The Solo Performer
By Doc Michaels
Copyright 2010
Published on Smashwords
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Forward
This is the definitive ‘How To’ book for the aspiring solo musician or performer, which maps out a direction for creating an act and keeping it working. There is an established method this, and it is fairly simple; just as it’s simple to get where you’re driving to if you have a map. Some people are better map readers and navigators than others, and some disdain the map and recoil from the suggestion of asking for directions, preferring to let cosmic accident and unlikely coincidence lead the way. In the performing arts, there is a great deal of serious competition and numerous land mines along the way, so the more clearly your path is mapped out, and the better you understand the map, the better your chances of success. The map will be your best friend! It is also my hope that this publication will be useful as a reference book, not just something to read once and then put on a shelf.
There are procedures in common with all of the performing arts, and in this publication I will mostly address things that affect solo musicians. However, nearly all of these items are relevant to standup comics, magicians, D.J.‘s, Karaoke hosts, Open Mike hosts; duos, trios, and bands. I will address each of those individually in this work.
The information contained here is the result an in-depth study I conducted over the course of decades; things I learned while performing, conversations with successful performers, advertising and marketing people, club owners, booking agents, music associations, sound engineers, record producers, and roadies- to name but a few! Central to all of this information are things I learned first- hand (under fire, largely) over the course of many years while performing as a “One Man Band” on the West Coast and in Hawaii. The things that you learn under fire are the ones that stick with you!
Most of the information in this writing is of a “common sense” variety only if you have experience in marketing, advertising, promotion, public speaking, and event planning. The good news is, by the time you finish this book, you’ll know exactly what all that means and how to use it to advance your career.
You will learn how to define your act, define your material, target your audience, perform your material like a pro, and most importantly, get jobs! I will teach you about booking agents, press releases, demonstration videos and CD‘s; also promotional techniques and advertising. You will learn how to negotiate for your gigs, how to “dial in” a room for your sound system, how to use a few stage lights effectively, and how to keep your audience’s attention. You will learn how to record your own background music for your performances, what equipment to use for the best results in the studio and on stage, and how to get invited back for more performances.
This is the book I wish I had to get started with. I would have had a lot fewer headaches and a lot more gigs! If you are serious about a career in music or the performing arts, this book will give you a head start on the competition.
The Solo Performer
Table of Contents
Chapter 1. Defining Your Act- Who are you? What do you do? How do you look? Can you survive the lifestyle? Are you the right personality type to be an entertainer?
Chapter 2. Building Your Repertoire- What kind of music do you play? Who is your
target audience? Define and polish your repertoire.
Chapter 3. Equipment- your musical instruments, sequencers, microphones, mixers and amplifiers, speakers, signal processors, lighting and controllers.
Chapter 4. Setting Up Your Performance Area- “Owning” the stage. Setting up your sound system and lights.
Chapter 5. Lighting- making your own controllers and light cans; using spots and floods.
Chapter 6. Lining up the Gigs- Find gigs, create gigs; host Open Mike, host karaoke. Define and target your venues. Playing with other people.
Chapter 7. Playing the gig- Your performance; Giving it Your Best. Having Fun!
Chapter 8. Advertising and Promotion- press releases, posters, flyers.
Chapter 9. Making Demonstration CD’s and DVD’s
Chapter 10. Writing Songs- Writing, performing, and selling your songs. Dos and don’ts.
Chapter 11. Money- Your pay, expenses, contracts, taxes, insurance, booking agent fees, etc.
Chapter 1
Defining your act
So you’ve determined that you would like to perform as a soloist; a musician, a D.J., magician, or maybe a stand up comic. That’s a good start! Most people spend most of their lives trying to figure out what they want to do! Now- what do you need to do to define and establish your act, polish it up, and take it on the road? Are you the kind of person who can take charge of your own destiny and plan your own life? Are you self motivated and driven to succeed? Do you understand that this undertaking is a lot more work than just finding a job and working for someone? If you do, and you are willing to work for a long time without reward, if you’re willing to spend a lot of money on gear and expenses while going hungry, you might have what it takes to make it in the entertainment biz.
The first thing you need to define is your identity, and you need to be honest with yourself and ask a bunch of tough questions. Step back, take an objective look at yourself, and ask yourself some hard questions. Do you have above average talent? How do you look? Do you like what you see? How do you dress? What word would you use to describe your style? Are you current or retro? Stylish or sloppy? People will quickly judge you based on your appearance. What split-second judgment are people going to make when they see you? How do you think they perceive you? Is what they see the same as what you want them to see, or is there a discrepancy? Does your visual style match your style of music? Will you fit in at the venues you want to play? There are a great many things to consider, and that’s assuming you are talented enough to work as a professional.
