What Is A and R in Music? Best Tools to Find New Artists

Avery Malone

Mar 7, 2025

A&R (Artists and Repertoire) is a crucial part of the music industry, responsible for discovering new talent and developing artists. Traditionally, A&R relied on industry connections, scouting live performances, and word-of-mouth recommendations. However, in today's digital age, data-driven insights have transformed how A&R professionals work. Music analytics tools provide deep insights into artist growth, fan engagement, and streaming trends, making it easier than ever to identify promising musicians.

With the vast amount of music being released daily, A&R professionals must rely on analytics platforms to streamline their discovery process. Viberate, Chartmetric, and Songstats are among the top services offering powerful A&R tools. These platforms provide valuable insights into an artist's social media engagement, streaming growth, and overall digital presence, making them essential for modern-day A&R scouting and artist development.

Comparing the Pricing of A&R Analytics Tools

Before diving into the specifics of each tool, let’s compare their pricing structures:

• Viberate offers an affordable entry point at €19.90 per month (billed annually at €239), making it the most cost-effective solution for A&R professionals.
• Chartmetric comes with a premium price tag at $160 per month or $1600 per year, making it the most expensive option.
• Songstats provides professional access for €999.99 per year after a trial period.

With this pricing breakdown in mind, let’s explore what each platform brings to the table for A&R professionals.

Viberate: The Fastest Talent Discovery with A&R Tools

Viberate is designed to help A&R professionals discover and screen talent quickly with its data-driven A&R charts. Unlike traditional methods, Viberate uses real-time analytics to rank artists based on their overall music and social media performance. This approach eliminates bias and ensures a pure data-driven selection process.

One of the standout features of Viberate is its A&R filters. These allow users to sort artists based on country, genre, subgenre, and performance across various platforms, including Spotify, YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, and SoundCloud. The HOT filters highlight trending artists, making it easier to find emerging talent before they break into the mainstream.

Another key advantage is the ability to save customized charts. A&R professionals can revisit their pre-filtered selections with automatically updated data, ensuring they never miss a rising star. The Custom View dashboard further enhances efficiency by allowing users to tailor their artist screening process, keeping track of promising talents all in one place.

Viberate also provides synthetic indicators like the Career Health speedometer and Career Performance trajectory, which offer a quick snapshot of an artist’s growth. This feature is particularly useful for A&Rs looking to assess long-term potential.

Chartmetric: In-Depth A&R Research Tools

Chartmetric is known for its deep analytics and detailed A&R research capabilities. The platform offers an A&R dashboard that highlights artists experiencing the fastest growth across Spotify, YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, Wikipedia, and SoundCloud. Users can filter by country, genre, and release date to refine their search for emerging talent.

One of Chartmetric’s biggest strengths is its ability to filter artists by specific metrics or audience demographics. This allows A&R professionals to pinpoint artists at different career stages and target the right demographic for their roster. While powerful, Chartmetric’s high price point makes it less accessible for independent A&Rs or smaller labels.

Songstats: Real-Time Insights for Talent Discovery

Songstats takes a real-time approach to A&R analytics, providing instant updates on an artist's traction across various music platforms. The platform’s comprehensive digital footprint overview enables A&R professionals to assess an artist’s current impact and predict future growth.

A standout feature of Songstats is its real-time feedback on promotional campaigns. This allows A&R teams to track the effectiveness of marketing efforts and adjust strategies accordingly. While useful for artist development, its limited filtering capabilities compared to Viberate and Chartmetric make it a less robust tool for initial talent discovery.

The Verdict: Which A&R Tool is the Best?

Each platform offers valuable A&R features, but Viberate stands out as the best choice for several reasons. It provides the best price-to-performance ratio, offering powerful A&R analytics at just €19.90 per month—far more affordable than Chartmetric’s $160 monthly fee and Songstats’ €999.99 yearly plan.

Beyond affordability, Viberate’s user experience is top-notch, with intuitive A&R charts, customizable dashboards, and real-time analytics that streamline the talent discovery process. Features like HOT filters, Career Health indicators, and Custom View dashboards make it the most efficient and data-driven solution for modern A&R professionals.

For A&Rs looking to discover, track, and analyze emerging artists with precision, Viberate is the clear winner. It delivers superb data, user-friendly navigation, and unbeatable value, making it the ultimate tool for music industry professionals seeking the next big act.