Whether you’re an original musical artist, in a cover band, or a tribute act, no doubt you make amazing music. And it deserves to be heard! But that last part’s not so easy in 2025.
These days, every musician who wants to be found is a servant to the TikTok algorithm. Because TikTok listeners are engaged with music. As Billboard reports, “38% of U.S. TikTokers went to a show in the last 12 months, and 45% bought some merch.” That’s a sizeable chunk of an enormous platform.
And according to Deloitte’s recent Digital Media Trends study, “82% of Gen Zs and 70% of millennials find out about new artists or music through social media or UGC video sites.”
How do you get your music heard by potential fans on platforms like TikTok? You could pay influencers or for advertising. But this can get expensive quickly and there are certainly no guaranteed results.
Moreover, “going viral” isn’t a strategy—it’s more like a hope and a prayer! How exactly are you supposed to make it happen? What is the repeatable process?
So, getting your music discovered by your would-be hardcore fans and casual listeners alike remains a challenge. But one alternative solution to this challenge is often overlooked by musicians: Google.
Getting found on Google without paying for ads doesn’t happen magically. That’s where search engine optimization (SEO) comes in. In this article, we’ll discuss what SEO is, why it’s helpful, and how it might be your new secret weapon for getting your music found online.
What is SEO for Musicians (and Why Should You Care)?
Search Engine Optimization is the process of optimizing your website and digital presence to improve your rankings on search engines like Google. It’s how you make sure Google knows you exist and wants to prominently show searchers your website and social channels.
SEO is about showing up in search results when someone types in things like, “Portland Maine indie bands,” or “best wedding bands near Brooklyn,” or “Nirvana tribute bands.”
Without SEO, your Google presence is likely to be like a lonely sycamore tree falling in the search engine forest. If nobody hears it, did your noise rock band even make a sound? But with SEO, you’re giving yourself a shot at real discoverability—whether it’s by potential fans, promoters, press, or even the social media algorithm gods.
Are people searching for these things? The answer is a resounding yes! Here is some search data for keywords from the popular SEO tool Ahrefs: “live music near me” gets an average of 67,000 Google searches every month. “Concerts near me” gets 164,000 searches per month. “New music?” 14,000 searches per month.
And that doesn’t account for searches for all the various niches, genres, locations, types of artists, and every other variation you can think of.
Wouldn’t it be nice if you were at the top of some of these Google results? You can be if you use SEO to help you. How does it work? Read on, musician friend.
How SEO Compares with Other Marketing Channels
Here’s a list of the top marketing channels for musicians.
- Instagram/TikTok
- Playing Live / Word of Mouth
- Email Marketing (and SMS)
- Spotify / Bandcamp
- YouTube
- Community Platforms (like Reddit and Discord)
- Paid Ads
- SEO
Here’s a breakdown of the cost, effort, and payoff time for these types of marketing.
| Marketing Type | Cost | Effort | Payoff |
|---|---|---|---|
| Instagram/TikTok | Low | High | Slow/Compounds |
| Playing Live/Word of Mouth | Low | High | Slow/Compounds |
| Email Newsletter | Low | High | Slow/Compounds |
| Spotify/Bandcamp | Low | Medium | Slow/Compounds |
| YouTube and Video | Low | Very High | Slow/Compounds |
| Community Platforms | Low | Medium | Slow/Compounds |
| Paid Advertising | Very High | Medium | Quick |
| SEO | Low | Medium | Slow/Compounds |
The best sources are short form visual social platforms like Instagram and TikTok, along with playing live and the word of mouth that can generate. But it takes time to build your live audience, and without being able to count on the magic of going viral, Instagram and TikTok can be very slow to pay off.
No matter how far along, you can pay for followers. However, it’s expensive to set up campaigns and keep them running. Also, the cost of advertising continues to climb.
On top of that, paid ads miss most of your potential audience. With ads, you’ll see “sponsored” or other required disclaimers. And people are learning to avoid ads, with up to 94% of people skipping paid results.
Instead, they click on the organic search results.
This is where the best SEO for musicians comes into play. With a few great SEO articles, Google will show your site first in the organic listings. You can target keywords based on your city and state. Instead of forcing ads in front of people, they’ll naturally come to you.
Below, you’ll find out how to write great SEO articles for musicians. Although, you might consider buying articles from an SEO expert (click to see best deals). And even better, a writer who knows both SEO and the music world...
Why You Need a Website
I know. Social media is easier to handle than a website, more fun, and where everyone already is. But your website is the one place online that you actually own. It’s your digital home base, a permanent address (literally, your URL).