You want people to notice you, (in a good way!) you want people to talk about you, and you want them to tell their friends about you. What is it about you that makes you special, that makes you someone people will travel to see? What makes them want to listen to you and buy your recorded material? What kind of music or material will they identify with you? These are things you need to ask yourself, and if you don’t like your answer, then make changes that will result in positive forward momentum.
So, who are you? Are you the right personality type? Do you have what it takes? Can you survive the lifestyle? Do you have enough energy, strength, and resources? Are you a disciplined person, an Army of One, so to speak? You pretty much have to be, because you are undertaking a very difficult mission! You are going to start your own business, and that’s risky business! It takes a lot of time and money just to get started, and your success is not guaranteed. Are you sure you can afford to do this?
So! “What’s with all the questions?” You’re wondering. You should be the one asking questions, right? Well, here’s the deal: I have to ask these questions so you’ll see what is involved, and see that you need to question yourself. There is a lot involved in this undertaking and you want to go into it with your eyes wide open. You have to be your own worst critic if you want to be a performer, especially a solo performer. You have to be self-driven, resourceful, motivated, and hard working. You gotta be tough, you have to be thick skinned, and you must be ready and able to make whatever changes are necessary to promote your act! Above all you must be honest with yourself. All of those tired old resume’ descriptions actually apply here!
Another not so nice question involves your age. You have several advantages if you are young that you will not have if you are older. For starters, most “nightclubbers” are in their 20’s to mid 30’s, so they want someone their age who grew up with the same songs they did, and will hopefully play some of those songs. Record companies are looking for young new artists to provide the music for the next generation.
As far as the entertainment business guidelines go, I started in the biz about 20 years later than I should have. I played in a lot of bands from the time I was 12 years old, had a lot of fun, learned a lot, but didn’t make much money or play regularly. When I was 40 years old, I finally gave up on playing with bands going nowhere, and set aside my plans for global conquest, world domination, and subjugation of the masses to begin a more challenging project: performing professionally as a solo musician. That undertaking provided some challenges and restrictions that I would not have experienced if I was younger. Physically, although I was in excellent shape, I simply did not have the energy and stamina I had in my 20’s. Performing is a very physical activity, and you will get tired playing a 4 to 5 hour gig. Much easier to do when you’re young! Not only that, but even carrying your gear into the club can tire you out. Big speaker cabinets, amplifiers, and keyboards are heavy! I got it down to where it only took me 7 trips to the car to get everything to the stage, then an hour to set it all up, but by then I was tired!
Then there’s the business angle. Record companies, for example, told me right up front that I was too old for them to work with. They want young people they can market and manage for 30 years or more. At my age, I simply did not have enough time to maximize my earnings for them. They did say they might be willing to listen to some of the songs I had written if they were of relevance to the younger generations, and if I would have an entertainment attorney submit them for me!
So, that door was pretty much closed to me, but I quickly learned which doors were open, and where I could still get some gigs. I booked myself as a Variety act, and then changed to a Classic Rock and Blues act, which provided me with plenty of venues and events, mostly catering to my generation, the Baby Boomers. My first year was pretty slow, just a few dozen gigs, but after 5 years I counted up the gigs I had contracts for, and it averaged out to 200 performances per year. So you know that 5th year I was very busy!
Well, that’s showbiz for ya! And they make no excuses for it- young and pretty is the 1st consideration, talented is the 2nd! The record companies want you young for the same reason as the military: you are trainable, and you have enough years left for your work to repay that training. And of course, if you are an attractive person, you will be more marketable than an unattractive person. (Duh!) If you get started young, you can build the base for a career that could carry you into a comfortable retirement. Get started at my age, and all you can really count on is a more interesting weekend than most of your friends!
You have to be a strong personality type, especially if you want to be a solo. And it goes double for a stand up comic! If you’ve decided to do stand up comedy, you have picked the toughest kind of solo act. It’s not enough to be funny; you have to know how to present your material for maximum effect, you have to know how to work the crowd, and you have to have one heck of a good memory. You have to be energetic and visual as well as verbal. On the ‘up’ side, you won’t need to purchase any equipment (except props, if you use them.) But everybody is watching and listening closely, so you cannot make any mistakes. One ‘not quite right’ delivery- 2 or 3 seconds in your act, could blow it for you, and you could lose your audience. Once lost, it is extremely difficult to win your audience back, and they will leave feeling there was something ’not quite right’ with your act. On the other hand, if your act is well polished, it will look easy and you will have your audience hanging on every word and gesture.
