Talent Buyers Speak Out
June 2003

The do's and don'ts of landing a gig

Welcome to the first installment of For The Record, a new monthly column in the Music Phone Book newsletter. In each issue of the newsletter, For The Record will highlight various aspects of the music industry. Whether you're a band member, promoter, booking agent, publicist, venue owner or just a music fan, this new column will offer insight and information into one of the coolest careers in the world—the music business.

To kick things off, we'll be examining a few things your band needs to keep in mind when trying to book a show. No matter how talented your group is or how fabulous your music sounds; unless you were on the cover Rolling Stone last month, you're going to have work with the Gatekeeper of Gigs, the talent buyer.

Before you even make the call (or have your agent do so), Matt Kenny, talent buyer at The Ranch Bowl in Omaha says there are some things you need to remember. "I look for a concise description of band," he explains. "A bio with a little on their beginnings—how they describe themselves, how they have been described by others. Where they've played, with whom, radio airplay and links to their website—MP3's or streaming music a necessity—should all be included."

J.C. Wilson, talent buyer for The House of Bricks in Des Moines, Iowa, says that he tends to pay more attention to eye-catching promo packs." I do look harder at better press packs," he admits. "Professional packaging, professional design, logos—full color everything. I like professionally written bios and quotes because the media folks that I send info to tend to publish the 'better" material. I also tend to listen to the CD included when I see a nice presentation."

If there is one thing that talent buyers can agree on, It's that "drawing power"—the established predictable number of people your band will bring to the venue—is one of the most important determining factors. How do you get drawing power? Start out small and build your way up—if you have to start out playing coffee houses and rental halls to establish a fan base, so be it. Eventually, your band's reputation will snowball until talent buyers can rely on your band to bring in more than seven people to a show.

Of course, talent buyers have pet peeves as well. A consensus among the vast majority of talent buyers is that cassette tapes are a no-no. "Submitting a barely recognizable demo [is unacceptable]," says Jay Rankin, talent buyer for the Music Box in Omaha. "Remember, the demo may be what is selling the band to the promoter—if you only have one copy (and can not part with it), or a very low quality recording, guess what will come out of it. I realize budget is an issue, but with today's technology and a bit of creativity, a quality demo can be produced."

Kenney says that adequate contact information is a must—after all, if the talent buyer can't get in touch with you, how is your band supposed to book a show? He says that all drop-off submissions should be clearly marked, printed (not hand-written) and contain the band's contact information.

Wilson says that he never likes to see a band just starting to post flyers a few days before the show. " It tells me that the band hasn't been promoting the show since the booking," he explains. "A few days before the show date is a bit late [to start advertising]."

Overall, just remember to be professional. Whether you and your band are in it for the money or not, you have to remember that almost everyone else you have to deal with is in it for the money. Be courteous, responsible and diligent. Oh, and one more thing: "Change the oil in the van," Kenny says.

For the Record welcomes your comments, questions or column ideas. Please email fortherecord@musicphonebook.com to put in your two cents. Got an idea for a column? Let us know!