Booking Your Band
You’ve brought together three or four of the best musicians in town, and they are jamming to your tunes. You have spent days and evenings writing and rewriting lyrics, and you have been working hard to best your sound. Lastly, following many months of practice, you are ready to reap the benefits of your hard work. But how do you begin?
As a new band, the idea of booking your 1st show may prove to be a daunting task. However, it doesn’t have to be. By following these easy steps, you may turn a seemingly overwhelming process into a productive one.
Making sure that the members of the band are all on the same page is an essential first step in the booking process. Agree on a number of shows per month that everyone will play. Put together a session of your optimum tunes and make a demo. Your demo should not include full-length tunes ; several short snippets of your strongest material will showcase your band’s strengths and will sell your band to potential Venues with little or no effort. With your demo, include a photo of the band, a short statement about the music or type of that the band plays, and your contact information, including the band’s website. Decide what Venues you’re interested in playing and how much you’ll charge them for playing, if anything. Getting these details out of the way early will create nice communication among the band members, thus avoiding misunderstandings in the future.
Next, do your research. Scope out the Regional scene; find out who your competition is, which bands play where, what Clubs cater to your specific sound, and who your target fans is. Talk to seasoned Regional acts; a number of times times, your fellow artists will be your perfect sources of information. Getting to know your competition, your fans and your Regional scene will prove to be an indispensable tool when you are selling yourself to club owners and booking agents. additionally, be open to anything. Limiting yourself to venues and bars will hinder your occasions of booking your band. Find out about open-mic nights in your area, provide to open for other bands for free and find out about Regional fairs and festivals where your performer could get some exposure.
When you are out and about checking out potential Clubs, ask for the names of the people responsible for booking performers at that location. Get their contact information and keep track. Use all of your contacts and, when calling them, be brief and to the point. Ask them Assuming that they have time to talk, and if not, when it would be a good time to contact them. Ask for permission before submitting your demo. Be persistent, but not pushy, and realize that it will take some time to get that job. Once you do get the gig, be sure to discuss payment, if any, as well as what you will need to bring as opposed to what the Club will provide. Be professional and be honest.
With determination, a little know-how, and some clever self-promotion, you may land that 1st gig and be on your way to success in no time.