I'd have to drive one hour (or more) each way to meet him and hope he shows up and keeps his word. No thanks.
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Am I diva for not wanting to play for free?
- Thread starter BillyIVbass
- Start date
I'd have to drive one hour (or more) each way to meet him and hope he shows up and keeps his word. No thanks.
interesting thread with lots of opposing viewpoints.
Personally, the venues I am playing at are not the same venues that a cover band playing 3 to 4 hour sets is playing. We usually play a 50 minute set sharing a bill with 2 or 3 other originals bands. most venues we are playing make you play for free starting out. You start out on wednesday opening up for free, and if you draw 30 people you MIGHT get to open up on a weekend show. If you draw 60 to 100 on a weekend then you MIGHT get offered your own show where you headline....only then do you get paid. One of my bands was getting offered these better shows....then we lost our drummer 4 months ago and are still looking for one. It's been so long we'll likely have to start all over. We are actually paying a guy to play fill in for us so we can play a show every once in a while. It's been a long and frustrating search.....DERAILMENT OVER.
Also, it is ALL about your draw....they never mention anything about the quality of your music. Moving up is strictly a game of numbers. If you can get 100 people to come to a weeknight show....you can bet you'll get offered a headlining show on a weekend real quick. Anyways, i am cool with playing for free at this point because we are moving up to better shows/venues the likely will pay. In a year if we are still slogging with these opening slots i won't be so happy about it. =).
Personally, the venues I am playing at are not the same venues that a cover band playing 3 to 4 hour sets is playing. We usually play a 50 minute set sharing a bill with 2 or 3 other originals bands. most venues we are playing make you play for free starting out. You start out on wednesday opening up for free, and if you draw 30 people you MIGHT get to open up on a weekend show. If you draw 60 to 100 on a weekend then you MIGHT get offered your own show where you headline....only then do you get paid. One of my bands was getting offered these better shows....then we lost our drummer 4 months ago and are still looking for one. It's been so long we'll likely have to start all over. We are actually paying a guy to play fill in for us so we can play a show every once in a while. It's been a long and frustrating search.....DERAILMENT OVER.
Also, it is ALL about your draw....they never mention anything about the quality of your music. Moving up is strictly a game of numbers. If you can get 100 people to come to a weeknight show....you can bet you'll get offered a headlining show on a weekend real quick. Anyways, i am cool with playing for free at this point because we are moving up to better shows/venues the likely will pay. In a year if we are still slogging with these opening slots i won't be so happy about it. =).
Gotta say I never got the appeal of DJs vs live music. There's nothing like decent live music at a club or event - a DJ does not even come close. But, that is the case, for some reason...
Not that I am a fan of DJ's, but one thing a DJ can offer is a wider and deeper selection of music than a band can deliver.
Go get a 9-5,and charge at least $100.00..some people may take you a little more serious...believe it or not
Nope... it's about the principle IMO.
Since my last post I talked to yet another friend who this guy was calling while I was playing. Apparently he was collecting the area's first call players or something
. He's been blowing up all of our phones trying to clean up the mess he made. I got to hear some new lies he told and it's pretty clear this guy is a master at burning bridges. I don't need the work with him.Again, as far as I'm concerned I don't want the money or any further contact with him. If you or anyone else would like the money I'll give you his number and you can tell him you'll take it because I won't. It seems far more important to some of you than me.
And you're usually limited to dealing with one potential jackass vs. multiple ones. The budget's usually lower too. Less food/drinks for the entertainment too.
Things a DJ typically doesn't offer are the dynamics nor the spontanaeity of live music.
My band has a minimum. If it is not matched, we do not play.
The only exception is a charity gig. There, we ask for our regular rate and then give the charity a check from our bank account for the same amount. Both parties can claim the amount on taxes. Check with your accountant.
If a club or restaurant says our rate is "not in our budget, we pay $x" I would so like to reply, "Your $8.99 hamburgers are not in my budget, here's $1.99". But I don't. Sigh. Must try to appear to be professional.
The only exception is a charity gig. There, we ask for our regular rate and then give the charity a check from our bank account for the same amount. Both parties can claim the amount on taxes. Check with your accountant.
If a club or restaurant says our rate is "not in our budget, we pay $x" I would so like to reply, "Your $8.99 hamburgers are not in my budget, here's $1.99". But I don't. Sigh. Must try to appear to be professional.
I agree on all points.
Confession time: I was a DJ for a while in a disco back in the mid 70's, although I hasten to add that I didn't play much "disco" music. One way the club countered the lack of spontaneity and dynamics in the recorded music was to employ a live drummer to play along with it. It worked pretty well despite the fact that I didn't work from a playlist, and there was no way for me to cue the drummer what was coming up next until it started coming out of his headphones.
Found this on my local Craigslist: [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
Times are tough, and getting gigs has gotten tougher. Offers looking for musicians to play in return for exposure only abound. Don't fall for it!
Performing is a job as real as any other type of work, and your work has value. Countless hours went into developing your chops and performing takes a great deal of energy. (Can you imagine the reaction of your doctor or accountant if you told them to be content with the exposure working for you provided, and that you weren't going to pay for their services?) You have a right to earn a living working in your field, just as other professionals do.
If we musicians all stick together and refuse to work without pay, these cheap venues will have to offer at least a nominal fee if they want to continue to have live music.
Respect yourself and your talent and others will respect you. Wishing all working musicians out there the very best!
Times are tough, and getting gigs has gotten tougher. Offers looking for musicians to play in return for exposure only abound. Don't fall for it!
Performing is a job as real as any other type of work, and your work has value. Countless hours went into developing your chops and performing takes a great deal of energy. (Can you imagine the reaction of your doctor or accountant if you told them to be content with the exposure working for you provided, and that you weren't going to pay for their services?) You have a right to earn a living working in your field, just as other professionals do.
If we musicians all stick together and refuse to work without pay, these cheap venues will have to offer at least a nominal fee if they want to continue to have live music.
Respect yourself and your talent and others will respect you. Wishing all working musicians out there the very best!
I developed a niche once.
The doctor gave me some ointment and it went away.
Ba-doom-tisch.
I'm here all week...try the veal.
And if a frog had wings...
"Can you imagine the reaction of your doctor or accountant if you told them to be content with the exposure working for you provided, and that you weren't going to pay for their services?"
If there were 5 doctors for every patient, you could get really cheap (or free) medical treatment. If they banded together to drive up the price, most of them would never work again.
It ain't that simple, folks.
best advice so far. Make sure that he knows you only want your gas money back, $20 is not alot to ask. Also let him know that you would have appreciated knowing the no pay thing up front.
