Off and on there is debate on whether or not you should play free gigs or not. I think this question can be easily answered just based on the convenience factor.
The convenience factor is simply this: If the gig for whatever it may be is something local to you (meaning no extensive travel required) and is a place where the owner welcomes you/your band, and the place draws a relatively decent crowd on certain nights of the week, that’s convenient. And by “relatively decent crowd,” that’s anywhere from 30 to 50 people or more.
What’s the secret to getting paid for a free gig?
A tip jar.
And no, I’m not kidding.
There are bands who play free gigs, put out a tip jar (usually a pitcher with a big “TIPS” sticker/sign/whatever on it), and can take in $500 or more for a single gig – all in tips.
Again, no, I’m not kidding.
There are bands who actively play free gigs at local bars, break out the tip jar and walk away after playing for a few hours with a pretty good wad of cash.
“I don’t want to beg for money or tick anyone off”
You won’t. Musicians putting out the tip jar is something that’s been going on for many centuries, and nobody will get offended by you putting the jar out there. You’ve seen other bands doing the tip jar thing, and so should you.
You do, however, have to periodically remind people that the tip jar is there. After every 3rd song or so, you can simply say, “If you like what you hear, we appreciate tips; the tip jar is right here.” And for every single time someone drops cash in the jar, mention it with a “thank you” and be sure to show appreciation.
“Still sounds like begging to me…”
Consider this:
Have you ever refused a gig because the owner of the place won’t pay enough or outright won’t pay you at all?
Well, now you have an alternative way of getting paid for those gigs. You want to be paid for your performance, right? Right. You want to increase exposure for the band, right? Right.
So play the free gigs and break out the tip jar. Even if you only walk away with the cash that only covers the gas it took to get there, you didn’t lose anything. Breaking even is not a negative, and there’s the very likely possibility you may gain new fans by playing those free gigs, so you actually make a gain instead of a loss.
If your band is good and the people are enjoying themselves, the jar will get filled up.
“We tried the tip jar before and it didn’t work”
I’m not saying the tip jar will work for everyone, but if you haven’t tried it yet, you should. Get the jar ready, play free gigs and who knows? They may pay you better than the paid gigs.
Does your band use a tip jar, and did it work? Post a comment or two with your experiences.
One idea is to earmark the tips for a specific purpose and so designate on the label, e.g., “Help us release our next album!”
Great idea. Better than a bottle of wine and some food lol! although getting fed is always good too!
It’s not the tip jar that’s the issue: it’s the venue making money off you for nothing in return.
I am a member of a group on Facebook called “Stop pay-to-play”. Here’s a different perspective on this issue….
“The paragraph below is from the booker of a French Restaurant in Los Angeles called Taix 321
“Just wanted to make sure you understand we’re a “free venue”, so bring in about 20 friends and fans per act and we’ll give each band member 2 drink vouchers and a reasonable dinner voucher”
I called this guy when I saw this and asked
“Do you tell the chef, bring 20 people and we’ll give you a voucher for half off”?
Do you tell the janitor, bring 20 friends and we’ll give you a voucher for 2 watered down drinks? No. This is such bullsh*t. he mumbled something I couldn’t make out followed by, This is how it is. SO, I said. You exploit musicians, who in many cases are starving, with THAT justification? This is how it is?”
In the music world you have to pay to play. Working a gig for free and not expecting anything from the venue, promoter, or your fans in my eyes is not an issue unless you like the idea of “starving musician” or “underground sucess”. If you want to make money you have to pay to play. Showing up with swag, like cheap spray paint stenciled T-Shirts, free C.D’s to promote your music, and having some friends in the crowd getting everyone hyped is a way to start getting paid for what you enjoy. I’ll totally agree with placing a label on the jar like “Help Fund Our Next Tour”, or even “Help for Recording Time in the Studio for the Next Album”. This would be totally worth the time. Tipping musicians is nothing new. I worked at a restaurant and would regularly tip the band if they were on point and setting the mood. Seeing employees tip the band and interact with the band is what makes people chime in. I met my personal instructor this way. Everyone is approachable if your not intimidated. It is just like hitting the dance floor. Once the first person dives in, the rest are soon to follow. Shake your tail feather and support your local musicians.
Tip jar is good, but be careful not to upset the wait-staff and/or bartenders. They may see you as competition. Promote your tip jar, but also remind the patrons to tip the bar staff as well! And pass them a few bucks yourself from your own tip jar.
It always helps to have an attractive fan take the tip jar around once per set and ask people to pitch in.
Never play for free. Everyone down to the staff is making money on the venue. Everyone is making money off of you except you for those who do free gigs. Actually if you factor in gas and everything else you’re losing money so they can make money off of you. In the 30 years I’ve never played for free and I’ve done just fine. You can too. Do not play for free.
People want to hear Live Music…When some people are starting out they might have to play for free or tips but after a while if you continue to do this you are just hurting yourself. If groups/bands did not play for free people would go to the clubs who had bands that were paid and stop going to clubs without Live Music. This all feeds on itself. Support Live Music and the clubs that realize why folks are coming to their clubs in the first place
THIS ALL MAKES SENSE TO ME…Support clubs that pay to have Live Music who pay the bands who play there. If everyone stopped playing for free clubs owners could not take advantage of Bands!
I agree…Don’t play for free!
All these points are valid but it depends on the situation .. Do your ground work first.. check out the space and other bands before even booking the gig . Ask questions.. The more you learn the more you will earn..
However playing shows for free can lead to better paying shows later.. Volunteering your band for charity work is a great way to gain exposure.. People who see that your are willing to help a cause are more inclined to help your cause in return ..
great comments, Performing at a house concert, a tip jar is quite appropriate, and a very honest living, people are requested to pay what its worth to them according to their income, not everyone has the same income bracket. I am poor and i like it… I only have one musical performance regret… I missed Ron Carter…
I simply cannot play for free because bills don’t pay themselves!!
I don’t mind doing a charity gig but don’t confuse that with free, I”m not taking out $8000 worth of equipment for nothing. If your barely starting and have no reputation maybe free is your only option, but after you play a few times and your bringing in a crowd; its time to get paid
Getting paid to play comes down to three powers of intimidation. Image power; legal power; and professionalism power; lack any of the above and you WILL be jumping for the bone.
My band(s) all get paid & we get tips. all the while playing places with no cover charge and free parking! How? Play what the customers want! Lots of covers in the key your singer sounds best in! Screw the set list, if you’ve got them up dancing, play another dance number! Your original can wait. One of the bands I groove for plays over 100 nights a year this way. You can too.