Case Study: James Kennedy and The Underdogs
From a wall of bold text to a press-ready package that editors can actually use. When James Kennedy got in touch about Revolution, the second single from the forthcoming Rebel album, he sent a press release with the right instincts but needed significant work.
James is not a beginner. He’s a singer, author, podcaster and former Kyshera frontman with years of experience promoting his own work. He knew the story was good. Benji Webbe, from Skindred, was guesting on this South Wales alt-rock track, the first new Benji feature since Skindred’s Number One album. This was a collaboration rooted in a real friendship that went back to James covering the Jacoby Shaddix vocal part onstage at Beautiful Days.
The material was there. The presentation was not.
What arrived
The original press release was one dense block of bold text with no visual hierarchy. Everything emphasised means nothing is emphasised. An editor scanning it could not identify the key details because every detail was competing equally for attention.
The opening paragraph ran the release date, single name, album context, Benji credit and chart context all together in one block. There was a date discrepancy. June 12th in the opening and July 11th in the streaming information. The images were not in the right order, and there was no quote from Benji Webbe, the biggest name in the release and the most compelling part of the story.
What James had was the skeleton of a strong press release. What he did not have was a finished one.
What we did
The first conversation was about structure. A press release needs a clear information architecture, label, headline, intro, body, pull quote, CTA, bio, socials, contact, and footer so that an editor scanning it at speed can find what they need instantly. The original had content but no architecture.
The bold formatting was stripped back so that genuinely important details, the band name, key names, the release date, could actually stand out. The opening paragraph was split into separate, breathing paragraphs. The date discrepancy was identified and corrected throughout.
Then we looked at what was missing.
The gap between the Kennedy quote, warm, funny, specific, completely in his own voice and the absence of any quote from Benji was the most significant problem in the document. An editor receiving a press release about a collaboration featuring a major artist from a Number One album needs to hear from that artist. One voice tells half a story.
James went back to Benji and got the quote. What came back was one of the best things in the entire package:
“James Kennedy and The Underdogs are the dogs bollox, and I was totally down to get involved and spit some venom on this uncompromising groove, powerful piece of music and a call to unite. No, we will not lose to them! You’re goddamn right!”
Paired with Kennedy’s own account of watching Benji record, one take, no rehearsal, no preparation, then he made us tea, the press release now had two completely distinct voices telling the same story from different angles.
An editor had a real choice of Kennedy’s warmth and humour, or Benji’s raw energy and conviction. Either works as a pull quote. Both together tell a complete story.
The finished package was built as a designed HTML email, structured, visual, with working links, both quotes prominently placed, band photos and single artwork correctly ordered, complete social links, press enquiries and a pre-save CTA.
A deployment guide and release calendar were produced alongside it so James could manage the send himself.
The result
“Steve has been absolutely priceless through this whole process. He took our press release apart, told us exactly what was wrong and why, pushed us to get a quote from Benji, which turned out to be one of the best things in the whole package, and helped us turn it into something that looks and reads like a proper professional release.
“The difference between what we started with and what went out to media was night and day. If you’re a band hoping to take your promo materials from ‘meh’ to HELL YEAH, you need to have a chat with Mr Ritchie. Today.” — James Kennedy, James Kennedy and The Underdogs
Revolution by James Kennedy and The Underdogs featuring Benji Webbe is out now on all platforms. The music video is on YouTube.
What this case study illustrates
Press-Ready Made Simple is not a proofreading service. It is an editorial process, the same instincts that shape a MetalTalk interview or a published review, applied to the materials a band sends out into the world.
The original Revolution press release was not bad because James does not know his own story. It was incomplete because it is genuinely hard to write about your own work with the distance an editor needs. Most artists are too close to it. That’s not a criticism. It is just the reality of trying to describe something personal while juggling everything else a release involves.
The gap that Press-Ready closes is the gap between a band knowing they have something worth covering and an editor knowing it too.
If you’d like to start with a free Release Copy Check, send what you’ve got to hello@steveritchie.co.uk and I’ll come back within two business days with a stronger angle.
Steve Ritchie - MetalTalk Editor
If MetalTalk is involved in anything we do, it is handled transparently and separately, with clear boundaries.
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