L
landwanr
New member
I am going to preface this by offering an apology for the length of this post. I am always disheartened when I hear of original musicians working for burgers and beer. Later in this post are a few ways that we original artists can try to make a few dollars.
So to answer the question, the band I played with was a 6 piece funk band playing a little over half originals making from 600-3000 per 2-3 set night. 3000 was a bit more rare than the $600 night. When we first started out we'd play for $300 or more but we were careful about gaining a reputation for being so hungry we'd play for little or nothing. I have since escaped and gone solo. When I go out again, I will not play for less than $600/night in areas where I am established. We'll see what happens there. In my area, if you play only 4-5 originals you are often labelled as an original (undesireable) band by the clubs that pay really, really well. The guys in the top cover bands playing those places are pulling in 70-80 g's per year, the whores. The amazing thing is that they are probably earning more than some of the artists that wrote and performed the songs they are covering. So, if you take the high road and choose originals, questions concerning actually making money are 99% of the time a mute point.
But if you want to make more than meal money playing originals (God bless you), you need to 1)create a show that is visual. People remember what they see. They will vaguely remember that your music is good or bad but they will remember what they saw. 2) get your act together. songs need to be perfect every time and just as important they need to be linked so that there is no dead air, no time to cheer, no guitar tuning between songs, no waiting for a count off from the drummer. Create 4 or 5 song blocks at practice, most songs end on a one in the live setting, everybody counts the 2 3 and 4 in their heads and you all are back in on the one on the next tune. even better, create seguays that seamlessly integrate one song to the next. don't give your audience a chance to get their breath. tire them out, overwhelm them. 3) Remember that the performer has to put the energy out first. Hopefully you have music you can get off to even if there are only 3 people in the bar. Too many performers are more interested in the attention than the music. One reason for my departure. One of the best shows I ever saw was when I was one of 12 people to see a great band. They did not act mad at their audience as I so often see in those situations, but they loved each and every one of us. Although the lead singer did sing to my wife a little too much if you ask me
. If you engage in your music and take care of your audience, they will give you the energy back tenfold. And they will bring their friends next time. 4) value your service enough to expect to be compensated. Club owners can smell a freebie a mile away. 5) Outwork everybody else. That includes the cover bands with the professional management. You will need to learn to embrace all aspects of this biz. 6) cooperate with other original acts. Their goodwill and support is immeasurable in creating a strong following for your band. Fans can and should be shared. And when sharing the bill, don't allow "we will blow those guys away" to sneak into your subconscious. It's not good for anybody. 7) your measuring stick is the best bands out there, not the best band in the local scene. 8) If you are not a rock star, don't act like one. It's not endearing. Behave and think like a business person when you are dealing with the commercial aspect of what you do. Club owners are business people and you need to deal with them on that level. 9)Sounds like if you live in LA, run, run as fast as you can! Get away from there!
Hopefully that can help somebody starting out so there will be one less group working for nothing. I know, I know, that's a lot of advice from a friggin newbie. but hey, I had a little time on my hands today for once.......
So to answer the question, the band I played with was a 6 piece funk band playing a little over half originals making from 600-3000 per 2-3 set night. 3000 was a bit more rare than the $600 night. When we first started out we'd play for $300 or more but we were careful about gaining a reputation for being so hungry we'd play for little or nothing. I have since escaped and gone solo. When I go out again, I will not play for less than $600/night in areas where I am established. We'll see what happens there. In my area, if you play only 4-5 originals you are often labelled as an original (undesireable) band by the clubs that pay really, really well. The guys in the top cover bands playing those places are pulling in 70-80 g's per year, the whores. The amazing thing is that they are probably earning more than some of the artists that wrote and performed the songs they are covering. So, if you take the high road and choose originals, questions concerning actually making money are 99% of the time a mute point.
But if you want to make more than meal money playing originals (God bless you), you need to 1)create a show that is visual. People remember what they see. They will vaguely remember that your music is good or bad but they will remember what they saw. 2) get your act together. songs need to be perfect every time and just as important they need to be linked so that there is no dead air, no time to cheer, no guitar tuning between songs, no waiting for a count off from the drummer. Create 4 or 5 song blocks at practice, most songs end on a one in the live setting, everybody counts the 2 3 and 4 in their heads and you all are back in on the one on the next tune. even better, create seguays that seamlessly integrate one song to the next. don't give your audience a chance to get their breath. tire them out, overwhelm them. 3) Remember that the performer has to put the energy out first. Hopefully you have music you can get off to even if there are only 3 people in the bar. Too many performers are more interested in the attention than the music. One reason for my departure. One of the best shows I ever saw was when I was one of 12 people to see a great band. They did not act mad at their audience as I so often see in those situations, but they loved each and every one of us. Although the lead singer did sing to my wife a little too much if you ask me
. If you engage in your music and take care of your audience, they will give you the energy back tenfold. And they will bring their friends next time. 4) value your service enough to expect to be compensated. Club owners can smell a freebie a mile away. 5) Outwork everybody else. That includes the cover bands with the professional management. You will need to learn to embrace all aspects of this biz. 6) cooperate with other original acts. Their goodwill and support is immeasurable in creating a strong following for your band. Fans can and should be shared. And when sharing the bill, don't allow "we will blow those guys away" to sneak into your subconscious. It's not good for anybody. 7) your measuring stick is the best bands out there, not the best band in the local scene. 8) If you are not a rock star, don't act like one. It's not endearing. Behave and think like a business person when you are dealing with the commercial aspect of what you do. Club owners are business people and you need to deal with them on that level. 9)Sounds like if you live in LA, run, run as fast as you can! Get away from there!Hopefully that can help somebody starting out so there will be one less group working for nothing. I know, I know, that's a lot of advice from a friggin newbie. but hey, I had a little time on my hands today for once.......
