How to Get Gigs

The vast majority of Musicians will at some stage want to take their tunes to an audience and play it live. It's both fun, and a brilliant way to build your fanbase. The challenge is getting your foot in the door with venues and promoters. So here's a guide to help you through this tough process.

1. Press Kits - You can find articles about press kits and press releases elsewhere on this site if you want to go into more detai. Basically, you need to provide a well labelled (both the CD and the file) demo, along with a well written biography which showcases your achievements (being played on the radio, other gigs you've played, reviews of your music). Think of it as a sort of CV or Resume, don't babble on about what you like to do at the weekend, get to the point, and try and make people pay attention. Impress them, but be truthful, and keep it relatively short, they don't want your life story!

2. Network - Networking is a point I drill home all the time, it's not always something that appeals to creative types, but talking to people and trying to figure out how they can help you will benefit you no end. Make yourself do it. You can network at gigs, or by talking to friends who are musical, or even better involved in the industry, or you can do this online. If online is the route you take, send emails, make sure they're personal and you know who you're talking to. Venues and promoters will have some sort of website or social networking page, usually with contact details, find some local gig listings and trace back who is responsible for them, you're a few emails away from needing to send out your press kit.

3. Don't Demand Cash - If you're just starting gigging anyway, make sure you don't request any money, just be grateful for the chance to showcase your music and meet people. The money will come, and there are plenty of ways to monetise live performances which don't leave the venue or promoter out of pocket (check out our other articles for ideas).

4. Put on a Good Show - This doesn't mean just playing your tunes well (though that really does help), involve the audience perhaps, or showcase something unusual that you've experimented with. I know a guy who does a lot of live-looping, it impresses people, and they remember him. Being memorable is vital to staying in your local gig circuit, and will help you to build a fanbase.

5. Do it Yourself! - Can't find a gig? No music scene where you are? Make it happen. The chances are there are tons of likeminded people wherever you are. Send emails to local venues, or even pubs and clubs, and try and make something happen. Not only will this give you a chance to play your music, it will build relationships too, and we all know how important that is.

So there we go, some tips to help you get gigging. For tips on what else to do once you have the gigs, such as selling merchandise and CDs, take a look at our other articles.

UK Music call for shakeup of small venue gig laws

UK music have today called for a new cabinet committee for the music industry. Awesome - as I've said many times, the industry is changing, and the acceptance of that, and the desire to support an industry that makes is worth £5billion a year to our economy, is crucial.

However, it's one specific aspect of Feargal Sharkey's new proposals that I want to focus on. Licenses for small venues to put on gigs. He's described the necessity for pubs, and smaller clubs and venues to have a license to put gigs on as "a huge bureaucratic burden to place on those pubs and artists". I agree.

To say music needs a live scene is stating the bloomin' obvious. However, perhaps the need for this grass roots level, places where people can play to 50 people in a pub, is something that's not been debated enough. Obviously our focus here is on the promotion of music, and I'd love to be writing an article right now on how finding small gigs to go and meet new people and play your music to is a great way of building fans and even contacts. But I'm not writing that article, because I know how hard it can be. I live near Norwich in the United Kingdom. We have a few venues here, the UEA, Waterfront, and Arts Centre being the main ones. They're fantastic, but I know from experience that they aren't cheap or easy to book, and that for unsigned bands it's almost impossible to get a gig there. I'd love to say there were more venues smothered around my city that made a live scene for small and unsigned artists possible, but yet again, I can't.

"That first step is what is part of the process of what ends up with people being able to stand on a stage at Wembley in front of ninety thousand people." Sharkey goes on. This summarises it nicely for me. I think we need to make it easy for the owners of pubs, clubs, even places that could double up as a venue, if music is to continue to breed talent from a garage band level. Playing to small crowds can be great publicity, a great moneymaker and indeed just great fun! Anything that can make this more common surely can't be a bad thing?