LEVERAGE BEFORE LABEL
Your Next Release Deserves a strategy
Once upon a time, labels and managers were responsible for developing artists.
As an up-and-coming musician, your job was to write songs, perform them, and hope the right person found you.
Those days are over. With self-distribution and social media, artists are now expected to reach traction on their own.
No wonder artists feel abandoned. There’s no roadmap, no money, and no support.
That’s where we come in. STRTST is built to close that gap with the method, muscle, and money independent artists need to break out.
We have one goal: to help early-stage artists reach traction.
✓ Method:
Test before you invest. Read the signal. Double down on what works.
✓ Muscle:
Get ad promotion and 1-on-1 coaching when you need help building momentum.
✓ Money:
Show us promising early signals. We may provide the capital to help turn them into traction.
What we offer
Three ways to work with us, depending on where you are and how hands-on you want us to be.
Our Flagship Course:
The Artist Breakout Method
➊ Your Map to the New Music Industry
How the industry actually works today, who the key players are, and the myths that keep talented artists stuck.
➋ Taking Control of Your Early Artist Career
You used to be an artist - now you’re an artist entrepreneur. Learn time-tested strategies entrepreneurs have been using to scale their companies, applied to music. This is the engine room the rest of the course runs on.
➌ Defining Who You Are as an Artist
You know what to do, now let’s talk about what you project to your audience. In this module we’ll help you build and artist universe that goes beyond the music, and helps turn passive listeners into real fans who show up consistently.
➍ Social Media Strategy
You may not always like using it, but social media offers an unprecedented opportunity to find new fans and nurture existing ones at virtually no cost. We’ll help you develop a social media strategy that feels authentic and sustainable.
➎ Releasing and Promoting Your Music
Where the rubber meets the road. In this modules, we’ll combine everything we’ve learned so far into one real release system, combining organic reach, paid ads, and playlisting to find your true fans and march towards traction.
A 5-module curriculum that takes you from zero to traction with no label, no manager, no massive budget required.
You've got the songs. What you don't have is a system for turning them into real momentum: real streams, real fans, real options. The Artist Breakout Method gives you that system, step by step:
Includes 5 modules, 30 videos, 47 guided lessons, 20 quizzes, 1 community
Why artists sign up
-
Every lesson comes with a practical exercise, so by the time you finish the course you’ll have the knowledge and the resources you need to reach traction.
-
Instead of releasing and hoping, you'll know how to test an idea with a limited budget, read the data honestly, and only lean into what's already working.
-
Our team includes grammy-nominated producers, independent artists, Berklee faculty and successful entrepreneurs— practitioners, not theorists.
-
Artists who complete the curriculum and show real momentum on their own release can apply for funding through our incubator — proof first, then capital.
Artist Services
Hands-on support by experts. Two ways we can work directly on your project.
Ad Promotion
If running your own meta ads feels like too much right now, we’ve got you covered. We’ll run your campaigns, using the same targeting and testing strategies the big labels use.
Content Strategy — we help you determine what will work before a dollar is spent
Creative & Audience Testing — testing different creatives and audiences to find what resonates
Ongoing Optimization — constant review and budget tweaks as the campaign runs
$99 for a 1-hour session
1-on-1 Coaching
Most artists don't fail from lack of effort, they fail from lack of direction. Sign up for a 1-1 session with a STRTST Founder to help you design a personalized traction strategy.
Full-Picture Analysis — we dig into your music, goals, audience, and history
A Concrete, Personalized Plan — detailed recommendations for growth strategies based on your goals, strengths and bandwidth
Applied to Your Real Career — every recommendation applied directly to your releases & timeline.
Fee: 30% of total ad spend
STRTST Incubator
We put our money where our method is. All proceeds from course sales go into our STRTST incubator, where we invest in pre-traction artists.
The STRTST Incubator provides funding to early-stage artists who complete the course, put the STRTST method to work, and show early signals that something is clicking. Here’s how artists move from learning the method to becoming eligible for investment:
➊ Finish the course
Learn the STRTST method and how to put it to work in your own career.
➋ Run it on your own release
Apply the Artist Breakout Method to your release and promotion strategies, using artist entrepreneur tactics to stay lean, agile, and test as much as you can.
➌ Show us the signals
There are no number requirements for investment. We’re looking for early evidence that something is connecting and worth investing in.
➍ Get funded
Selected artists receive investments up to 6K to build on those signals and turn early promise into real traction.
STRTST Artists
A look at the incredible artists we’ve been working with.
Moli
The New Mary Jane
Sean Pitaro
Kaylen Shae
Overtown
