How to Book Gigs for Your Band
Booking gigs can amount to a full-time job for a band that wants to keep busy with plenty of shows. Some bands hire booking agents to do all of the legwork for them. However, at the beginning of a band's career, the usual trajectory is for the band members to book the gigs themselves. A booking agent might not be interested in working with an inexperienced band. The first stage of a band's career is simply to play as many gigs as possible and gain experience.
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Things You'll Need
- Telephone
- Press Kit (Demo, Bio, Photo, News/Achievement Sheet, Contact)[Not necessary but helpful]
- A little fortitude to push for you to get what you want.
Instructions
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Record a demo CD. Select four to five songs that showcase the strengths and diversity of the band's sound. The demo can be recorded at a recording studio or on good home studio system. A variety of home recording equipment and technology is available.
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Put together a demo package for the band. In addition to the demo, include a band photograph, bio of the individual members, a description of the music and contact information. If the band has played previous gigs or received press coverage in local music papers, include a list of some of the gigs and press snippets as well.
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3
Compile a list of potential venues for the band. At the beginning, the idea is to play anywhere and everywhere to acquire experience and to begin developing a fan base. Send the press kit to local clubs and bars that feature live music. Don't limit the search to clubs and bars. Contact town art and music fairs and local wineries that feature music. Play open mic nights as well. This is a good way to attract attention.
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Advertise the gigs to attract an audience. Make posters and fliers to hang around town to let your fans know where you are playing. Make use of online social networking sites and spread the news through word of mouth. Attracting a crowd is the best way to make yourself attractive to nightclubs and other potential venues.
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Tips & Warnings
Always be thorough in the process. Cover everything you think you need to.
Have WRITTEN documentation of your agreement. There is no recourse for deviation from a verbal agreement.
Do not be afraid to ask the promoter/venue questions about gig.
Contact the other bands you're sharing the bill with to say hi and tell them you look forward to playing with them. Making the connection before the date will better help you build relationships when your there. (Relationships = More Gigs)
ALWAYS play the best show you possibly can. All it takes is that one important and respected person in the local/national/international industry to tell everybody they know that you were a great live show. If you make a lack effort, that same person can tell everybody you suck, and you won't even be able to play your local VFW or community center.
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If you're having hard time getting started, offer to open for other local bands.
If you're really having a hard time getting started, you might have to consider playing for free. In the industry, there are times when you really have to pay your dues.
Be careful about telephone-only agreements as you have no recourse if the venue decides to pay you $5 instead of $500 after the gig.
Protect yourself from getting screwed on a gig. How promoters/venues may screw you over (more often promoters):
1) ...take an inappropriate cut. If your promoter is pushing past 30%, it's not so great. If your promoter goes beyond 50%, seriously think about if the gig is worth it or not.
2) ...not promote your event. Check out the reputation of your venue/promoter. Some are infamous for simply taking your money, and not even showing up to your show, let alone do anything to promote it. This is terrible, especially if you're relying on the door charge. I've had this happen multiple times.
3) ...pay you something other than the agreed amount. Especially if all you have is a verbal agreement, things have the potential to change.
4) ...they don't charge at the door when they said they would. I've had a venue pay my band $13 and then tell us "You didn't have anybody working the door. We did you a favor and worked the door the last 15 minutes." This was where they almost always have staff working the door, and never mentioned that we'd need our own door person.
5) ...add bands to the bill that either suck or clash with your genre/crowd (with an exception to cross-genre festivals/showcases). How do you explain your 80's cover band sharing the bandstand with an indie emo band? It'll make all the musicians involved look foolish and it will make your following think your artistic judgment is really whack. !If you do not trust the venue/promoter to make good choices, you should try to secure creative control over who you share the bill with! For example, the student entertainment group here at Potsdam almost booked a show with a Slowcore-Indie-Emo band and a Modern-Rock-Country band. It would be a sonic train wreck.
As far as alcoholic drinks go, I wouldn't ask for them - you want to save seeming presumptuous to your venue/promoter. I have played bar gigs where they did not provide free alcohol and one where they did.
References
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