What's with the Nickelback requests?

I've played quite a few live shows in my region over the past few years, in a variety of different styles, and there's always some entitled douche canoe who decides it is "all requests hour" and won't stop hounding the band. If they walk up to me, I'll usually just turn around and pretend I'm messing with my amp or something. My standard response to requests is "we don't do that one."

Just recently, there has been an increasing trend where some absolutely hammered, clinging to youth 45 year old woman will stumble up to the band and demand we play Nickelback. It is a different woman EVERY SHOW, but with the same basic description. You know the type- Looks like she's the lady Rip VanWinkle of the late 80s. She fell asleep in '89 and woke up on a random Friday in 2014 and decided to get hammered without changing clothes or combing her hair. I leave the situation wondering "are these the types of people that like Nickelback?"

So why is it now that I'm noticing this? Has anyone else noticed this?

 

Nothing that I play in any of my bands would suggest that we play nikelback as well, but people still request it. I know that they are a fairly popular band, but it is odd that people in that demographic constantly request them.

I wasn't necessarily hating on the band, just observing an odd tendency in the crowd.

 

Oh yeah. It is always the ones you don't want to talk to that decide to "make friends" with the band.

Or the guy that wanders through so drunk he can't stand and says "PLAY SUMFIN GOOD."

If I had a dollar for every time somebody said PLAY WAGON WHEEL, I could retire.

 

So it isn't just my imagination then.

 

I don't insult my audience. My band is always courteous and never confrontational to our crowd, no matter how obnoxious and disrespectful they may be to us. Furthermore, hammered drunk people are ALWAYS fair game for poking fun.

No one can seriously suggest that a band play every song requested. If that was the case our sets wouldn't make any sense, we'd play freebird every set, and we'd drive away half the younger crowd with terrible garbage they don't care to endure. Plus, the requesters are NEVER the people that come back and see you again. I won't learn nickelback to appease drunk ladies who won't remember my band in 20 minutes, or even notice if we play it.


Good gracious you guys are taking this waay too seriously... I thought the title of this part of the board had humor in it...

 

I think you and I have very different definitions of what is fun to play.

BUT why is it always a 45 year old woman who couldn't care less if we did actually play it?

 

I've never had a request for Creed, thankfully. Watch, now someone will come up this weekend and ask if we know "with arms wide open."

This is how a request situation typically goes: Early drunk wanders up to the stage (1st set, maybe 10 pm. These people do not make it to last call). If we know the song that he/she requests, or one by the same artist or in the same style, we'll play that next. The drunk stopped paying attention and wandered away and missed the requested song, so they again approach the stage, demanding the same thing. Why cater to people like that?