A first band EPK should make it easy to hear your music, understand your project and contact you. Start with your band name, location, a short biography, music links, a performance video, photographs and the details relevant to the opportunity you are approaching.
You can put those things together before your first review or major show. Press coverage is something you can add as it happens. Your first version can concentrate on the songs, the people playing them and what the band is ready to do.
Below is a free band EPK template you can copy into a webpage or document, followed by a completed fictional example and guidance on adapting it for venues, music publications and radio.
What is a band EPK?
EPK stands for electronic press kit: a collection of information and media that helps someone assess or promote your music. It can take the form of a webpage, a document or a PDF with links. Bandzoogle’s explanation of EPKs describes their use for purposes including booking shows, seeking coverage and presenting a release to radio.
Decide what you want the recipient to do, then make the relevant material easy to find.
What should a new band put in an EPK?
This is our recommended starting structure for a band building its first press kit.
| Section | What to include |
|---|---|
| Identity | Band name, home city, genre and a clear photograph. |
| Listen | One or two representative tracks, with titles and release status. |
| Watch | A live or clearly labelled rehearsal performance. |
| Short biography | Your sound, the people behind it and the current project. |
| Current purpose | The release you are promoting or the bookings you are seeking. |
| Useful downloads | Photographs, artwork and any files the recipient requests. |
| Contact | A named contact and a working email address. |
Lead with the material that answers the recipient’s immediate question. A promoter considering a support slot needs to see how you perform. A writer considering an upcoming single needs the song and its story.
What goes in an EPK when you have no press?
Leave out the press section until you have coverage to include. Use the space for specific, verifiable information about the project: how the songs were made, what the current release explores or how the band performs them.
For example, you could explain that you recorded an EP in your rehearsal space, that the songs grew from a particular collaboration or that your live arrangement uses two vocalists and a drummer. Use details that are true and relevant to your music.
There is precedent for treating press as an optional addition. In its Musicians’ Union venue listing, 93 Feet East asks for band information and links, and describes press examples as useful if available. It also states other booking preferences, including a demonstrable following, so read the full requirements for any opportunity.
When you do receive coverage, add a brief, accurate excerpt with the publication name and a link. Avoid turning private compliments or your own descriptions into apparent independent reviews.
A free band EPK template to copy
Replace the bracketed text with your information. Keep the booking details or release details that suit the pitch, and remove unused sections before sharing.
[BAND NAME]
[Genre / useful description] · [City, country]
[One sentence describing your sound]Current focus
[Seeking local support slots during a stated period / promoting a named release on a stated date]Listen
[Track title] — [released single / unreleased single / demo], [date where relevant]
[Listening link]
[Optional second track and link]Watch
[Song title] — [live at venue / live rehearsal], recorded [date]
[Video link]Short biography
[Band] is a [number]-piece [genre] band from [city]. Their music combines [specific musical elements] with [vocal, lyrical or rhythmic characteristic]. [A relevant sentence about how the project developed or how the music is made.] Their [single / EP / album], [title], [is available now / will be released on date]. [A sentence about the current live show or next step, if relevant.]For live bookings
Lineup: [Instruments and vocal roles]
Prepared set length: [Minutes]
Availability and travel area: [Details]
Performance history: [Relevant experience, or a clear statement that you are seeking your first shows]
Technical information: [Link to current stage plot and input list, where needed]For a release pitch
Release: [Title and format]
Release date: [Date]
About the release: [Two or three useful sentences]
Credits and lyrics: [Link]
Audio downloads, if requested: [Link and file format]Photos and artwork
[Download link]
Photo credit: [Photographer’s name and any supplied usage conditions]Official links
[Website]
[Relevant artist profiles, including Kallitone if you use it]
[Active social profile]Contact
[Name and role]
[Email address]
Updated: [Date]
A starting biography of roughly 60–100 words is our suggestion for this template. Follow a recipient’s word limit where one is provided. For more help with the wording, see our musician bio examples and template.
Completed example: an EPK for a band with no press
The band and all project details below are fictional. The example shows how a new act could present a release and a prepared live set without claiming reviews or previous concerts. Replace the media placeholders with real links when making your own version.
