Hi Steem Community!
(The last song from the last show The Hotel Cafe, Hollywood CA)
I've recently been offline quite a bit and out on tour this summer with
Texas Music Hall of Famer, Patrice Pike.
https://www.patricepike.com
Patrice is actually the youngest person ever inducted into the Texas Music Hall of Fame. Her first band Sister 7 was signed personally by the legendary mogul, Clive Davis. I say this not to toot her horn, which I don't mind doing because she never will, I say it to say give credence to the post. This is a person who has been a successful, professional touring musician, from a large label to an independent artist her entire life. It was great to be out while she was developing her new project Pike & Sutton.
The tour was a great experience for me. We played every sort of venue, from festival space, to listening rooms, to even a pub venue. What I was able to humbly learn from observation and experience, I would love to share with other artists.
I'm sure you've heard it said, but I'll say it again. Always be nice to the sound man.
Though you should be nice to the sound man, always hold your ground on your sound. You know what is needed for your sound. Be clear, at the end of the day it is you up on stage and all the hard work goes out the window if the sound is not up to snuff. The house sound guy is generally just trying to move it along.
Make sure that your agreement with the venue is clear for additional items. Food, drink, parking. That can all add up to a couple hundred extra dollars per show with just a few people. By the end of a run it is thousands.
Make sure that you have a solid place allocated at each venue to show and sell your merchandise. People can't buy what they can't find.
Here's something that I found extremely effective on this tour. Tell the audience from that you would love to meet them after the performance and you will be hanging around the merchandise booth. This gives people that would love to meet you an opportunity to do so. It's a great way to connect and also sell your product.
If you have a band, keep them busy. I had a 3 piece for part of the tour and went solo for the next part. Each day on the road costs you. So even if you need a filler show between solid dates, it is better to take it to keep the band tight for the bigger shows.
Know which states are more prone to bus inspections than others ; ) ... Plan Accordingly
If you are a supporting artist, be accommodating with time to the headliner. Make sure that your sets don't run over and get your gear cleared out of the way.
Make sure that you make your bus call. Travel should always leave room for issues on the road. Each location took an additional hour than we had allocated.
Make a plan to use social media plan to showcase your shows. do live feeds, take pictures, record videos. But make a plan ahead of time. If not, many things fall through the cracks.
Number ten truly seems most relevant these days. The cost of touring continues to increase exponentially. If you can showcase yourself with a live audience, you will be able to get more fans and content with each show through online outreach.
Oh! Last but not least... Know that your costs will be about 15% more than what you've budgeted.
So always build in a contingency.
At the end of the day, nothing beats the connection you get with a live audience.
I hope you found this helpful.
Hope To See You Out On The Road Soon!!!
Lots Of Love,
CJ
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/1rywSuvCc5MuZiNuDJYAOP