Magicians are next after comedians on the ‘Degree of Difficulty’ scale. People are paying such close attention; your performance must be impeccable. They have high expectations and are very demanding. Your audience is spoiled, so you have to exceed their expectations. You have to be very visual! You will also be expected to be more than extraordinarily skillful. People who follow magicians know some of those tricks themselves, the same way a guitar player knows some of his favorite band’s tunes. So don’t assume your audience won’t notice if you don’t do something quite right. They have high expectations. And of course, we all know magicians use diversions and misdirection, so you should also have an attractive scantily clad assistant! (For some reasons that I totally agree with, it is generally preferred that your attractive, scantily clad assistant be female.)
Above all, critique yourself mercilessly, and learn how to deal with criticism from others. All performers set themselves up for criticism, it’s an occupational hazard. Some of their criticism is surprisingly insightful; some of it is just plain B.S... But if you can’t deal with criticism, you will not last long as an entertainer. If you can deal with it, you will have a better act.
If you’re an Alpha personality, you could do well as an entertainer. If you were often being scolded or kidded for being the class clown, or for being a ‘hot dog’ or a show-off when you were growing up, you are a natural! If you are a born leader, you have a lot of charisma, and people gravitate to you, you could make a great entertainer!
I’ll be using that word -entertainer- a lot, because I want to remind you what you are. Don’t have any illusions about your chosen art. You are not just a musician, or a comic, a magician or a D.J., you are an entertainer! Your music, magic, or jokes are the tools, but your objective is always to entertain. Above all, remember, entertain! If you are an Omega personality you might need some help. It’s not impossible, because an Omega can be a leader or a follower, but you will have to work harder at it than an Alpha would. Many Omega personality types find it helpful to use a ‘stage name’ and develop a persona to present on stage that is not the person their friends and family are familiar with; a personality type that people would expect and accept without question. This is also very handy if you have a name that’s too easy to misspell, or if you’re uncomfortable in front of crowds, on stage, or in unfamiliar social situations. You can develop a character to slip in to for your performances, like an actor. (How many musicians do you know of who went in to acting? There have been many!) Like an actor, you can ‘play the part’ of the performer. This technique does require you to step outside of your social comfort zone to take on the attitude and aspects of that character initially, but after a while the stage personality becomes the new comfort zone. This technique also works well if you have stage fright. If you are picking a stage name (or a band name,) make it simple, catchy, easy to remember, and easy to spell. Bear in mind that most performers are Alpha personality types, so the character you develop for your performances should be an Alpha. Just remember to leave that character behind when you go home.
If you are a Beta, forget it! Sorry, but uh-uh. Nope. You might get studio work, or a gig as a backup singer, but not as the front person. Just go get a nice, secure job somewhere with a decent company that has a good benefits package, and hit the Karaoke bar once in a while. Besides, the Alphas and dominant Omegas still need someone to listen to them.
Moving right along: Do you have any kind of “act” in mind, or were you just thinking you’d get on stage and play your songs or tell your jokes? Who is the person you present on stage? Are you going to have any props? Will you be having a light show? Three classy babes singing backups and harmonies? Are you going to dress in outrageous costumes like Elton John or Lady Gaga? There’s a lot to consider! Whoever or whatever you choose to present yourself as, just do it well. Be that character 100% when you are on stage.
You also need to define your audience, which will help determine your venues. Who is your audience? Old hipsters? Young hip-hoppers? Jazz crowd? Blues crowd? Country & Western? Whoever you determine them to be, tailor your act for them. Play the songs they want to hear. A lot of musicians first starting off on their own start with a play list comprised of the tunes they enjoy playing. Unfortunately, these are not necessarily the tunes that work well at your chosen venues. Pick the tunes that are relevant to your audience, and relevant to your chosen venues. Take the time to talk to your audience on breaks and get their feedback. Never assume that because they are not musicians they don’t know what they’re talking about! They know what they like to hear, and they can tell if you do it well or not. They will also tell you what kind of music they would like to hear you play. Pay attention! You will notice songs that get requested often and at different venues; add these tunes to your play list. Over time you will develop the right tunes for your audience. When you can play the tunes they want to hear, you will make better tips, sell more CD’s, and you will be invited back to that venue. If you play there regularly, they may come to perceive you as ‘their’ musician, which could even lead to a gig as the “House Band”, if that appeals to you. There are advantages to being the house band.
