How to Prepare a BBC 6 Music Pitch

If you are preparing a BBC 6 Music pitch, start with the programme rather than the station name. Listen to recent episodes, understand the music being selected, and decide what makes your release relevant to that particular show.

This is a practical preparation guide. It does not present private campaign results or promise a response rate. The work you can control is the quality of your research, the accuracy of the release details and the care you take with each submission.

Build the specialist list by show

For each possible show, keep a record of:

• The programme name and its official page
• Recent music that gives you a reason to consider it
• The current presenter or production team, where publicly listed
• Any published submission instructions or contact route
• The date you checked those details
• Why this particular release fits

Do not guess an email address from a staff member’s name. A published team inbox or submission portal may be the correct route. A named address is useful only when you have established that the person is current and accepts this kind of approach.

The BBC radio contact research guide explains how to keep the sources and verification dates with the list.

Check the BBC Introducing route

BBC Introducing is an official place to check for music submission guidance. Read its current eligibility, rights and upload instructions before submitting.

The BBC’s published Getting Noticed advice describes the uploader and recommends targeting shows that play music like yours. That is an older document, so use the current Introducing website for today’s form requirements and show information. It is not evidence that an upload will reach a particular 6 Music programme or secure a play.

Keep the track title, artist name, release date and contact details consistent with the rest of your release materials. Check that you have permission to supply the audio and any supporting assets.

Prepare the pitch before you send

A useful pitch makes the music easy to assess:

1. Open with the fit. Explain why you are approaching this show, using something you actually heard or read.
2. Give the essentials. Artist, track title, release date and a working listening link.
3. Add relevant context. The story behind the recording, an upcoming live date or confirmed coverage can help if it matters to this recipient.
4. Make one clear request. Ask for consideration for the programme rather than implying that a playlist place is available.
5. Follow the requested format. Supply audio files or attachments only when the submission instructions ask for them.

A listening link should work for someone who is not logged into your own account. If the music is unreleased, check the link permissions before sending it.

For a reusable structure with placeholders, see the pitch writing guide.

Plan a respectful follow-up

Use the recipient’s stated deadline or follow-up policy where one exists. There is no send time in this guide that guarantees a reply.

If follow-up is welcome and you have something relevant to add, keep it brief and refer to the original submission. New information might be a confirmed live date, a published feature or a corrected listening link. Do not invent support to make an update sound stronger.

A request to stop ends the outreach. A pass should be recorded so that you do not keep chasing the same release. Silence is not an invitation to keep sending increasingly urgent messages.

Record replies and confirmed plays separately

A reply, a request for a WAV and a broadcast are different outcomes. Keep them in separate fields.

For a confirmed play, record the station, programme, date and evidence. That evidence might be a published tracklist, a programme recording or a monitoring report. Check the coverage and limitations of any monitoring service you use.

If you report a total, define the campaign window and explain what the total counts. Do not treat every positive reply as a play or attribute every change in streams to the pitch.

Review the next release against your own evidence

After the campaign, update each record with what you learned: whether the route worked, whether the contact was current and what the team actually requested.

You can then decide which shows still fit your next release. Keep that decision tied to the music and the current programme, rather than assuming that past support guarantees future support.