I KNOW PRINCE IS GONE BUT....

[reggie hall]

I am not a pro, and don't hang with local pros who have church gigs. At many black churches the music minister gets between $400-$700 a month, a musician will get probably a third of that amount, plus some churches by for practices too.

That sounds about right ,i get 200 per week playing keyboard

 

[Jackie Clark]

How much someone like mono charges to play a gig?

@reggie hall
Anytime he subs for me, he's paid the same as if I were there...as for what he charges to do gigs,you'd have to ask him...I'm not sure.

@Dr. Cheese ...Dywane might be the only player that doesn't hustle for gigs!! Hahaha! I actually don't hustle for them either to be honest...I've been blessed to do this for a living for nearly 30 years and never hustled for anything...most my gigs come by referral or someone saw me while I was touring with another artist.The one thing I'm good at is networking but I do that mostly for just getting to know the cats in my field...I might hustle up on some tickets if they come to my city!!

 

[Dr. Cheese]

@reggie hall
Anytime he subs for me, he's paid the same as if I were there...as for what he charges to do gigs,you'd have to ask him...I'm not sure.

@Dr. Cheese ...Dywane might be the only player that doesn't hustle for gigs!! Hahaha! I actually don't hustle for them either to be honest...I've been blessed to do this for a living for nearly 30 years and never hustled for anything...most my gigs come by referral or someone saw me while I was touring with another artist.The one thing I'm good at is networking but I do that mostly for just getting to know the cats in my field...I might hustle up on some tickets if they come to my city!!

You are not hustling now because I imagined you hustled earlier in your career to establish the contacts you have now. Either way, I am happy that you are in a position to make an income from playing bass.

 

[Jackie Clark]

You are not hustling now because I imagined you hustled earlier in your career to establish the contacts you have now. Either way, I am happy that you are in a position to make an income from playing bass.

@Dr. Cheese
Thanks a lot man!! It's really weird because I honestly never did any hustling...seriously! It was like once I started playing out in public,the calls started rolling! I know that doesn't sound right ... theonly way I can explain it is a blessing from God! I never went to sheds or jam sessions when cats got together because I wasn't into showing off my chops or anything,I just wanted to play music with a real band instead of doing the "look at what I can do" thing. It basically started after I did my first club gig in '95...Someone called me to sub for them and when I finally took it,it just kinda spread like a wildfire! It was crazy! When I made contacts,it was from people coming up to me after shows or local gigs...all I did was give them my number basically and answered the phone whenever they called. I became known as the cool dude that played actual bass instead of trying to shine onstage...I suppose my "hustle" was making sure I learned the music correctly before rehearsal!! Haha!

 

[Dr. Cheese]

@Dr. Cheese
Thanks a lot man!! It's really weird because I honestly never did any hustling...seriously! It was like once I started playing out in public,the calls started rolling! I know that doesn't sound right ... theonly way I can explain it is a blessing from God! I never went to sheds or jam sessions when cats got together because I wasn't into showing off my chops or anything,I just wanted to play music with a real band instead of doing the "look at what I can do" thing. It basically started after I did my first club gig in '95...Someone called me to sub for them and when I finally took it,it just kinda spread like a wildfire! It was crazy! When I made contacts,it was from people coming up to me after shows or local gigs...all I did was give them my number basically and answered the phone whenever they called. I became known as the cool dude that played actual bass instead of trying to shine onstage...I suppose my "hustle" was making sure I learned the music correctly before rehearsal!! Haha!

I suspect you are simply very good, and folks wanted to work with you.

 

[Jackie Clark]

I suspect you are simply very good, and folks wanted to work with you.

@Dr. Cheese ...I wouldn't say very good but,I try like heck to get the job done!! Haha! I think it's more of me being the cool guy to work with...that's just as,if not,more important!!!

 

[Brad Johnson]

@Dr. Cheese
Thanks a lot man!! It's really weird because I honestly never did any hustling...seriously! It was like once I started playing out in public,the calls started rolling! I know that doesn't sound right ... theonly way I can explain it is a blessing from God! I never went to sheds or jam sessions when cats got together because I wasn't into showing off my chops or anything,I just wanted to play music with a real band instead of doing the "look at what I can do" thing. It basically started after I did my first club gig in '95...Someone called me to sub for them and when I finally took it,it just kinda spread like a wildfire! It was crazy! When I made contacts,it was from people coming up to me after shows or local gigs...all I did was give them my number basically and answered the phone whenever they called. I became known as the cool dude that played actual bass instead of trying to shine onstage...I suppose my "hustle" was making sure I learned the music correctly before rehearsal!! Haha!

The ability to get in and get the job done, not causing problems and being cool to work with is highly underrated. Do that and the work comes.