There are many niches you can fill- another example would be ethnic. Maybe Irish folk songs, maybe some salsa music, a Polka band, maybe Greek music, whatever! Ethnic music, in addition to performing at ethnic venues, is also in demand for weddings and private parties, which pay a lot better than a nightclub or tavern does! I’ll get more specific about the types of jobs available in Chapter 6.
Go out and see what your competition is doing. Critique them! What are they doing right? What did they do wrong? What are they doing that makes their act special? Why are they booked every weekend? How can you do it better? Don’t try to be as good as they are, be better than they are! As the wise man (or maybe it was Yoda) said, “To succeed, there is no ‘try’; there is only ‘do’.” So do it! Be better than your heroes! All it takes is a little work, assuming you have genuine talent!
Many big acts use a gimmick of some kind to stick in peoples’ minds; the band KISS is a classic example of a great gimmick. Their music was average, but their costumes and stage presence made them stand out from the competition. And of course, Elton John, Madonna, Michael Jackson, and Lady Gaga are good examples of entertainers known for their outlandish outfits. It makes them fun to watch. Some acts like to be classy- wear a nice suit and look slick, while some may wear leather jackets and torn jeans to establish their identity. Do you want to blend in or stand out? Are you going for shock value or something a little classier? If you have a contract with a big record company and they have you doing tours, you can do whatever you want, look however you want; long hair, no hair, nose rings and facial tattoos- whatever. The weirder the better! But if you are playing the local circuits, the rules are different. For your audience to best relate to you, to feel comfortable with you, you need to look like one of them. Dress like your audience. If you are playing a country club, dress “golf casual” or wear nice slacks and a golf shirt. If you’re playing a Country and Western venue, you’ll want your cowboy hat and boots, and the shirt with the mother of pearl snaps. If you’re playing a biker bar, jeans and a leather jacket. If you’re doing a formal dinner party, wear a nice jacket and black tie. If you’re playing a wedding, look classy and sharp. But however you decide to dress, whatever style you choose, look good. Stand out in the crowd. You are someone special, so dress like it! All of this will grease the wheels for you, in a manner of speaking, and help to stack the deck in your favor. (I love analogies!)
You will find that performing for 4 or 5 hours can really tire you out. It really helps to be in good shape because it takes a lot of energy and endurance to do a good show. If you do not have a regularly scheduled exercise routine, now is the time to start! You will need to build up your strength and endurance. If you are seriously over weight, you’re going to have a hard time. You will have endurance problems, and find yourself tiring quickly. You will also have overheating and dehydration problems, so be sure to have plenty to drink within reach.
In the final analysis, all of the above will do you little good if you don’t do a good job presenting your talent and performing your material. You want to be the “total package”- you look good, you sound good, and people like you. They are glad they hired you. You are someone they can brag about! (“Wow- we had a really great musician playing for our wedding party. Looked great, sounded great, and was a really nice person! Let me give you his number- you’re going to want him for your birthday bash!”) If you are a man, women will want you and men will envy you! If you are a woman, men will want you, women will want you, and they will both envy you! If your audience likes you, they will recommend you. If they cannot relate to you, they won’t enjoy your show or your tunes, they won’t buy your CD’s, and they won’t invite you back. If the bartender and waitress don’t like you, you won’t be invited back. This seems like common sense, but it’s amazing how many acts are not appropriate for the venue they are playing. And guess what- they don’t get invited back! Whenever you have a performance, you want it to be great, you want to be proud of what you do because you do it so well, and most importantly, you want them to invite you back.