QUIET RELAY
Alternative rock · Manchester, UK
Interlocking guitars, melodic bass and songs about ordinary conversations that stay with you.Current focus
Seeking first support slots in Greater Manchester between December 2026 and February 2027.Listen
“Kitchen Light” — debut single, due 6 November 2026
Private listening link: [Link]Watch
“Kitchen Light” — complete live rehearsal performance, September 2026
[Video link]About Quiet Relay
Quiet Relay are a four-piece alternative rock band formed in Manchester in 2026. Their songs pair interlocking guitar parts with melodic bass and direct, conversational vocals. The band developed its first set through weekly rehearsals, building arrangements around shifts between restrained verses and louder choruses. Their debut single, “Kitchen Light”, follows the uncomfortable silence after an argument and introduces the material they are preparing for their first live shows.Live details
Lineup: two guitars, bass and drums; lead and backing vocals
Prepared set: 35 minutes of original material
Live history: seeking first public shows
Travel area: Greater Manchester initially
Stage plot and input list: [Link]Press assets
Band photographs, single artwork, biography and credits: [Folder link]
Photographer credit and usage notes supplied with the photographs.Contact
Band enquiries: booking@quietrelay.example
Updated: 28 September 2026
The example gives a booker a location, a sound, a performance to assess and a realistic booking request. As the band progresses, it can add actual show footage, confirmed dates and relevant coverage.
Adapt your EPK for the person receiving it
You can keep one collection of assets and change the order or emphasis for each pitch.
| Recipient | Put near the top | Supporting details |
|---|---|---|
| Venue or promoter | Performance video, location and proposed dates. | Lineup, set length and relevant live information. |
| Music writer or editor | The release, listening link, date and a specific story. | Biography, artwork, photographs and credits. |
| Radio programmer | The suggested track and release information. | Requested audio format, lyrics, credits and clean version where needed. |
Published requirements take priority. The Front Porch requests live videos and preferred performance dates in its booking enquiries. KEXP’s radio guidelines request streaming and WAV download links, along with release information, lyrics and credits, and ask artists not to attach audio files.
For technical planning, link a separate, current stage plot and input list. The Musicians’ Union recommends showing the musicians, instruments and stage positions, with the relevant audio and power requirements. Update that information when the lineup or arrangement changes.
What if you have no live footage or finished release?
For an early booking enquiry, a clearly labelled rehearsal performance can show the musicians playing together. Record a complete song with understandable audio and a stable camera view. Describe exactly what the recipient is watching.
If the only available recording is a demo, label it as a demo. Check whether the recipient considers material at that stage. A venue assessing a new act and a radio station requesting finished masters may need different things.
Where an opportunity expressly requires previous performance experience or a finished release, choose your timing accordingly. You can still prepare the EPK while building the material that application needs.
Should your EPK be a webpage or a PDF?
Our recommended starting point is one accessible page or read-only document, with clearly labelled links to media and downloads. It gives you a central version to update as dates, recordings and contact details change.
A PDF can be useful when someone asks for a downloadable overview. Make its links clickable and readable, and include an updated date. Check the recipient’s instructions before attaching it to an email.
Keep the presentation simple. Use readable text, clear section labels and images that help identify the band. Leave enough space for the music and contact details to be found quickly on a phone.
Make your photographs and links usable
Bandzoogle’s EPK guidance recommends providing suitable promotional photographs and links to high-resolution downloads. We suggest starting with a clear landscape image and a portrait option, including the photographer credit and any supplied usage conditions.
Label files so an organiser can identify them after downloading: for example, [Band]-Press-Photo-[Photographer].jpg. Keep the current biography, images and artwork together, and remove outdated versions from the folder you share.
Test every link while signed out. Check that a recipient can access the files with the permissions you intended. If you protect an unreleased track with a password, provide it in the pitch and follow the recipient’s submission rules.
Include your Kallitone artist profile
If you use Kallitone, add your artist profile alongside your other official music links. On our platform, artists can upload music for free and take part in discovery shaped by listener votes.
Give the recipient the listening and download access their pitch requires, and use your artist profiles to help them explore the wider project. Keep any statistics accurate, dated and relevant to the opportunity.
Check the EPK before you send it
- Can someone immediately find your band name, location and music?
- Does the featured video or recording represent your current lineup and sound?
- Are release dates, availability and contact details current?
- Do the listening links and downloads open with the intended permissions?
- Have you replaced every template placeholder and removed unused sections?
- Does the EPK answer the specific recipient’s requirements?
Once those checks are complete, send it with a short, relevant introduction. Update it after each useful development: a stronger recording, a first show, a new photograph or a published review.
Sources checked on 28 September 2026. The template, fictional example and suggested structure are Kallitone’s editorial guidance; individual venues, publications and radio stations set their own submission requirements.