I've had gigs I've subbed out to people who's rep was among the hotter local players and each time the feedback was they stunk up the joint because they couldn't play the music at hand. OTOH I've subbed jobs to bassists who "get it" and everyone was happy. In each case these were gigs with at least a month's notice, solid list of songs and the money was way better than average. All they had to do was put in the prep work and do the job. Apparently much easier said than done.

I take sub work very seriously... it's the easiest opportunity to network IMO. Take the worry out of the equation and people will typically love you. And call you back. And recommend you.

 

[Brad Johnson]

I am not a pro, and don't hang with local pros who have church gigs. At many black churches the music minister gets between $400-$700 a month, a musician will get probably a third of that amount, plus some churches by for practices too.

Around here the opportunity to make a lot more than that is there. But there's a catch: you have to be able to play at a minimum level and learn at an accelerated rate as a musician or be knowledgeable as a leader. I know players who've worked with national artists who struggled trying to play some of the contemporary Gospel songs out there. It's the new Fusion.

A medium sized church (500+ members or so) might pay a music minister more than $60k/year... it's a fulltime job. Because there can be a lot of turnover throughout a music program opportunities pop up and you have to be plugged in to hear about them and get a chance to put your hat in the ring. I've seen way more personality issues/power tripping in church than anywhere else. Learning how to deal with it is key in succeeding. I've run into at least six bassists who played at the church that I've been at for the last five years. I started to wonder who hadn't played there before.

 

[Brad Johnson]

I would imagine he would get what the regular bassist would have gotten. Most "name" bassists are still hustling for gigs.

Yep. A $100 gig pays $100. I try to maximize my time so I won't say I won't do a $100 but it's definitely not my focus. If you have to spend much time learning music, rehearsing or travelling you're lucky if you break even.


I remember a friend who is also a top pro doing a wedding and another top pro was on it. And they got paid the going sideman rate for that gig. Nature abhors an open date.

 

[Dr. Cheese]

Around here the opportunity to make a lot more than that is there. But there's a catch: you have to be able to play at a minimum level and learn at an accelerated rate as a musician or be knowledgeable as a leader. I know players who've worked with national artists who struggled trying to play some of the contemporary Gospel songs out there. It's the new Fusion.

A medium sized church (500+ members or so) might pay a music minister more than $60k/year... it's a fulltime job. Because there can be a lot of turnover throughout a music program opportunities pop up and you have to be plugged in to hear about them and get a chance to put your hat in the ring. I've seen way more personality issues/power tripping in church than anywhere else. Learning how to deal with it is key in succeeding. I've run into at least six bassists who played at the church that I've been at for the last five years. I started to wonder who hadn't played there before.

My church is going through a personality driven series of changes. It's a mess. The world of sinners is not as petty, it seems.

 

[Brad Johnson]

My church is going through a personality driven series of changes. It's a mess. The world of sinners is not as petty, it seems.

Funny how that works.

I've said too much.

 

[Dr. Cheese]

Funny how that works.

I've said too much.

The biggest issue is that we are a smallish church that does not want to pay a lot for a music minister. I think members need to understand that we are not the only fish in the sea.

 

[Brad Johnson]

The biggest issue is that we are a smallish church that does not want to pay a lot for a music minister. I think members need to understand that we are not the only fish in the sea.

True. But the problem is that you typically have people who know little to nothing about music making decisions. They often get fooled.

 

[Jackie Clark]

The ability to get in and get the job done, not causing problems and being cool to work with is highly underrated. Do that and the work comes.

I've had gigs I've subbed out to people who's rep was among the hotter local players and each time the feedback was they stunk up the joint because they couldn't play the music at hand. OTOH I've subbed jobs to bassists who "get it" and everyone was happy. In each case these were gigs with at least a month's notice, solid list of songs and the money was way better than average. All they had to do was put in the prep work and do the job. Apparently much easier said than done.

I take sub work very seriously... it's the easiest opportunity to network IMO. Take the worry out of the equation and people will typically love you. And call you back. And recommend you.

BINGO!!!

 

[Jackie Clark]

Although I still travel from time to time,I've been playing at my church for 27 years now! I was originally the organist for the 1st 13 years and moved to bass 14 yrs ago...Gospel is where my roots lie but,I always made sure to listen to all styles of music because you just never know what you can get called to play...I'm not as strong in some areas but,I can just about fool you into thinking I am! I never studied formally but,I can read because I played trombone for 10 years...Once I learned my notes on bass,I could practically play any song because my band directors arranged the bone parts like the original basslines...It was like I was groomed to play bass without knowing it!

I won't even get started on churches because that's a full semester term paper!!! Hahahaha!