Think of it as a home you own with a mortgage you’ve paid off versus a pricey apartment that you rent by the month. In the latter, the landlord can kick you our or sell the property leaving you without shelter at any time. That’s what an algorithm update or losing a platform altogether can be like.
So yes, you absolutely want to create your very own website to feature your band. And SEO starts here. At the very least, you’ll want to create the following pages:
- Homepage
- About You / Your band Page
- Tour Dates / Live Music Page
- Studio Albums / Songs / Shop / Merch Page
- Contact Page
Each page on your website should feature your unique, original content, writing, images, video and anything else your fans will find useful and interesting.
Cost of Having a Website for SEO
It doesn’t need to cost an arm and a leg. My colleague built this website from scratch. It’s optimized for SEO and it’s simple by design. He paid roughly $10 for the first year and the cost shouldn’t climb much in the years ahead.
Most people haven’t built and hosted websites for over 15 years. So, I admit we have a leg up with domain expertise. However, you can easily find a plug-and-play hosting provider. To register a domain and host for your first year, you shouldn’t pay more than $100. Many website builders - Squarespace, Wix, Webflow, etc. - charge a higher premium. And they can be harder to use compared to free platforms like WordPress. They also come with annoying cross-selling and up-selling... Be wary as they try locking you in with switching costs.
WordPress is free and most hosting providers have an easy set up process. Also, it’s generally best to avoid paid add ons. Stick to the free themes and plugins with great reviews and update history. Maybe I’ll share some guides on this down the road, but back to SEO for musicians...
What the Heck is Keyword Research?
Ah, keyword research—the part of SEO that sounds like it involves spreadsheets, a monocle, and sacrificing a live goat to the Google algorithm. But don’t worry. It’s way less mathy or mystical than it sounds, and you don’t need any expensive software or marketing degree to do it.
Keyword research allows you to determine what your potential fans (or venues, or music journalists) are typing into Google when they’re trying to find music like yours. It’s about putting yourself in their shoes. You know, empathy!
Would they search for “ambient techno with saxophone”? “Best wedding band in Maine”? “Folk singer who's actually good?” Whatever it is, it may not be what you initially think.
But when you discover the clues, you’ll want to sprinkle those phrases naturally throughout your site—including certain key sections — so that Google (and your audience) has an idea about what you and your music are all about.
How to Start Keyword Research
Now, can you use fancy keyword research tools like SEMrush or Ahrefs? Sure. But if you’re musical operation is just getting started (or your music budget is currently devoted to strings and gas money), here’s how to do keyword research the lo-fi way:
- Autocomplete is your friend. Start typing phrases like “indie rock band” or “DJ for events” into Google and see what it suggests. Those suggestions are based on actual searches—free intel!
- Scroll to the bottom of the search page. See that “Related searches” section? That’s basically Google saying, “Hey, people who searched this also typed in these other phrases.” Jackpot!
- Talk to your fans. What would they type to find your music? Sometimes the best keyword ideas come from, you know, communicating with actual humans (no offense robots, we love you and please spare us on Judgement Day.)
Once you’ve gathered a solid understanding of how your audience is searching for music like yours, make sure these search terms (keywords!) appear (naturally!) on your homepage, in your bio, in headers, and sprinkled throughout your content.
However, don’t force it—this isn’t a game of stuffing the word “live music Portland” into every sentence until it sounds like an AI robot had a meltdown. That’s called “keyword stuffing,” Google’s been onto it for a long time, and it hasn’t worked since Lady Gaga’s first era.
Just be thoughtful about how people are likely to discover you based on your research and use their language.
Don’t Forget the Long-Tail Keywords
Let’s say you’re trying to rank for “musician.” Cool, you and 47 million other people. Want to stand out? Niche down with long-tail keywords.
A long-tail keyword is a specific and detailed search phrase with lower search volume, usually at least 3-5 words or more. For example, “guitarist” is a short-tail keyword while “blues guitarist like John Lee Hooker” is a long tail keyword.
These more specific phrases might get less search volume, but they attract people who are actually looking for what you specifically do.
Think of it like playing a cool house show for superfans versus shouting into the void of Times Square where nobody is listening because they are going to a fancy sushi dinner, Broadway show, or otherwise ignoring you.
Long-tail keywords using local geographic or genre terms may be especially helpful. For example, instead of “singer-songwriter” or “guitarist” try something like "folk singer-songwriter in Asheville” or “Chicago soul guitarist for hire” and target those.
