Labels are taking a cue from what their film company counterparts have known for some time. Re-releasing a CD (with or without “bonus cuts”) is a sure-fire way to re-invigorate an audience, and to refresh an artist or a project in the public’s eye.When I worked in radio, it seemed that an album had a lifespan of 12-18 months, and you could (if you were lucky), work three or even four songs as singles. These days, unless the album has gone mega-platinum, radio won’t want much to do with it if it’s more than 12 weeks old.You can fight this trend and grow your audience by making your album seem new.As you shift your marketing emphasis away from radio and toward your consumers, be aware of the regions in the country that you aren’t strong in. For instance, if you’ve played in Dallas your whole life and released three albums there, there’s no rule saying you can’t work on building an audience in, say, Chicago, then using a record release party to solidify your audience there. Like NBC sometimes says in their summer promos, “It’s New To You!” Your new audience will want the chance to discover your older material. What can you do today to treat your back catalog like it’s brand new?
Re-release that CD!
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