Hello listeners!
We are excited to launch a new monthly feature to the Pandora blog: The Pandora Submission Spotlight, where I’ll showcase independent artists of all backgrounds and styles who you might not have heard of and might want to hear more of in the future. Many of these bands are doing it all on their own, some are even on small independent labels. But the one thing they all have in common is that they submitted their music directly to Pandora, can be heard on their own Pandora station and countless others.
The first band I am pleased to introduce is Bronze Radio Return, who has attributed a large part of their success to being on Pandora. They were added in 2009 and are currently enjoying prominence on big-name artist stations in addition to their own.
Bronze Radio Return is a Hartford, Connecticut-based indie/roots rock band who was discovered at one of their shows by producer, Doug Derryberry (Bruce Hornsby, Ben Folds Five), who then served as producer for their debut self-titled EP in 2008. Their Nashville-recorded full-length album Old Time Speaker peaked at #102 on the College Music Journal (CMJ) Top 200. They garnered even more exposure after several of the album’s songs were featured on the TV show 90210.
Their second album Shake! Shake! Shake! debuted at #4 on the Billboard NE Heatseekers Chart and peaked at #129 on the CMJ Top 200.
The band played for President Obama in 2010 at a rally in Bridgeport, Connecticut and, most recently their song “Shake, Shake, Shake” was used in two episodes of American Idol. They are a fixture on the music festival circuit and have toured the East Coast and Midwest extensively, opening for artists like Grace Potter, John Mayer, Michael Franti and Spearhead, Blues Traveler, Buddy Guy and more. As of now, all the band’s albums are still self-released.
Bronze Radio Return’s music has been described as a cross between Creedence Clearwater Revival and Dave Matthews Band, and should appeal to fans of Mumford and Sons, The Black-Keys, The Decemberists and Blind Pilot.
Interested in submitting music for consideration to Pandora? Check out our FAQ for more information on how it’s done.
Cheers,
Michelle S.
(Music Curator)
