Music Industry Problem - No One is at the Show:
Music Industry Solution - Few things are as disheartening to everyone involved in a show than an empty room on the night of a gig - but it happens. The finger pointing will begin as the night wears on, but the bottom line is you can't MAKE people turn up to your show. If you find yourself faced with one of these shows, do your best to turn a negative into a positive by being gracious to everyone involved with the show so you are still welcome in that venue. And while there is no guarantee that the crowds will be pounding the door next time, there are things you can do help a gig get the buzz it needs. Check out this advice:
Music Industry Problem - The Gig is Cancelled:
Ah, nothing says "indie music" like the last minute canceled gig. At the "building an audience" level, most of the time bands will be working with promoters who put on shows for fun. Some of them are really great and as good as, if not better, than any promoter working in the bigger leagues. Some, well, aren't. When you're dealing with people who don't put on shows professionally, there is always a chance that something will come up that is more pressing for them and they will have to cancel a gig. You may also deal with people who want to put on a show for you, will plan to put on a show for you, and then realize on show night that they can't put on a show for you - but they don't really tell you that. (I once had a friend spend months going through the motions of booking a show for band I was working with, only to go M.I.A. as the show drew closer. The band and I discovered on the night of the show that the supposed venue was closed down. True story.)
The bottom line here is steel yourself for it and deal with it. When you don't have any pull and are trying to break into a new area, it happens. File it under "things that will be a lot funnier when we make it" and move on. Always be polite and gracious with anyone you deal with even as things are going up in smoke because you never know whose help you're going to need some day. Of course, there are things you can do to mitigate these kinds of surprises:
Music Industry Problem - We're Broke:
If nothing says indie music like disorganized gigs, then being broke is a close second. You can sell what seems like a lot of records and still be lucky to break even. You can play to good crowds every night and end up in debt at the end of the tour. You can promote sell out shows every night for a week in your local club and need to consider getting a second job to support your promotion habit. Forget swimming pools and movie stars - simply getting to the point where you can support yourself through your music requires a lot of hard work and patience. As long as the sacrifice is worth it to you, the best thing you can do is make peace with your bank balance, spend wisely (yes, the gatefold sleeve clear vinyl 10" is cool, but it's awfully expensive) and manage your money wisely. These articles will help:
- Door Split Deals
- Who Pays for Gig Promotion?
- Who Pays for Recording Costs?
- Does My Label Owe Me Money?
- Music Business Loans and Grants: How to Spend It
- Music Industry Investors
- Get Paid in Your Music Career
You may have noticed a theme in these music biz problems - that the bottom line is that disappointments are going to happen, and often they are out of your control. Look at them all as part of the ride, not the end of it. Learn from them and move on to better things.
