hopefully translate into physical and digital sales of the music. The specialist list is usually reserved for specific underground dance, electronica and indie music played on the evening shows.
  4. The music will be pre-release, usually about 3-4 weeks prior to the physical release date.
  5. The most important stations are Radio One and Radio Two as they have the biggest audience reach, although the big London stations such as Capital, Heart and Magic are key too.
  6. Radio plugging is a very sociable job, but with unsociable hours. Most pluggers work long days, which includes taking radio and TV presenters out to dinners, drinks and gigs to introduce artists/ bands on a regular basis.

The bigger picture

Plugging is part of the promotional arm of the music industry, linking in with the press and events strategy to provide a collaborative campaign.  Pluggers aim to give maximum exposure to the artist through airplay on all the major radio and TV stations.  This plan builds up intensity towards the release date. Successful campaigns whip fans into a buying frenzy when the release date comes around.

Tips from the top

Kate Burnett from Rapture PR shares her thoughts on why pluggers are important:

“Someone like Zane Lowe gets hundreds of CDs every day. He’s not going to listen to every single CD. This is why pluggers are brought in by bands. They know we have relationships with the presenters, the producers and the heads of music of radio stations.”