You’ll probably do more typing for your EPK Bio than for any other section, and with good reason: Your bio is incredibly important. It shows promoters, talent buyers, A&R reps, and anyone else viewing your EPK what you’ve accomplished so far, who you are, what you do, and why you do it.

Get started by making a list of accomplishments and a list of goals, and use those as a guideline. Keep in mind that everything in the EPK should be about getting gigs, and the bio is no different. Promoters review many biographies, and they want to see the important information as soon as possible. Think of it as a résumé.

One option is to start by mentioning a project that you are currently working on. For example:

“John Smith and The Awesomes are currently in the studio working on their third album release.”

Then immediately segue into what you have accomplished:

“They were the winners of the 2006 Best Song of All Time Contest (BSATC), and sold 53,000 copies of their last album, We Are Awesome, without any major distribution support.”

(Just as an aside: Obviously, it’s important to be honest. Making up accomplishments or giving out false data will be easily discovered, and will permanently damage your career.)

You may also want to include brief backgrounds of some of the band members, or a brief history of how the group was formed. Save the detailed history of each member of your band for the fans on your Website. Promoters probably don’t need to know that your drummer whittles his own drumsticks by hand.

Remember, you don’t need to include everything in your bio, just the stuff that makes you different from everyone else. Like everything else in your EPK, it should be something people want to read.

Still not sure what you’re going to put in there? Wondering if you really have anything interesting to tell? Everyone has something interesting to say. Here ideas to get you started:

• Describe the fans that usually come out to your shows.

• Share recent accolades or high-profile booked gigs (point viewers to your EPK calendar for full details).

• List sponsors or endorsements you may have.

• Tell about the moment you knew you wanted to play music.

• Explain how you came up with an album title.

• Ever recorded any lost tapes in your bedroom while you were still in high school? What happened to them?

Spend some time on your bio, don’t just throw it together. Keep it concise, intriguing, and professional. Be careful not to waste words. If you’re stuck or unsure how it reads, get a friend to look it over.

And as long as you’re writing your short and economical bio, it’s not a bad idea to also write a longer version to send to magazines that want to focus more on the human aspect of your band.

Remember, there’s really no wrong way to write a bio, so long as you include the key points. Make sure readers know what you’ve done, what you’re doing, and how well you do it.

And last but definitely not least, be sure to keep it up to date.

Still want more?

Suenalo not only has you hearing their sound before listening to a tune, but they’ve done a great job laying out their accomplishments and background in 4 short paragraphs.

Austin “Walkin” Cane weaves a fantastic story while sharing his accolades as well.

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