Christian Klepac is a writer and musician who lives and works in Seattle WA. He currently plays guitar and sings in the band Stereo Sons. He has a solo album coming soon via Tunecore.
An
important goal for any emerging artist is to develop a following at
home. Touring, recording, and creating a web presence are all important
too, but the surest path to a viable career is building a fanbase from
the ground up, starting in your own backyard. Here are some tips on
getting things rolling in your hometown.
1. KNOW YOUR VENUES
A major city can have a bewildering number of live music venues, and
even a small college town might have half a dozen. Before sending out
your press kit or even a friendly email, get to know as much as you can
about these venues. Most clubs will have a website with a show
calender, though smaller ones might do this through myspace or another
social networking site. Find out who's playing this month, and listen
to those bands online if you can. You're looking for a venue that books
your kind of act. The local heavy metal club will probably ignore a
booking request from your twee indie project, or worse may unknowingly
set you up for a disastrous show.
Another factor here is the size of band each venue is likely to book.
If you're a fledgling singer/songwriter or rock band, you might not
want to start your quest for world domination at your local big theater
that specializes in high profile national touring acts. Rather, you
should find the kinds of clubs that will place you in the company of
other bands like yours, so you can meet each others fans and help each
other out (more on this below).
2. KNOW YOUR BOOKERS
The brave men and women who book talent at your local bars and theaters
are people too! Their days are spent fielding an endless stream of
emails and phone calls from bands, label reps, DJs, and other folks who
want something from them, not to mention the venue managers, sound and
light techs, and bouncers who depend on them to do their own jobs. The
best way to stand out is to treat these people with respect and try to
make their lives easier.
Keep a notebook or database of local clubs and try to find out who
books the ones you want to play. Your local weekly paper will often
mention or profile these folks. You can also do some internet sleuthing
- the venue's website may have info on the bookers, or you could write
to some other bands who have played there. Bookers are often new-media
savvy and may be present on Twitter and Facebook.
Note that making a connection here is not the same as stalking these
people! Any booker with sufficent experience has had a run-in with a
musician or agent who is a little too pushy and can't respect personal
boundaries, and will instantly shut down contact with such a person.
Respect is key, and if you can help out by offering to book the rest of
a bill, or providing needed gear, or hand-delivering flyers to the
venue, you're likely to get a good response.
3. SELL BEER
As high as your artistic aspirations may be, and as vital as it is to
hang on to them, it's important to remember that when you're playing a
set at a local bar, you and your bandmates are in the business of
selling beer. Bands who make money for the venue get invited back and
placed on better bills, those who don't, don't – it's that simple. Use
every technique in your arsenal to mobilize people to attend every
show. Often this means (paradoxcially) cutting your local presence down
to one show a month – it's better to play once and get everyone you
know out than to play five times for five people each time.
Aside from the standard and indispensable tools of flyering and mailing
list promotion, try contacting your local radio stations and newspapers
about your upcoming gigs – they'll often have a person on staff to
handle upcoming events. Consider placing an ad in your local weekly
paper, and of course keep your web presence current with blog posts and
status updates to remind potential attendees about the big show.
4. JOIN YOUR SCENE
The most important step for local musicians is, for some, the hardest.
If you've practiced your chops, trimmed the fat from your songs, and
sent out all your social networking reminders, you might fool yourself
into thinking that your job is done. It's not! Find out who the bands
are in town that you want to play with, then go to their shows. Keep a
personal calendar of upcoming events you want to attend. It can be
expensive, but it's as vital an expense as guitar strings. At the
venue, introduce yourself to your colleagues, ask about teaming up on
future shows, or just hang out and have a beer. The more you do it, the
easier it gets.
Again, networking is not stalking, or obsequious schmoozing. Think
about the good feeling you get when someone comes up to you after a
performance and genuinely wants to talk to you about mutual interests.
Every musician wants this, and you can provide it to others while
making new friends.
Another avenue toward joining your scene is to get involved with local
music-related charities and non-profit organizations. Many of these
groups put on big benefit shows, and by volunteering your time you can
meet the movers and shakers while doing something good for your
community.
5. DON'T FORGET TO ROCK
It's sad, but some bands get so caught up in the whirlwind of emails,
phone calls and meetings with industry pros that they forget to focus
on what really matters. Ultimately, a great song, a quality recording
and an exciting performance are the true coin of the realm. Before you
turn on the hype machine, make sure that you've created something that
you are truly proud of and want to share with the world. If you find
yourself getting too caught up in the surface glamour of the music
world, go home, unplug your computer, lock the door and re-connect with
your instrument until you remember why you decided to do all this in
the first place.
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