“Music is the great connector—discovering a new song is like finding a hidden part of yourself.” –Anonymous.
As music curators, adding fresh tunes to our Music Matrix is like a single marketing decision. In August 2024, we covered music research without a budget – using free tools to gauge the coming popularity of a song. The following week, we wrote a piece about multiple avenues of music discovery.
Included in the body of that column was this:
aBreak Music —This outlet is headed by music trending pioneer Bruce Tyler and brilliant innovative programmer Jay Stevens. Taking submissions from all genres, this platform grooms and mentors emerging artists to get them ‘label-ready.’ Their aBreak58 playlist is a must-follow for music discovery. Put their player on your toolbar today.
Bruce Tyler gave us the renowned A.I.R Competition. PDs were awarded prizes and predicted the chart success of a record. It was a genius way to get us to listen!
Long-time friend and colleague Jay Stevens is a legendary Brand Builder and former Vice President at Radio One who captained successful brands in multiple formats, leaving corporate radio to consult. As aBreak Music grows, we thought it would be a perfect time to have a word with their co-founder.
Kevin Robinson – Tell us about aBreak Music.
Jay Stevens – aBreak Music is a US-based, free platform for music and artist discovery for independent artists.
Through our aBreak 58 playlist, published bi-weekly, and our online aBreak Music radio station, we are here to help Indie artists get the attention of the gatekeepers of the industry.
We know how hard it is and what a struggle it is for Indie artists, so we’re helping them “get a break,” thus the name. aBreak Music was founded by my partner, Bruce Tyler, who, you may remember, ran A.I.R., the leading independent research and Music Promotion Company, and was EVP for SONY Music.
Bruce and I had talked about starting this company for years and when it was coming to fruition, I gladly joined him as a partner. This an extension of what I’ve been doing for years. The list of artists that I have been involved with is endless. There is no better feeling than helping artists get attention, potentially get a label deal, and watching their careers ascend.
KR – What inspired you and Bruce to start aBreak Music?
JS – Bruce and I have been deeply involved in the music and media/radio business for years. Both of us have been involved with many major artists as well as breaking new and upcoming artists.
Bruce was from the label side, me from the radio side. Finding hit music and developing relationships with artists was a major part of what I did over the years, running major radio/media companies.
There are literally millions of Indie artists around the world who are immensely talented and will never get a shot at getting a record label deal; they’ll never get a look. We have seen first-hand how difficult it is for these talented artists. So, we’re offering them another way to get exposure through aBreak Music platform.
Artists will tell you how tough it is to break through! We understand that and are here to help the artists and labels find each other.
KR – If I’m a music talent, how do I get on the aBreak Music platform?
JS – It’s very simple. Go to aBreakmusic.com. There, you register and upload up to two songs at a time. It’s free and available worldwide. While there on our website you can listen to our online radio station and read about all that we offer.
Our A&R (Artists and Repertoire) team listens to every single song that is submitted. Our “human” A&R team – that’s right, “human” curation. The best of the best songs make our bi-weekly playlist.
KR – How does a talent you’ve heard – and liked – get developed?
JS – We have had several of our Indie artists become part of some big things. A recent example is Huntley. He was on our first playlists back when we launched in 2022 and went on to win The Voice last December.
We will help artists with coaching advice as well as get them attention from our connections with the gatekeepers of the industry.
KR – Many reading this have not heard of aBreak Music. How are you different from others like – say – Bandcamp?
JS – There’s an ecosystem of platforms where Indie Artists can submit songs. Bandcamp being one of them. We want to be part of the ecosystem, but what we offer is different and unique.
We have unmatched music execs running our platform, executives with deep connections in the industry. We’re FREE, and as I mentioned earlier, every song submitted is listened to by our “human” A&R team. And we have an online radio station where our aBreak58 playlist of songs is played.
Yes, our artists actually get played on a radio station! After hearing them on our radio station, the labels will do a deep dive on the artist to see if they’re for real. We get label feedback often. That’s very positive for us; we are having an impact. That’s why we’re here!
KR – What social media do you utilize for exposure for your artists – different than what the artists use?
JS – We are heavy on social, specifically Instagram and TikTok. Follow us at aBreakmusic.
KR – As a program director, how do I get a record I’ve heard – and liked – on my radio station?
JS – We are not a distributor; instead, we’re an artist discovery platform.
The songs that are submitted generally are on other platforms. As I mentioned earlier, there’s an ecosystem of platforms for Indie artists, with one of them being Spotify. So, if a PD or radio person likes a song, they’re usually available.
Gatekeepers of the industry are the main listeners to our online radio station, and they receive our published bi-weekly playlist. Labels tell us they hear the songs on our aBreak 58 playlist and when interested, they go to the artist’s social media, their websites, Spotify, etc.
KR – What advice do you have for emerging artists preparing to get ready to submit to the abreak platform?
JS – The songs they submit will be listened to by seasoned A&R vets. When an artist is ready to submit to us, their music better be amazing! They need to have a strong social media presence with a substantial following, and they need to be performing and/or busking.
Getting their songs on aBreak Music is a big deal; it could be the biggest thing to happen in their career, so they need to be ready to shoot their shot!
KR – How do we get in touch with you?
JS – I’m at jaystevens@aBreakmusic.com.
Bookmark and follow – aBreak Music. New music discovery is up to you – and it’s everywhere.
Kevin Robinson is a passionate award-winning programmer, consultant and coach – with multi-formats success all over the country. He has advised numerous companies including Audacy (formerly Entercom Communications), Beasley Broadcast Group, Westwood One, Midwest Communications, Townsquare Media, Midwest Family Broadcasting Group, EG Media Group, Federated Media, Kensington Media, mediaBrew Communications, Starved Rock Media, and more. He specializes in strategic radio cluster alignment, building lean-forward tactics and talent coaching – legacy and entry-level – personalities.
Known largely as a trusted talent coach, Kevin is the only personality mentor who’s coached three different morning shows on three different brands in the same major market to the #1 position. His efforts have been recognized by The World Wide Radio Summit, Radio & Records, NAB’s Marconi, and he has coached CMA, ACM and Marconi Award-winning talent. He is also in The Zionsville High School Hall of Fame as part of the 2008 inaugural class. Kevin is an Indiana native – living near Zionsville with his wife of 39 years, Monica and can be reached at kevin@robinsonmedia.fm.
