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Band expenses

#82
BurningSkies said:
Seriously paying someone to do social media? That's pretty funny. That's a real cottage industry they're propping up.

Sometimes I wish I could pay band members NOT to post on our pages.
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Hmja - our vocalist and me do the social media shizzle in our lunch breaks and write press texts in the evening together.
 
#83
vbchaos said:
Hmja - our vocalist and me do the social media shizzle in our lunch breaks and write press texts in the evening together.
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It doesn't take a genius, but I did have a drummer who would post with poor spelling and/or 'textspeak' and I'd have to 'control' the message a bit more.

I have one player now who sometimes 'feels the glory' a bit too much and it leaks out on our page and I have to do clean up. We're not a religious band, and adherence to one spirituality is not our message.
 
#84
BurningSkies said:
It doesn't take a genius, but I did have a drummer who would post with poor spelling and/or 'textspeak' and I'd have to 'control' the message a bit more.

I have one player now who sometimes 'feels the glory' a bit too much and it leaks out on our page and I have to do clean up. We're not a religious band, and adherence to one spirituality is not our message.
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I hear you - I write in a second language and it seems that I sometimes create words that to that moment did not exist ;-) If the spelling is too bad I get corrected, too.
It takes no genius!! And it definitely should cost no money unless you are a wild touring act! Even then I'd like to do it myself/ourself
 
#85
vbchaos said:
I hear you - I write in a second language and it seems that I sometimes create words that to that moment did not exist ;-) If the spelling is too bad I get corrected, too.
It takes no genius!! And it definitely should cost no money unless you are a wild touring act! Even then I'd like to do it myself/ourself
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Part of what fans like on Facebook and other media pages is the interaction directly with the members. If your singer is pretty they like to say that and then have the singer say 'thank you' or they like it when a member thanks the crowd from a show last night.
 
#86
we will be signing a band member agreement which indicates the following:
band entity is owned by the band manager
songs written by the band remain property of the band.
complete songs written by a band member remain the band members ownership
money earned from gigs will be placed in a fund for operating cost

there is also a form regarding member commitment (maintain proper image, come prepared, treat others with respect, etc.

manager agreement: manager gets 10% commission only for work obtained by band manager where the band or members represent the band.
the agreement does not apply for work obtained by the band member not related to the band or work not obtained by the manager

the wording seems pretty straight forward. It appears they are trying to be on the up and up. If anything in the language seems bothersome please let me know!
 
#88
vqlt said:
we will be signing a band member agreement which indicates the following:
band entity is owned by the band manager
songs written by the band remain property of the band.
complete songs written by a band member remain the band members ownership
money earned from gigs will be placed in a fund for operating cost

there is also a form regarding member commitment (maintain proper image, come prepared, treat others with respect, etc.

manager agreement: manager gets 10% commission only for work obtained by band manager where the band or members represent the band.
the agreement does not apply for work obtained by the band member not related to the band or work not obtained by the manager

the wording seems pretty straight forward. It appears they are trying to be on the up and up. If anything in the language seems bothersome please let me know!
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Nothing sounds good about that!
 
#89
I still can't get past the fact that this band gets 300k views on their videos but don't make any money. Clearly they have a lot of fans somewhere. Can't they book a venue, play a show and charge a small cover to people?
 
#91
Yeah, doesn't sound like an appealing deal to me. In the least.

The manager 'owns' the band? The players generate cash for the band which the manager 'owns'. As the manager owns the band, and can decide if the players don't fit the 'image' a player can be fired upon an excuse at any time.
 
#94
actually I started the thread to see if the cost were reasonable. the band members would need to subsidize cost not covered by any gig earnings. at this time gig earnings are minimal. I know most small businesses put their profits back into the business. I look at money earned from gigs/ merch. going back into promoting the band as being similar.
 
#95
vqlt said:
actually I started the thread to see if the cost were reasonable. the band members would need to subsidize cost not covered by any gig earnings. at this time gig earnings are minimal. I know most small businesses put their profits back into the business. I look at money earned from gigs/ merch. going back into promoting the band as being similar.
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And that's fine, but the manager has made it abundantly clear that it's not the members' business, it's hers. ;) I would have a problem agreeing to that arrangement given that she owns the business and makes all the decisions, spends the money, collects the money...and there's no contingency for any of the band members SHARING the money if it comes in. Even the writing credits and any royalties belong to 'the band' AKA the manager.
 
#96
I also approach this as a hobby much like when your child plays soccer or participates in any extracurricular activity. My daughter is on a travel team and there are cost associated such as tournament fees, trainer fees, etc. I do not expect to recover the expense as most kids that participate in activities will never go pro. However she enjoys the experience and it's good for her. I look at the band in the same way. It is a great experience much like being on a sports team. I just want to make sure they are not taking advantage of us.
 
#98
BurningSkies,
I agree. the band managers control is my greatest concern as her and her daughter would receive the most benefit. I'm trying to find away around this. It appears that if I can book a paying gig I would have more say on how the revenue is used. it is a difficult decision all around. My son really enjoys the band and the friendships. pulling the plug if needed will require good timing and wisely chosen words.
 
#99
Just some questions for clarification and some thoughts:

vqlt said:
we will be signing a band member agreement which indicates the following:
band entity is owned by the band manager
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It looks like you are paying and working for a business that you or your son will not own any part of, with what looks like no possibility of compensation.

songs written by the band remain property of the band.
complete songs written by a band member remain the band members ownership
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If your son gets fired from the band, can he still use the song he co-wrote with another band? What is the definition of complete? Is it lyrics and melody (usually required for copyright), or does it have to be more?

money earned from gigs will be placed in a fund for operating cost
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I'm guessing that the manager will still get her 10%, with the rest going into operating costs that she has control over. Will there be any oversight on the operating costs? Will the band members ever get paid?

there is also a form regarding member commitment (maintain proper image, come prepared, treat others with respect, etc.
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I'd be cautious about this. Is it just spelling out expectations or a binding contract? Proper image, treating others with respect, etc. can be pretty subjective and tend to remain subjective so that someone can use their discretion to fire someone for any reason while saying they have 'cause'. BTW, who decides if someone is breaking the agreement? What will happen if the agreement is broken?

manager agreement: manager gets 10% commission only for work obtained by band manager where the band or members represent the band.
the agreement does not apply for work obtained by the band member not related to the band or work not obtained by the manager
Click to expand...
Does the manager get residuals? Which means that if they booked a band at one place, will they always get commission even if a band member books the gig the next time? Is there any type of non-compete clause?
 

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