Another major consideration I mentioned earlier is the lifestyle. Is the musicians’ lifestyle going to work for you? Not everyone can do it. Some people thrive on it, others are destroyed by it. Your hours will change to accommodate the hours of the venues where you perform. You will have to travel a lot, and sleep in your vehicle some times. You will be exposed to alcohol and a variety of drugs. You have to exercise self control and say “no”. You have to be a disciplined person with better than average self control, able and willing to do what needs to be done without anyone telling you what to do or how to do it. You will have to learn to budget your time more efficiently, because you will need to spend several hours a day compiling and rehearsing your material. You will always be adding material to your repertoire, whether you are a musician, magician, or a comedian. It is an ongoing process, just like professional athletes who train daily to stay sharp and competitive. You have to polish up your material so well that your performance is impeccable. You are a professional. You are held to a higher standard. Your performance must be flawless. That takes work! You have to be a self- starter, and you gotta hustle if you want the gigs! Try to get lined up with 2 or 3 booking agents, but don’t rely on them. Get out there and get your own gigs, and when the agents have something for you it will be a nice surprise. After 2 or 3 years, you should be getting a feel for the booking routines, and start having a small list of places that want you to come back. Foster those relationships. You want to be invited back! It’s easier to do a repeat engagement than to book a new one. If your objective is to play the club circuit, try to get regular repeat engagements at the places you like. After a few years you can plan on certain venues every month. When you are first starting out, you’re lucky to get gigs, and you have to be willing to drive some distance. My limit was 200 miles. I would drive that far if it was a halfway decent paying gig with some good benefits. You are going to have travel to keep working, sometimes to weird little towns you’ve never heard of before. For me, this was actually an enjoyable part of the business, but not everyone shares my enthusiasm for it.
My booking agent was a great one for that when I was first starting out. He’d call me up and say something like “Hey Doc, do you want to go to Carson, Washington and play at the Elks Club there next weekend?” and I’d say “Just a minute, Tom- let me get my map out and see where it is.” Well, Carson’s a little town up the Columbia River Gorge, about an hour’s drive east of Portland, in a sparsely populated area on the Washington side of the Columbia River. Not someplace I’d have thought of myself, so I took the gig. I ended up getting another gig from it while I was there, playing for the Western Bigfoot Society party in Carson. What a hoot! You just never know when one thing is going to lead to another! I had a Volkswagen Westfalia camper, so after the gig I just slept in the parking lot rather than drive home after the party. It was comfortable and inexpensive. That camper saved me a lot of money in motel rooms and meals over the years, so I would recommend something like that for any performer who’s on the road a lot. It’s tempting to get a nice motor home, or just stay in a motel, but don’t give in to the temptation! The operating expenses will eat up all your earnings! A basic van is all you need.
So, are you willing to drive 200 miles for a gig in some little town you‘ve never heard of, sleep in your van, eat meals with dubious nutritional value, prepared in kitchens the health department might not approve of, and hang out with drunks in a bar?
You may also be invited to after hours parties. It can be a good public relations move, but it depends on who the invitation is from and what it entails. You will be offered booze, drugs, and sex, and you have to be strong enough to say “No thanks.” If you can’t, your career will not last long. Many a great performer has gone down in flames because he couldn’t withstand the temptations, so be aware and don’t let it happen to you! If you really feel the need for a good excuse, it’s OK to lie. Blame it on your doctor! “Oh, thanks- I’d really like to snort some of that cocaine, but I have heart problems, and my doctor says I could have a heart attack and croak right here on your living room floor.” or “Oh, I’d really like a few puffs of that weed, but my doctor said he’d take away my vicodin if I test positive for pot again.” or “Ya, I’d love a nice cold beer, but one more DUI and I’ll lose my license and go to jail.” These are acceptable excuses to decline without insulting your host. It’s OK to lie about why you can’t indulge if you feel the need for an excuse. Most people will accept a simple “No thank you.” Are you going to be able to do that? Because you will have offers, you will be tempted, and you gotta say no!
Also of prime consideration is your ultimate goal in this profession. Do you want to be a nightclub performer? Do you want to play on cruise ships? Do you want to play for black tie dinner parties? Holiday Inns? Weddings? Country Clubs? The County or State Fair circuit? Would you like to be a music teacher? Maybe you’d like to get a recording contract with a major label. (Sure! Who wouldn’t?) Whatever it is, there are specific steps you can take to get there. You don’t need to reinvent the wheel! Practice your repertoire and train like an Olympic athlete to be the best performer around; do your promotional work, get as much exposure as you can, and knock on as many doors as you can find.
Playing a variety of different venues will keep you sharp, and you can actually have fun on some gigs. My favorite fun gigs were the ‘Sunset Champagne Cruises” on Maui. They were 2 hour dinner cruises on a large boat, and the audience was always happy. I had to have a completely different song list for the cruises than for a night club, so I added about 30 tunes to my list just for them. All upbeat happy stuff. It was a little bit more work than playing a nightclub because I had to keep their attention for those 2 hours and play it straight through without taking a break, but it paid the same as 4 or 5 hours at a night club. Plus, I gotta admit, it had entertainment value for me, too. I really had fun watching the drunken tourists trying to dance on the rocking boat! The equipment list changes for this kind of gig, of course, and I’ll get in to that in Chapter 4.
