Shorts for artists
Bringing artists and their music closer to more fans than ever before.
Why Shorts?
Getting active on Shorts creates unique opportunities to promote your music and build your fanbase.
Audience growth
Fans all over the world are discovering new music on Shorts. Get in the mix on Shorts and attract new fans.
Fan engagement
Shorts has tools that help you connect more deeply with your fanbase. Interact with your existing fans while bringing new ones in on the action.
Music promotion
You can use bite-sized content on Shorts to enhance your music release strategy and drive fans to your official release videos.
In January 2024, Shorts tripled the average artist's audience of unique viewers. This means that Shorts featuring an artist's music tripled the average artist's total reach.
In January 2024, artists active on Shorts saw more than 60% of their new subscribers coming directly from their Shorts 60% posts. 'Artists active on Shorts' are defined as artists posting Shorts weekly on average.
When should I use Shorts?
| Goal | Promoting a release | Promoting a tour | Audience growth |
|---|---|---|---|
| Timing | Release cycle (Pre-release, release day, post-release) | Duration of the tour | Always on |
| How | Tease the song and then make Shorts to inspire fan creation | Post performance highlights Show behind the scenes | Highlight your catalogue Engage with fan content |
Try posting weekly and then readjust your posting schedule based on your Shorts' performance.
Measure your Shorts performance
We recommend looking at the following metrics within YouTube Analytics for Artists to start with:
Creations
Subscribers from Shorts
Song views from Shorts
Don't get bogged down in the numbers, but keep an eye on any types of Shorts that fans connect with most. YouTube recommends content based on an individual's personal interests, video performance and external factors like trends.
How to make Shorts
Start
Tap the Create (+) button from within the YouTube app.
Create
You can move between content formats. Select Shorts, record, add sound and use editing tools.
Edit
Edit your Short by adjusting clips in the video timeline, adding a voiceover and more.
Personalise
Select a thumbnail, add a caption and hashtags and adjust settings.
The Shorts creation tool
-
A
Audio picker: Select a song
-
B
Song recommendation: Appears after you've watched a Short with remixable music
-
C
Editing tools
-
D
Library: Use your own video clips
-
E
Record button
-
F
Drafts
Consider linking your official music video to Shorts featuring your track. A video link will appear under your handle on the Short.
YouTube Studio > Content > Shorts > Edit > Related video
Shorts tools
FLIP
FLIP
Alternate between front and back cameras
TIMER
TIMER
Add a countdown (3s, 10s, 20s) before recording and select how long the recording will last
SPEED
SPEED
Speed up or slow down a recording (0.3x, 0.5x, 1x, 2x or 3x)
EFFECTS
EFFECTS
Choose a filter to modify an appearance, lens or background
GREEN SCREEN
GREEN SCREEN
Select a photo or video from your camera roll to be the background of your Shorts
FILTERS
FILTERS
Customise the colour filter of your camera
RETOUCH
RETOUCH
Add a beauty filter to enhance your Short
LIGHTING
LIGHTING
Add a filter to enhance your Short's lighting
FLASH
FLASH
Turn your camera flash on and off
To add music to your Shorts, always use the official song from the audio picker in the Shorts creation tool.
Fans can access the song library page from your Shorts, which links to all other Shorts using your song and your official music video. If your clip already has music, find the song in the audio picker and sync to your Short.
The song library page
After tapping on the song chip from your Short, fans will be taken to the song's audio pivot page.
-
A
YouTube Music: Listen to the song in YouTube Music
-
B
Official music video: Tap to watch your official music video or
other release content -
C
Official Artist Channel
-
D
Preview: Listen to the song clip
-
E
Save song: Save to a 'Sounds on Shorts' playlist
-
F
Top Shorts creations
-
G
Creation button: Fans can make their own Short with the song
YouTube Create is currently available on Android. Stay tuned for more updates.
Are you experienced in editing short-form
videos?
Do you need more advanced tools to
bring your vision to life?
The YouTube Create app lets you edit Shorts and videos
straight from
your phone and directly upload content to YouTube, all
free of charge.
YOUTUBE CREATE TOOLS:
- Audio cleanup
- Beat detection
- Cut out
- Effects
- Filters
- Font library
- Sticker library
- Transitions
- Voiceover
How to engage with fans on Shorts
How to remix videos and Shorts
Remix allows users to sample audio and visual content in their own Shorts. Remix your own official music video or remix fan content to continue building deeper relationships and inspiring fans to create.
- Find a Short or video on your mobile device.
On a Short
On a video
- Select a remix tool from the following and create a new Short. Click the links below to learn how to use each feature.
How to reply to a comment with a Short
Go to the watch page of your Short or video.
Go to your comments, find a comment that you want to reply to and tap the reply icon.
Tap the camera icon and record a Short to respond to the fan comment.
You can also remix audio from a Short via the Shorts audio chip or the official Sound Page.
Shorts tips
Focus on quality, not quantity
Channel size or number of uploads do not influence how your Shorts perform. Make the best Shorts for your music, your wellbeing and your fans.
Stay patient while you test and learn
It may take a bit of time for your content to reach the right fans, so don't get frustrated if you don't see immediate success. Keep testing new ideas to find your niche.
Upload Shorts consistently
Consistency is key on Shorts, so keepyour content front and centre for fans. There is no minimum posting cadence required for your videos to have a chance to perform well.
Make many different Shorts for your song
The more a fan hears your song in Shorts, the more likely they are to listen to it in other formats.
Display text or lyrics on screen
Use text as another way to draw fans in and encourage them to continue watching, even fans who might be watching with low or no volume.
TITLES AND DESCRIPTIONS
Titles and descriptions are some of the many signals
that the algorithm uses to recommend videos, so keep
them relevant to your Short. Include two or three
relevant hashtags – you don't need to include #shorts.
THUMBNAILS
Don't stress too much about the perfect thumbnail as
Shorts are shown directly in the Shorts Feed. Consider
highlighting a clear clip as the thumbnail, like an
important moment from your Short or the end result.
Shorts inspiration
Let's take a look at some artists from all around the world who are killing it on Shorts. See what's been working well for artists promoting their music on Shorts and use that inspiration to come up with your own content ideas.
Bring fans to the show
Carin León gives fans everywhere a front-row seat to experience his show on Shorts.
Relate to fans
Lauren Spencer Smith let her fans know that her song is relatable to anyone who's been in love.
Tell a story
Idgitaf shared personal memories in her music video and invited fans to share their own.
Share the success
Peso Pluma shares the moments when he reaches milestones to celebrate with fans.
Want more resources for artists?
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