With the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic (hopefully) behind us, more artists are emerging from their hiding places to rejoin the live music landscape. As more of your musical peers become comfortable performing for the masses in the weeks, months, and years ahead, booking gigs only figures to become more competitive. (Here in Nashville, it’s already approaching pre-pandemic levels).
So… how do you stay ahead of the curve, and ensure that you remain in the mix to be considered for performance opportunities? We have some tips and insights, acquired through years of navigating the live music landscape.
First of all, pay attention to the shows your friends are booking!
We all have a musical peer or two that seems to be crushing it on the live scene. You know the type: every time you turn around, it seems like they’re either announcing a big upcoming show, or just got done performing one. Word is getting around town about their performances, and they never seem to have a problem bringing people out to their shows.
In addition to being exciting live performers, these friends are also an excellent resource. Pick their brains on how they find success getting booked, and ask for their insight on their favorite venues. They may even be willing to make an introduction between you and the booker.
Still in the process of making friends? Muze can help jumpstart that for you! Sign up today and build community with artists just like you.
Show your support for the venues (and the people performing).
Is there a specific venue where you’d like to perform? Perhaps one where you enjoy going to see shows yourself? Show them some love!
There are multiple ways that you can show support to the venues with whom you would like to work. Of course, going to a show and getting to know the people who work there goes a long way. While you’re there, document the experience on social media – and make sure you tag the venue and artists on the bill. At any level, relationships and community building are paramount to success in the music industry. Using your artist platform to elevate others is a great way to build those relationships, and will almost certainly lead you to more opportunities going forward.
Understand the vibe of the venue – and whether it fits yours.
Some venues open the doors to any and all genres, while some tailor their programming to more specific tastes. Some venues – especially independent clubs – foster an encouraging environment for original music. Others may prefer that you stick to covers. (Although, maybe they’ll let you stick an original somewhere in the set, after they get to know you.)
Whatever the case, it helps to know the vibe and preferences of the venue, so you can adopt a targeted approach toward getting booked. For example, a metal band might not find a ton of success trying to book listening rooms, but would be embraced with open arms at certain clubs and bars. Bars in more touristy areas (i.e.; Broadway in Nashville) may want you to stick to covers, and may even have a genre preference.
Also, in a business sense: it helps to understand venue capacity, and whether you can help fill it. An independent artist looking to land their first gig may not find success trying to fill a 500-capacity room, but might do well to learn some covers, hone their performance chops, and build a following playing 8-11 p.m. bar gigs.
Bottom line: learn the landscape before you make your approach, so you can meet venues where they are, and find gigs that are a fit for where you are on your musical journey.
Have your (individual) pitch together.
Earlier this year, we touched on the importance of constructing a compelling pitch to music industry tastemakers, as you navigate the world of opportunity available to you as an independent musician. While that article focused mostly on building your EPK to pitch your music to media outlets, the same principles apply when reaching out to venues with booking inquiries. In case you need a refresher, check it out over here.
Your EPK can be just as powerful a tool for securing quality gigs. Just make sure, if you’re using your EPK as a booking tool, that you include high-quality video that captures the essence of your live performance. Bonus points if you can dedicate a little space in your bio to listing the venues where you have previously performed.
Then, have your complete show pitch together.
As the co-founder and lead booker of event promotion company, NashLive!, I work with a lot of clubs who support independent, original music. In the process, one thing I’ve learned about booking here in Music City is that many of the venues who host our events prefer for us to pitch the entire bill upfront, as opposed to pitching an incomplete lineup around an individual artist. This allows the venue to weigh the potential overall draw of the show, versus the other proposals they have received for that date. From there, the decision makers can select the lineup most likely to be successful from a business perspective.
As an artist, this means rallying some other artists together, and pitching yourselves as a package deal. If you reach out individually, there’s a chance that some venues may be able to find a slot for you. However, having it all together upfront removes the guesswork and helps the venue make an informed decision, more quickly.
Need some artists to join you on an upcoming bill? Sign up for Muze, and build community with your fellow musicians!
Book in advance.
As mentioned at the beginning of this article, more live performers are awakening from their COVID-induced slumber, which means that booking is becoming increasingly competitive. If you live in a hot live music market, trying to get a weekend date within the next couple weeks (or even the next couple months) will prove especially difficult. The earlier you can get on top of booking, the better.
That means making plans several months out. So, if it’s September 2022 (which it is, as of this article’s publication date), you may be best served laying the groundwork for a big year of live performances in 2023. Start reaching out to venues now – especially if you know that they’re popular destinations for your fellow artists.
As a bonus, this will give you more time to get your live show together, and ensure that everything is super tight by the time it hits the stage – and that’s never a bad thing!
Once you get booked, promote!
You’ve made the proper connections, rounded up the artists, got your bill together, and the venue approved the date you coveted. What’s left?
Getting people to show up!
After all, what’s an amazing performance if there is no one around to hear it? Once your show is booked, you’ll want to get your promotional materials together quickly and start spreading the word that your show is the place to be.
In markets with vibrant arts and culture communities, you may find this to be challenging. After all, bustling scenes tend to have a lot going on at any given time – and especially on the weekends. Therefore, it’s important to make your gig feel special. It’s not just a show; it’s an event that people will be talking about long after the house lights come up.
How do you make it stand out? I have some ideas – and I’ll share them in my next article. Stay tuned!