With the proliferation of shows like “American Idol” on TV, some new doors have opened up, and you might consider seeing if they would be good for you! Television exposure is powerful advertising for an entertainer, and can really be an asset when approaching venues and record companies. If you are on one of the broadcast episodes, get a DVD copy and add it to your promo kit, put it on your web site and on YouTube and wherever else you can think of that people will have easy access to. If you make it to the finals, you will start getting offers from major record labels, and you may be asked to do some product endorsements.
The key to surviving in the entertainment business is versatility. The more you are willing to explore different venues and play different styles of music the more you will be working, and there’s a lot more you can do than just working night clubs!
Let me give you a few more examples:
Weddings: One of the best gigs there is; shorter than a bar gig and better pay. Some people do nothing but weddings because they’re fun and they pay better than club gigs. Everybody is happy except the father of the bride. He’s going to keep asking you to turn down the volume. Unless he’s the man paying you, don’t turn down the volume. The groom and the bride are the people you need to keep happy. If they ask you to turn it down, then turn it down. If they ask you to crank it up, do it! It’s their big day, so do what they tell you and ignore everyone else. Depending on the family, you may want to include some ethnic music that’s relevant to the family and the event. Beyond that, you want a wide variety of happy, danceable music that spans about 40 years of popular tunes. With that many tunes, and such a variety, everyone will be happy.
Bar Mitzvah’s: a major event for the family. They’re going to want a good band! It would be handy to know some traditional Jewish songs, but for the most part you will want a variety of good, happy, danceable tunes.
Gatherings: Car clubs, motorcycle clubs, paintball clubs, baseball clubs, etc.; they all have seasonal gatherings for their members. These are fun gigs and they pay well. Take your orders from just one person; find out who the president of the club or someone of equal rank, and do all your business with that person. This minimizes confusion and conflicting orders.
Fairs: County and state fairs, Rodeos, Renaissance fairs and special annual events like the Rose Festival in my home town of Portland, Oregon. These pay well, and they are great for exposure and for getting your name in the paper. They are always well advertised. Sign up for as many as you can find! You will rarely have anyone telling you what to do at these gigs. At the most, you’ll have a stage manager telling you how he’s going to set up your mics; tell him what you need. To do my show, I need 2 lines to the PA for my keyboard, 2 lines for two microphones, and one line for my guitar amp. I always run everything through the mixing console to get a clean balance, or ‘mix’, of the instruments and voice. I will go in to more detail on this in chapter 7. It is rare to see the person or people in charge at these events; you are left to do your thing on your own with no one giving you orders during your performance.
Cruises: Most big cities with a river or lake near by have yachts that offer dinner cruises and champagne cruises, singles mixers, etc. Many coastal cities and nearly all the resort islands have ocean going dinner cruises, mixers, casino, and champagne cruises as well. These are all basically floating parties, usually only 2 or 3 hours, and the pay is better than most nightclubs. You will either be dealing with the Captain or the First Mate, but for the most part they ignore you and leave you to do your show. For a longer gig, the longer ocean going cruises can be lucrative and you get to see some pretty nice places.
Private Parties: This category covers a lot of ground! Birthday parties, graduation parties, Spring Break parties, engagement parties, new business opening parties; Holiday parties like July 4, Labor Day, Memorial Day, etc.. I bet you can think of some more!
Other possibilities include events at retirement homes, benefit events and charities; Elks Clubs, Moose Clubs, Masons, etc. Once you get to thinking about the places and events that hire live music, you will be able to add a lot to this list.
Chapter 2
Building your repertoire and performance skills
The second consideration is your material or your music. Are you playing Pop, Top 40, Blues, Classic Rock, Jazz, C&W, or Rap? If you play all of the above, you probably want to book yourself as a Variety act. Under what heading will you book your act? Who is your target audience? If you are a comic, a magician, or a D.J., these questions and guidelines still apply. No matter what your performance art, you have to be the right act for the venue.
Something else to consider is how you’re going to perform the material. Are you going to be a “Copy” artist- doing the material exactly like the original artist, or are you going to do your own arrangements, like Joe Cocker did with the Beatles tunes? Do you have any original material to work in to your performance? If so, do you want your act to be mostly original material or mostly cover tunes?