Lead Single

"A lead single is usually the first single released by a musician or a band from a given album. Sometimes, the lead single is not the first single (e.g Oasis's ""Roll With It"" from (What's The Story) Morning Glory?). The first single could be a radio promotion that ends up being part of an EPK. For example, Don Omar's ""Blue Zone"" for iDon and T.I.'s No Matter What for Paper Trail. The lead single is special compared to other album-derived singles because the lead single will often be released before the rest of the actual album, in order to give listeners a taste of what is yet to come. This is not always the case, but it tends to be common practice with North American popular music, particularly throughout the 1990s and the 2000s with album-oriented artists. Lead singles are often the deciding factor for consumers when deciding whether or not to purchase a not-yet-released album."