Getting Your First Gig
One of the big questions I often get from my students is “how do I gig?” As in, how do you find gigs as an individual or as a band, and if I have a gig, what do I need to do to best prepare for it? and what advice do you have for anyone trying to perform live on a consistent basis? These next few blogs will be devoted to finding and navigating your way through the live music scene. This is specifically in the context of non-classical performances. I’ll have blogs later for classical musicians.
As someone who has been gigging for 20 years I have employed all the tactics I’m about to discuss. The biggest disclaimer I have before we dive into the advice is that YOU HAVE TO BE A GOOD PLAYER. I didn’t say the best. I didn’t say greatest of all time. I just said good. There is a standard at which you have to be at in order to start playing live. Those standards vary wildly from genre to genre and within your local music scene. If you are serious about performing and you are constantly practicing your craft then the below tactics will help you find your place in your local scene and hopefully beyond.
Step 1: BE ON THE SCENE
There simply is no better way to get gigs than by knowing people who have gigs, and by meeting other people who are looking for gigs. This means going to LOCAL shows. Not major touring artists who are performing in your area. I mean local venues with small acts where you can meet fellow musicians. Go to small music venues, go to restaurants and bars when there is live music, go to open mic nights. You need to be around like minded people. I got my gig as a touring musician because I went to see a fellow musician play at a restaurant. He had learned that day his friend needed as bassist for an upcoming tour and there I was.
I’m not saying you’ll get a touring gig everytime you go out and see someone perform but I can tell you that you WON’T get that opportunity if you’re at home. If no one knows you, no one will call you.
This point can’t be overstated. If you are simply on the scene meeting people, you’ll get asked to play a gig eventually. Open mic nights are great. When you’re there make sure to mingle. Talk to fellow musicians even if you aren’t performing. Sit near where the music is. Take notes. Do the same at bars and restaurants. Get some food, sit near the music, listen and take notes. You aren’t there to hang out with your normie friends. You are there on a mission: to hear what good live music sounds like and to meet fellow musicians.
Another major avenue is going to college for music. This will inherently put you into contact with people also looking to be musicians. You’ll have access to professors and other resources you wouldn’t otherwise have access to. There are downsides to music college so don’t go simply to get gigs but I met most of my contacts through my college networks. A full discussion of the college debate will be had in future blogs.
Step 2: LEARN SONGS
Ok, but there are literally thousands of songs. Which do I learn? There is a trick to narrow this down when it comes to finding gigs. When you go out and see people play, are there any songs that everyone plays? Learn those songs. You don’t have to like them, but you have to be able to play them.
When I started attending my local open mic night, I wrote down all the songs I heard that night (if I didn’t know the name, I asked someone. It’s scary. Be social.) From there I kept track of which songs I was hearing each week and which musicians were playing what and I learned those songs. Eventually when I signed up to play bass I could play anything I was asked to play. As a result of playing so well I eventually got asked to join a local band that was also at the open mic AND I am now the house bass player for the jam.
Step 3: KNOW WHAT YOU KNOW
By this I mean, keep a list of all the songs you know. There’s nothing worse than when I ask someone what songs they know and they say “I don’t know.” You should at the very least have 3-5 songs that you know inside and out and can play anytime someone asks you to play. I keep a list of songs I can play on my phone that I show people when we’re trying to figure out what song to play. If you sign up to play at an open mic you need to have a list to reference for everyone. Some of that list should be taken from songs you have already heard them playing and some should be songs you enjoy and learned because you wanted to. There should be common ground and you can play those songs.
This is where the whole, you have to be good, thing comes in. Don’t stress about being perfect but you do need to know what you’re doing and do it competently if you want people to ask you to join them on a gig. If you’re young, great. Continue going to the jam no matter how it goes. As you grow and get better as a musician, the guys at the jam will notice that. MANY famous musicians started at jams doing terribly and over time were asked to play in bands.
To summarize the question of getting a gig: learn lots of songs, keep a list of those songs and BE ON THE SCENE. Go to local shows and jams, meet the musicians, have conversations with them. Be social. People will eventually ask you to play. It might start as subbing on a gig because the regular guy can’t make it. Perfect. Crush that gig. You’ll get asked for another then another, and eventually you’ll be in a band full time.
In the next blog I’ll discuss starting your own band and then steps you can take to performing live as an already established band.
Until next time,
Heard
