Before I started promoting shows, I was a band manager. But for years before ever thinking about going into the music business, I was a bass player who would play with any decent band that had a paying gig. People used to tell me that for my bands to get the best shows we had to know the right people. This couldn’t be more true, and the music business is most certainly a “who you know” type of business. However, most people have misconceptions when you use the term “who you know”. The people you need to know are not the roadies for Metallica, or the brother of an A&R for Universal (although it would be cool to know these people). The people you need to know are right in front of you, you just need to go meet them and present them with something that is worth their time.
As a promoter, I try to make offers on every national tour that makes sense to bring to New England. Many times, tours come as a package with no room for local support. But more often than not, there is room for local acts on a bill, and promoters are looking for bands to fill those slots. Playing for nationals is very advantageous because you’ll have the chance to play for your fans, but also fans of a huge band with a similar fanbase to yours who could become your fans as well. In a time when the music business model is restructuring and labels are making less money, playing live shows has become the biggest piece of the pie for most performing artists who aren’t Ke$ha or Justin Bieber. The most advantageous shows you can play in terms of gaining new fans, are shows where you open for a huge band in your genre that your fans like. By inserting these shows in your schedule to complement your local and out of town dates, you’ll continually expand and be able to bring new fans to shows that hadn’t heard of you before. However, it’s not as easy as knowing the right people, but this is the first step.
In your trek through the small local clubs where you should be playing as a young band, you’ll encounter and do business with local promoters and talent buyers. One of the biggest tips I give to bands is to look at who is bringing in the national tours in your genre. If you’re an indie band, you might want to open for groups who have a fanbase in your area like Crystal Fighters or American Authors. If you’re a Reggae act, maybe it’s John Brown’s Body or Barrington Levy. The point is, before opening for a national, you should know who your fans are and who they like. You can’t just be a newbie band who practices 90% of the time and promotes shows a week before the date on facebook. You really should have developed a skill for engaging your fans and bringing out a nice crowd to most of your shows before reaching out to get on a national tour date in your home town. The worst thing you could do is get on a show with a touring national with the expectation that you’ll bring people out and not draw. So assuming you played some local shows at a club, that buyer (or the promoter who rented the room and booked your band) already knows who you are. You don’t know the roadie for Metallica, but you know a local buyer or promoter, and that’s plenty for right now.
Say you’re that indie band who wants to open for the Crystal Fighters date in your hometown…Look at who is promoting the show that night. The show will say “So & So Club Presents” or “Promoter Name Presents”. Get on to their website and check out their other shows. If they have a steady stream of incoming shows pertinent to your genre (bands that your fans will want to go see), you’ve identified the contact you need to make. The best introduction you can make to a company like this, is to book your band for a local show. Then they can get a sense of where your draw is, and how you play live. Assuming you have a good show history in your town, the buyer/promoter may already know who you are. Playing a local show on an off night will show the promoter that you can bring people out in a situation that is not ideal. Most bands draw better on weekends with big headliners carrying the show, but by bringing out a decent crowd on an off night, you’ll show that you’re ready for a bigger show. Buyers may ask you to follow up with a weekend date later in the year. Once you play a great show on a weekend, you may have gained some trust from the buyer/promoter, and laid the foundation to reach about opening for a national. There are so many promoters who never work with nationals, and it might be good to play a few shows with them to make some money. However, the time you spend promoting shows is much better spent when you’re working with a promoter/buyer who is working with national tours, and has the ability to develop your band through larger rooms and larger acts in the area. Do some research and find out who these people are, and start playing shows with them at their smaller rooms where your crowd will have an impact. Sometimes, it’s what promoter you work with that makes all the difference.
So you’ve found the promoter who works with nationals in your genre, played a few shows and worked your way up. Now you have to pitch the promoter/buyer on selecting your band for an opening slot on a routed tour date. There are a few things you need to focus on in this email.
SHOW HISTORY – Where have you played in the area? Focus on bigger shows and bigger venues with a good reputation in your city.
DRAW – How many people do you bring on an average night, and how many could you 100% commit to bringing to the potential show with a national. Don’t lie, be confident. The promoter will expect this number from you. If you give a range like 50-100, they’ll always expect 100. Be honest.
BE SHORT – Don’t write a page long email. Keep this to 5-6 sentences. Don’t get emotional and tell the buyer about how you saw this band play live when you were 11 and this is your favorite album etc. Be professional.
