iimiTV opened Premieres today, a free program that lets artists debut a music video on iimiTV first, exclusive for 48 hours before it goes public anywhere else. The first premiere dates are open for booking now, and Canadian artists get first call.
Every artist knows the problem. A new video goes up on a channel, the link goes out once, and the algorithm decides the rest. A premiere changes the shape of that first day. The video lands on a platform built for it, in front of readers who came for exactly this music, with a feature post behind it and a homepage window while the exclusive runs. That is what iimiTV Premieres is built to give: a first look that feels like one.
How an iimiTV premiere works
The exchange is simple and it is stated up front. The artist gives iimiTV the first look: the video debuts here, and it stays exclusive to iimiTV for 48 hours. In return, the artist posts the iimiTV premiere link to their own audience the moment it goes live. iimiTV brings the platform, the post, and the homepage. The artist brings the video and the people who have been waiting for it. Both sides put something real in, and both sides get something real out.
When the booked time arrives, the premiere post goes live with the video embedded at the top of the page, ready to play the moment the page opens. The artist’s own words about the song run in the post, in their voice, credited to them. The post carries a branded iimiTV cover, the same system as every cover on the site, and it stays on the homepage through the exclusive window. Premieres are also eligible for the day’s best five shares on the Intimidate Television Facebook Page and across iimiTV’s other channels, under the same rules as every story the site shares.
When the 48 hours close, the artist takes the video public everywhere else, and the iimiTV post stays up. The premiere ends. The feature is permanent.
What the artist gets
A premiere here is a package, and every part of it is listed before anyone books. The artist gets the 48 hour exclusive debut on a platform that has covered Canadian entertainment and hip hop since 2009. They get a full feature post with the video embedded and their own lines about the song. They get homepage placement while the window runs, a branded cover, a social push through iimiTV channels, and a permanent link worth putting in a bio. What they do not get is a bill. Premieres are free, and they are editorial, not paid placement. A premiere is never labelled as advertising, because it is not advertising. It is a booking, made in advance, for a debut.
A premiere is a real artist debuting real work. That is the whole standard, and it does not bend.
That standard is the same one that runs iimiTV Battles: your own work only, and no AI generated songs. It keeps the program honest for the artists who book it and for the readers who show up for it. A premiere slot means something because the bar does not move.
The rules keep premieres honest
The rules are short enough to read in one pass. The video must be your own work, a song and a video you own or hold the right to premiere. It must stay unlisted or private until the premiere moment, because a first look has to be a first look. If a video goes public early, the post still runs, as a regular video feature, and the exclusive framing comes off. No penalty and no hard feelings, but the framing follows the facts, always. When the premiere goes live, the artist posts the link. That post is the deal. And iimiTV may decline anything that does not fit the site, including beef or diss content aimed at real artists, with no explanation owed. Declining is about fit, not about the music.
How to book a premiere
Booking runs by email, and one email does it. Write to [email protected] with the subject line “PREMIERE: Artist Name, Song Title” and include the full booking checklist: your artist name exactly as it should appear, your verified socials, the song and video titles, an unlisted YouTube or Vimeo link, your requested premiere date and time in Toronto time, one press photo we have the right to publish, and two or three lines about the song in your own words. Book at least five days ahead. The premiere desk validates the video link, checks that the upload is yours, and holds the date. Bookings are held in the order they validate, and Canadian artists get first call when two bookings want the same date. Full program details live on the Premieres page.
Premieres are not paid submissions
iimiTV already runs a paid submissions program, and the two programs are different on purpose. Paid submissions, at iimitv.com/submit, guarantee a post in the labelled Submissions section for music that is already out. Premieres are for what is not out yet. They are free, they are booked ahead, and they are reserved for first looks. An artist with a released video who wants it posted today has a route. An artist sitting on an unreleased video who wants its first 48 hours to count now has one too.
Premieres is open. The desk reads bookings every day, the first dates are being held in the order they validate, and the first premieres will run on the homepage as they land. Artists who have been holding a finished video, waiting for the right way to put it out: this is the way. Book the date, keep the video unlisted, and let the first look be here.