Now You Need to Create Website Content
Website content, like blog posts, helps show Google that you’re an expert, professional musician. Google takes time to understand your expertise and topics.
For example, if a pet food website published an article on how to have a great band practice session, it wouldn’t rank well. Google gives topical authority to sites over time. There are roughly 200 different factors to determine what Google ranks. But content and topics are some of the most important.
Here are some categories to find the SEO keywords for musicians.
- Playing Live Music
- Recording Songs
- The Music Industry
Creating this supporting content can help show Google (and searchers) that you’re an expert. The goal is to make the articles the most useful possible. Deliver as much value up front for readers.
You can also organize articles into trending and evergreen. Trending covers news-worthy topics, like great bands to catch in town right now, while evergreen contain timeless insight. For example, an article on 7 tips for performing a great live show.
With SEO for musicians, you can also target keywords to control your brand. As you grow, people will search your name and reviews. It’s good to monitor your Google Business Profile. But on top of that, review articles and press can help as well.
Content Writing: SEO Guide for Musicians
Now that you’re equipped with the best keywords and topics, it’s time to start writing. Or hold your horses! To write an SEO article that ranks, it’s best to do more research first.
Jump back to Google and search your primary keywords...
Look at the top organic results to see what’s working. There’s no need to recreate the wheel. Instead, use them as a guide. You already know that’s what Google determines is useful. You can pull the best sections from those articles to start building your article. Then add even more value.
One great strategy with SEO for musicians, mine the comment sections and forums. Look for common questions and missed subtopics. If one person took the time to ask in comments, probably hundreds of other readers had a similar question. And you can add those to your article.
For the next step, I’ll lay out the entire subhead structure. You’ll want to reuse your primary keywords throughout the subheads, and also the secondary keywords. The article should flow logically with the subheads and fill in the content from there. People often scan to determine what’s worth reading.
You should space the keywords throughout your article. For a visual, I’ll often use Ctrl+F (Command+F on Mac). This should highlight the word and you can quickly see how it’s spaced out and surrounding keywords.
With every article, it’s good to have a Call-to-Action (CTA). For example, push readers to another related article, or have an email list signup. The CTA for this article is a push to our writing services. If you don’t want to research and write your own articles, we can do it for you. And even though this is the best SEO guide for musicians, it’s just scratching the surface...
Another top factor to improve your SEO articles are readability statistics. It’s counterintuitive, but writing simply is best. Even with an educated audience, writing at a lower grade level will keep them more engaged. It’s best to avoid industry jargon.
Most people want to use big words to sound smart, but this pushes people away. It’s also harder to write complex topics in a simple way. I’ve seen the impact first hand with millions of readers.
To reach that scale, we had a rule of writing at or below the 8th grade reading level. When hiring new interns fresh out of school, they’d often be writing at the 11th or 12th grade levels. It’d take time to retrain them on effective writing habits. Here’s a free tool that you can use to improve your writing. Pro tip, it’s good to keep this in mind when writing emails as well.
Now you’re well equipped to start writing SEO content, or feel free to check out our SEO writing services. You can also use AI writing tools, but be careful. Google is finding ways to detect and downrank AI SEO articles. The articles we deliver won’t be flagged for AI content.
How SEO for Startups Can Help Musicians Get Found
Hi, I’m Brian M. Reiser—an SEO strategy consultant based in Portland, Maine and founder of Reiser Digital Services LLC. I studied business, but my real education came from over a decade in the marketing trenches, helping everyone from indie folk singers to Fortune 500 brands level up their search visibility and actually get results.
What sets me apart from 99% of SEO consultants? For one, I can write. Not in a dry, keyword-stuffed, AI-generated way—but with actual voice and strategy. And unlike most SEO pros, I speak both Google and music fluently. I’ve been in the studio, on stage, and deep inside Google Analytics.
I cut my SEO teeth working for blues-rock titan Joe Bonamassa, a four-time Grammy nominee with more Billboard #1 Blues albums than most people have socks (28 and counting). From there, I helped scale a finance site from startup to over one million monthly visitors, working alongside SEO and investing expert Brian Kehm to build content that consistently performed—and converted.
Together, Brian and I now run SEO for Startups, a consultancy that helps musicians like you get found online. We specialize in content that hits the sweet spot between what Google loves and what your fans are actually searching for. Whether you’re promoting an album, booking local gigs, or building a full-blown music brand, we can help make sure your site shows up—and shows off.
➡️ Learn more about how SEO for Startups can help your music get found.⬅️
Got questions about SEO for your music? Reach out—we love helping artists figure this stuff out.