Get started as an Artist

artist.tools helps you understand your Spotify performance, detect bot threats to your profile, find legitimate playlists to pitch to, and track the impact of your playlist placements over time. This guide walks you through the essential tools every artist should know.

Step 1: Create Your Account and Access Your Artist Profile

  1. Head to artist.tools and create an account (Google, Email, or Facebook login)

  2. Once logged in, go to the Search page and paste your Spotify Artist Profile URL (right-click your profile in Spotify > Share > Copy link)

  3. You'll land on your artist profile page—your command center for tracking playlist placements and performance metrics

Expected result: You now have access to your artist dashboard showing bot detection status, all your playlist placements, and performance charts.

Monitor Your Profile: Add your artist profile to your Dashboard for quick access and regular monitoring. Go to your Dashboard, click "+ Add Artist" in the Artists tab, and enter your Spotify artist ID. Create a folder like "My Profile" to keep it organized for easy check-ins.

Step 2: Check if You're in Botted Playlists (Critical First Step)

Before doing anything else, check your bot status:

  1. On your artist profile, look at the banner at the top

  2. It will show either: "In 0 botted playlists" or "In X botted playlists"

Expected result: A clear indicator of whether any of your current playlist placements are flagged as suspicious.

Why This Matters: Being in even one botted playlist can harm your algorithmic visibility, reduce your placement in Discover Weekly and Release Radar, and potentially result in withheld royalties. If you're flagged, take action immediately. See Common Questions for next steps.

Step 3: Understand Your Artist Performance Metrics

Charts Tab: Track Growth Over Time

Visit your artist profile and click the Charts tab to see:

  • Monthly Listeners: How your audience is growing month-over-month

  • Followers: Total Spotify followers over time

  • Popularity Score: Your current popularity ranking (0-100) relative to your recent activity

Use this to:

  • Identify growth inflection points (when did your audience spike?)

  • Correlate chart changes with specific playlist campaigns or releases

  • Track whether your strategy is working over time

Pro Tip: Screenshot your charts before a major release or playlist pitch campaign, then check back in 2-4 weeks to measure impact. Real playlist placements take time to generate streams.

Playlist Risk Summary: Know Your Safety Status

Right on your artist profile overview, you'll see your Playlist Risk Summary. The risk badge shows your current status:

  • Red Badge: You're in one or more playlists flagged as botted. These are actively harmful and need immediate attention.

  • Gray Badge: Your artist is large enough that bot playlist inclusion may not significantly impact your profile (but still worth monitoring).

  • Green Badge: You're not in any flagged botted playlists. You're in good shape.

If you see a red badge, follow the steps in Common Questions to report and remove yourself from botted playlists immediately.

Step 4: Review All Your Current Playlist Placements

On your artist profile, click the Playlists tab to see every playlist you're currently in.

What You'll Find

A detailed table of all your placements showing:

  • Playlist Name: The name and link

  • Followers: How big the playlist audience is

  • Quality Rating: Whether we've flagged this playlist as legitimate or botted

  • Last Updated: When tracks were last added (active curation = good sign)

  • Est. Listeners: Estimated monthly listeners from this playlist

How to Use This Data

  1. Sort by Quality Rating: See which of your playlists are highest quality

  2. Identify Your Best Placements: Which playlists drive the most listeners? Focus on finding similar opportunities

  3. Spot Suspicious Placements: Look for quality warnings and investigate any flagged playlists

  4. Watch for Removals: Did you drop off a playlist? Use this info to understand why and adjust your strategy

Quality Indicator: Playlists with high listener estimates, consistent curation, and large follower counts are your most valuable placements. Prioritize pitching to similar-quality playlists.

Step 5: Track Playlist Activity Over Time

Click the Activity tab on your artist profile to see a timeline of changes:

  • Which playlists added you, and when

  • Which playlists removed you, and when

  • When playlists were flagged or updated

Use this to:

  • Track campaign results ("I pitched 20 playlists on X date, and Y playlists added me by Z date")

  • Identify which playlists removed you after a spike (potential bot activity)

  • Spot trends in when you get added/removed (e.g., weekday vs. weekend, specific genres)

Campaign Tracking Tip: Create a simple spreadsheet with the playlists you pitched to, the date, and track when additions appear in this Activity tab. After 2-4 weeks, measure how many converted to placements. Use your Dashboard to organize playlists you've pitched to by creating folders for each campaign (e.g., "Pitched - Q4 2024").

Step 6: Find Legitimate Playlists to Pitch To

Now that you understand your current situation, start building your next campaign:

  1. Go to the Playlist Search page

  2. Search for playlists by:

    • Genre: "indie rock", "lo-fi hip hop", etc.

    • Similar Artists: Artists similar to you

    • Mood/Vibe: "chill", "upbeat", "workout", etc.

  3. Apply filters to find quality playlists:

    • Hide Botted Playlists: Enabled by default—only see legitimate ones

    • Follower Range: Target playlists with 10K–100K followers for best pitch response rates

    • Recently Updated: Filter for playlists with tracks added in the last week (active curation)

    • Has Contact Info: Only show playlists where you can reach the curator

  4. Review each playlist's Overview tab to check:

    • Consistent follower growth (not spiky or suspicious)

    • Tracks added recently (active curation)

    • Genre and mood alignment with your music

Expected result: A curated list of real, engaged playlists worth pitching to.

Pro Strategy: Sort by "Fastest Growing" to find trending playlists. Curators of fast-growing playlists are often more engaged and receptive to new submissions than mega-playlists (500K+ followers).

Step 7: Contact Curators and Track Your Pitches

Once you've identified playlists to pitch to:

  1. Click a playlist to open its detail page

  2. Go to the Contacts tab to see available submission methods (email, Instagram, SubmitHub, Groover, etc.)

  3. Use the pre-filled email template (Artist Access plan required) to reach out with a personalized pitch

  4. After you pitch, use the Mark as Contacted button to track your outreach

  5. Create folders to organize your campaigns (e.g., "Q4 Release Campaign", "Indie Rock Pitches")

For detailed guidance on crafting effective pitches, see Contact Playlists with Playlist Search.

Step 8: Compare Your Performance Against Similar Artists

To understand where you stand in your genre:

  1. Search for an artist similar to you on the Playlist Search page

  2. Open their artist profile and review:

    • How many playlist placements do they have?

    • Which playlists feature them?

    • What's their monthly listener count?

  3. Compare their metrics to yours and identify gaps in your strategy

Competitive Analysis Tip: If a similar artist has 500 placements and you have 50, focus on pitching more actively. If they're in mostly small playlists (10K followers) and you're in larger ones (200K+ followers), you may have better quality placements even with fewer total.

Best Practices for Artists

  • Monitor Regularly: Check your bot status and playlist activity every 1-2 weeks to catch problems early

  • Pitch Quality Over Quantity: 5 placements in high-quality, engaged playlists > 50 placements in bot or low-engagement playlists

  • Track Campaign Impact: Correlate playlist additions with changes in your monthly listeners and popularity score

  • Act Fast on Bot Flags: If you're flagged as being in a botted playlist, report it to Spotify immediately

  • Use Contact Data Strategically: Upgrade to Artist Access to unlock full curator contact details and email templates—this unlocks your ability to pitch effectively

What's Next

Getting Help

If you have questions or encounter issues:

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