With the launch of Saturday Night Live UK, promotions execs assess TV opportunities for artists | Media

Music promotions executives have spoken about the evolving opportunities for artists on broadcast television.

While the BRITs was the biggest TV moment for artists at the top end of the market, for our latest edition Music Week has quizzed industry figures about the options for the full range of acts across entertainment shows and more.

The latest addition is SNL UK, the British version of legendary American show Saturday Night Live. The US version has recently featured Olivia Dean and Lily Allen.

The UK edition of the sketch show launched on Sky One (and Now TV) on March 21 with Wet Leg performing two songs, Mangetout and Catch These Fists. In four days, the two Wet Leg performances have already amassed a combined 510,000 views on YouTube, while the SNL UK TV broadcast drew 226,000 overnight viewers.

BRITs winners Wolf Alice are confirmed to perform on this weekend’s edition, followed by Kasabian.

“We definitely think SNL UK has legs as a platform for acts we represent under our TV & Digital Department and the UK industry as a whole,” said James Pitt, director of independent promotions company Your Army. “We could see it growing into a key showcase for new music, especially with the social side complementing the TV.”

Mimi Brock-Stark, Your Army’s head Of TV and digital, added: “It’s an exciting time to see another UK programme booking live music, highlighting the importance of national television performances in supporting and showcasing artists. We recently had one of our emerging artists featured in a non-televised trial episode, and we’re looking forward to continuing our work with SNL UK with that artist and the rest of our roster as the show develops.”

“This will be a great opportunity to showcase British talent to a global audience,” said Pippa Evers, director of TV and content, DawBell.

Although social media and the decline of communal viewing experiences have arguably diminished TV as a platform for music, the small screen can still provide powerful moments for artists.

“The problem might be that not as many people actually watch live TV,” said Damian Christian, Atlantic UK MD and president of promotions. “So it’s people clipping things, and kids are obsessed with TikTok – that’s been the case for a number of years. But there is still a core audience of millions that will actually switch on every week – it’s just getting that right connection, that right moment, the right song, and it can really help the campaign.”

Recent examples of TV performances that have cut through include Raye launching Where Is My Husband! on BBC One’s The Graham Norton Show, Jessie J playing The Royal Variety Performance on ITV and a run of Olivia Dean appearances including Later… With Jools Holland, The One Show and Jools ’ Annual Hootenanny.

Ahead of their BRITs performance of K-pop Demon Hunters hit Golden, Ejae, Audrey Nuna and Rei Ami played at the BAFTAs on BBC One.

It’s an exciting time to see another UK programme booking live music, highlighting the importance of national television performances in supporting and showcasing artists

Mimi Brock-Stark

“Social media is an essential tool for artists, particularly when it comes to direct fan engagement, but TV offers something fundamentally different – discovery,” said Emma Bailey, head of TV and content, at DawBell PR. “It brings music into people’s homes almost unexpectedly, reaching audiences beyond an artist’s existing fanbase or typical demographic.”

In the US, the huge impact of Bad Bunny’s televised performance at the Apple Music Super Bowl LX Halftime Show has been evident in global charts. Following the UK Channel 5 broadcast alongside YouTube, the Spanish-language Debí Tirar Más Fotos album (Rimas/The Orchard) entered the British Top 10 for the first time with a new peak of No.2.

The Bad Bunny performance broke records with 4.157 billion worldwide views within the first 24 hours.

Christian, who is the current holder of the Music Week Awards Promotions title, suggested that the Super Bowl is perhaps the ultimate international TV booking. 

“Everyone was talking about it – it has translated over here with all the excitement,” he told Music Week. “Getting a booking on the Super Bowl is incredible – we’ve seen some brilliant performances on that over the years. We haven’t got anything quite like that [in Britain].”

Sporting events such as the FIFA World Cup could also offer a global platform for music in 2026. The Killers will headline the UEFA Champions League Final Kick Off Show presented by Pepsi on May 30 at the Puskás Aréna in Budapest, Hungary. The Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony in Milan featured Mariah Carey, Golden Laura Pausini and Andrea Bocelli. 

BBC Music oversees awards shows including the MOBOs and Mercury Prize, as well as acquiring filmed concerts for broadcast, such as Raye at the Royal Albert Hall. 

While opportunities are limited, Christian said the long-running BBC series such as The Graham Norton Show, Strictly Come Dancing, The One Show and Later…, along with ITV’s The Jonathan Ross Show, continue to deliver for artists.  

“There’s no shortage of people trying to get on their shows,” he said. “It’s still a fight to get your acts on there in the right week – they’re very important.”

Traditional chat shows continue to be vital, allowing music to reach broad, mainstream audiences

Pippa Evers

Graham Norton recently featured Jade, Jacob Alon, Gorillaz and Cat Burns, while Charli XCX joined guests on the sofa.

“Traditional chat shows continue to be vital, allowing music to reach broad, mainstream audiences,” said DawBell’s Pippa Evers. 

“We’ve seen first-hand how impactful these moments can be, with an appearance on The One Show driving over 20,000 UK pre-orders for a Take That album alone,” she added. “Similarly, shows like Michael McIntyre’s Big Show and Love Island are continuing to integrate music performances into prime time TV.”

Channel 4’s Sunday Brunch also provides music slots around the year.

Global TV platforms are also lining up more music specials. Netflix secured album launch performances from DawBell clients Harry Styles and BTS. The agency has also seen Take That’s three-part Netflix documentary hit No.1 in the UK, while Amazon Prime Video has Zara Larsson’s Up Close documentary.

“Across our roster, we’re noticing a growing appetite from global streamers for music content,” said Evers. 

“Overall, it’s about looking beyond a single format – music now sits across a wide range of programming, and the most effective campaigns are the ones that tap into that breadth.”

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