Don’t Have a Following? Then Just Say So

One night last week I was out visiting venues.  One band in particular that I book is a good fit for the sites that I chose to go to that evening, which in itself is maybe a lesson or a blog for another time (not trying to get booked at a place that you’re not a fit for).

The moral of that story/blog (for another time) is the same as today’s – honesty is the best policy.

The conversation at the very first place I went into reminded me of a similar discussion I’d had a little ways back with a booker from another place.  Both talked with me about bands that tell them that they have a good following and how they, as a result, would proceed to book them, and then only three or four people actually show up to see them perform on the night of the gig.

In the case of the first time I was referring to, the booker told me that it impacted her so much (in more ways than one) that she canceled live music on that night and now just has a DJ and/or karaoke instead!  The second one didn’t go that far, but it’s important to note that when she was telling me her version of it last week, it was completely unsolicited.  Meaning, this is obviously such a hot button topic that it came out simply by her starting to ask me if the band that I was there to talk to her about had a following.  She asked me the question but then immediately went into, “Because I get these bands that contact me wanting to play here and then I ask them…” and proceeded to tell what I’ve noted above.

And believe me, word will get around.

She went on to say that her place and probably four or five others in the immediate area (as in, maybe within five miles of each other) all sort of keep tabs not only on one another, but on who’s booking who where.  Generally, she said, you can see who’s working the circuit, meaning, getting booked right down the road from one place to the next and to the next and so on.

Never mind the fact that she also noted how bombarded she gets with bands trying to contact her through Facebook, looking to get booked there.  So, notice the difference.  There I was talking to her about a band – gasp – in person!  Similarly, listen to the episode of “Now Hear This Entertainment” from last week when half of the country duo Makenna and Brock talked about not Facebook messages and not emails, but, calling venues on the phone!

She (Makenna) talked about emotion and voice tone, contrasting it with emails, which don’t make it as easy to detect.  With that comes sincerity.  And with sincerity comes honesty.  If you don’t have a following, don’t say that you have a following.  It’s just that simple.  Word travels quickly and not only can you hurt yourself but in the case of the aforementioned venue that stopped live music altogether, you could be hurting others who, like you, are out there trying to make a living doing live performances.

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