SCHEDULE – Let the buyer know you have 4-6 weeks open on either end of the date. That means you have at least a month open in your area before, and an open month after the date. They’ll have more confidence that you’re promoting their show with a national as a huge show, and putting a lot of focus into it. If you have shows 2 weeks before or after, the buyer may be hesitant and assume you are going to promote both shows at the same time and split up your draw between scheduled shows. 99% of the time, the buyer is right.
RELATION – Relate your band’s style to the national you want to open for, and let the promoter know that you share a local fanbase with that band. The better fit you are on a show, the better chance you have of getting on that bill.
If you focus on these 5 things in your email pitch, the promoter/buyer will know you’re serious, and you’ll give yourself the best chance to get selected as an opener. Assuming you’ve locked up this date, the work has just begun. The best thing you can do is understand your role in the show. Whether you realize it or not, you are now business partners with the promoter or club who booked you, and there are expectations from both parties. Here are the reasonable expectations you should have from your promoter who books you with a national:
MARKETING – The promoter should have a flyer and marketing materials. You should see some of these flyers around town, or you should see the street team at local shows doing letouts, which is passing out flyers when patrons leave a venue. If I’m doing a death metal national tour in Boston, I might go pass out flyers at all the death metal local shows a month or two before. Depending on the size of the show, they should also have the shows listed on local blogs and publications. Creating an event on facebook is great, but the bands usually have more impact doing this themselves. People only RSVP to events from people they already know or trust, and your fans may not know the promoter or club buyer who booked you. Therefore, your event will have a better impact when inviting your fans.
SOLID BILL – All of the bands on the bill should fit, and should bring people out. If one band on the show doesn’t draw or doesn’t fit, the buyer didn’t do their homework.
DEAL – The money deal should be plain and simple, if you do this, you get X amount of $. There shouldn’t be any uncertainty. Whether the promoter loses money on the show or not, if there was an agreed upon deal and you did your part, you should get paid. The deal should be spelled out so you know the day before the show whether you’re getting paid or not. Stay away from shifty promoters who don’t pay locals or make bad money deals with bands.
Here are the things the promoter expects from you:
MARKETING – Even with all the print advertisements and letouts, you still know your fanbase better. Your fans may not read that magazine, visit that blog, or attend the local show where the street team of the venue is doing letouts. You know EXACTLY who is coming to your shows, and it’s your job to push your show with a national to your fans and get them out, and to maximize your draw for larger opportunity like this.
PROFESSIONALISM – Many times national tours are not announced until a certain date, but the promoter will build the bill with locals before it’s ready to announce. Don’t blow it and announce the show too soon. If there is a set load in time, make sure to be there early or at least right on time. Don’t be late. Logistics are VERY tight for a show with a national, and the more professional you are during load in and sound check, the better it will make you look for future opportunities. Don’t have one member of the band show up late and come in with an excuse. Everyone needs to be there on time. Shows with a national are more important than work or school or anything else. Plan ahead. Be prepared that you may not get a sound check, and may have to check on the fly. If you do get a sound check, be courteous and don’t practice on stage. Get your levels right as quickly as possible and get off stage so the other bands can check. If you practice and fiddle around on stage, it makes you look terrible to the venue and to the other bands. If you agreed to do presale tickets, have the unsold tickets and the money from the tickets you sold with you during load in.
CANCELLATION – Above all, do not cancel your show under any circumstances. You beat out a bunch of other bands to get a supporting slot on a national tour, so don’t cancel. Figure out a way to make the show happen. If a band cancels a show with me once the date is booked, they rarely get an opportunity to play a show with me again.
Think of the show as a partnership with the promoter. They’re giving you an amazing opportunity to play with a national band that your fans love and expand your base, and they’re counting on you to single out your fans and get them out to the show. The more people you can bring out, the more opportunities you’ll get to play with nationals. By building a strong relationship with a promoter or a club, you’ll continue to get supporting opportunities, and build your fanbase quicker and more effectively. To summarize:
-Find the promoter in your area who books nationals in your genre
-Play some shows with this promoter on off nights to gain their trust. Bring people and make it a party.
-Look for recently announced tour dates with bands you’d like to support.
-Once you have a solid draw, reach out to this promoter using the points I described above.
-Do your part once the show is booked to help promote to your fans, and be professional throughout the process through the end of the show. Leave no reason for you to not be booked again.
Thanks for reading, and good luck.
