Source: Photograph of original promotional CDs from the José Araujo Collection.
Vanguard: America’s Newest Releases for International Broadcasters
📌 Quick Facts
📅 Launched: 1995
🏢 Company: Radio Ventures
🌍 Coverage: International
💿 Release Schedule: Weekly
🎵 Tracks per CD: 16-20
📀 Format: Promotional CD
🎯 Target: Radio Stations
While Euro Exclusive focused on Europe, Vanguard was designed specifically to cover the American music market.
Launched in May 1995, Vanguard delivered approximately 17 new releases every week, selected from across the contemporary American radio landscape.
Each edition combined recordings from several programming formats, including:
- Adult Contemporary
- Top 40
- Urban
- CHR
- Dance
- Modern Rock
- Album Rock
Rather than concentrating on a single format, Vanguard reflected the diversity of American commercial radio, allowing international broadcasters to evaluate new releases across multiple audiences from a single compilation.
Radio Ventures described Vanguard as a service created specifically for non-U.S. broadcasters, recognizing that many international stations depended on reliable American music sources to remain competitive.
The selection process was supervised by two experienced industry professionals:
Tracy Austin, Program Director at KIIS-FM Hartford, and Brian Corona, formerly Director of Alternative Music at Sony 550 Music before becoming National Director of Promotion at Capitol Records.
This combination of radio programming and record promotion experience helped ensure that Vanguard presented both established superstars and promising emerging artists at an early stage of their careers.
One of the company’s strongest selling points was the relationship between Vanguard and Euro Exclusive.
Radio Ventures emphasized that no duplication existed between the two services.
Subscribers could therefore combine both publications to receive comprehensive coverage of the American and European music industries without paying twice for the same recordings.
📀 Vanguard Archive Collection
Browse all documented Vanguard promotional CDs currently available in the archive.
📅 1996 (Coming Soon)
📅 1997
📀 Vanguard 97-08 (February 21, 1997)
📅 1998 (Coming Soon)
📅 1999
📀 Vanguard 99-21 (May 21, 1999)
📅 2000 (Coming Soon)
📅 2001
📀 Vanguard 01-05 (February 02, 2005)
📅 2002 (Coming Soon)
📅 2003 (Coming Soon)
📅 2004
📀 Vanguard 04-40 (October 1, 2004)
📀 Vanguard 04-48 (November 26, 2004)
📅 2005
📀 Vanguard 05-25 (June 24, 2005)
📀 Vanguard 05-35 (September 02, 2005)
📀 Vanguard 05-49 (December 09, 2005)
📅 2006
📀 Vanguard 06-25 (June 23, 2006)
📀 Vanguard 06-36 (September 08, 2006)
📅 2007
📀 Vanguard 07-22 (June 01, 2007)
📀 Vanguard 07-24 (June 15, 2007)
📀 Vanguard 07-25 (June 22, 2007)
📀 Vanguard 07-27 (July 07, 2007)
🎵 Explore Other Radio Ventures Services
Discover more promotional CD services produced by Radio Ventures:
🇺🇸 Vanguard – Mainstream international hits
🇪🇺 Euro Exclusive – European radio hits
💃 BeatBox – Dance & club music
🌎 NovaXposure – New releases from Europe
🌴 Conexión Latina – Latin music programming