Pay to Play
Unless you are a musician or have worked hands-on in the music industry, chances are that you do not realize everything it takes to be in a band. Maybe you have an idea, but in its full capacity it’s hard to recognize just how involved a process it is and how much of a toll it can take.
The financial responsibility alone can be overwhelming: rehearsal space, studio time for recording, equipment and equipment maintenance, CD pressing(s), merch, a van or bus and the maintenance fees that come along…the list goes on and on and on. Most bands take this in stride, knowing that it comes with the territory. If you are doing something that you love, chances are that you will do whatever necessary in order to succeed, no matter the level.
Pay to Play, in essence, is a way for promoters to recoup their expenses. Meaning, usually, they want a good headliner, book said headliner, pay an awful lot in advertising to make sure people come to the show and also pay for staffing, tickets and flyer printings, etc. In order to make good on a guarantee, he or she now must make sure that their funding comes from somewhere. A good amount of venues and promoters will seek out sponsorship, but with how stagnant the industry has been as of late, most sponsors are not taking the bait, so now what? Well, they can not charge too much for tickets because people would not be comfortable paying $25.00 for a ticket to a venue that’s not Madison Square Garden, unless the act is, say, the Beastie Boys or another act of that caliber…and since the Beastie Boys are not rolling in anytime soon as far as I know, it’s pretty much a moot point.
Anyway, so hiking up ticket sales is not an option and you can not always guarantee bar sales will pick up the slack, shows are offered all week and people will not be drinking as much during the week as they would on the weekend. And here is where we come to the solution of Pay to Play; charge the smaller bands. Minimum tickets sales for the bands are between 30 - 50 at an average of $10.00 each, and if the band does not sell them, they can not return them. For instance, if a band is required to purchase forty tickets, that’s four hundred dollars, out of pocket, just to play a show.
I put out an open invite for opinions on this matter, and most people were not afraid to speak their mind, both for Pay to Play, and against.
“I think the whole "pay to play" thing is an atrocity.
Promoters "promote" and musicians "play".
People shouldn't call themselves promoters when they can't get people out to a show that they've booked.
And although bands should still promote and get people out to their shows...
it's really not their responsibility.
There's way too many of these so called "promoters" out there...
they book a show and put no leg work into the promotion aspect of things.
They figure they're just gonna book a band and make themselves some money...
and the only "promotion" they do is posting a flier on myspace.
I think it's been very destructive to the local music scene.
And this is not about ALL promoters, by the way.
There are some good ones out there...
-Sean “Satyr”, Swear On Your Life
myspace.com/swearonyourlife
“Pay to play is a function of promoters inability to do their jobs properly. Most promoters do not have a proper business model or plan to facilitate successful events or shows. So what happens is you the band become responsible for their way of doing bad business. Essentially, you become his or her employee for that event just so they can show up, drink for free and try to be the toast of the town. Meanwhile, in reality, you put you shoe soles to the pavement to try and make it successful. We are musicians. It is our job to make music. They are promoters. It is their job to promote. It's a complete sham and should be boycotted!”
Derek Sessions
Revenge Of The Dragon
myspace.com/revengeofthedragon
“…I think that bad booking practices by clubs and "Promoters" (including pay to play) have ruined the scene here in Toronto. The clubs book entirely on how many friends an act can draw regardless of talent. People have gone to see their friends bands and been turned off of live music by shows that have 5 or 6 bands that weren't ready musically to be playing live. Had the clubs/promoters booked shows based on musical quality all along this shift wouldn't have happened and people would come just because they knew the music would be worth it.”
Scott Lucier , Blue Sky Down
Toronto
Canada
myspace.com/blueskydown
“I can see how this would benefit the promoter short term but I think most reputable promoters don't use this policy or, at least, that has been my experience. They would make enough money off of the acts with a bigger draw and just take a hit when they book someone who doesn't make them very much money. It is my opinion that promoters who practice pay to play are preying on smaller bands they know have little draw and I am pretty sure there is a website somewhere that lists promoters who have ripped them off somewhere. In the long run, this is not a wise business practice because people won't willingly work with them again just because they wanted to make a quick buck for the night.”
-Holli: BAMF, currently touring with Warped.
myspace.com/franciscothegirl
“A band is being hired to boost the clubs draw. You wouldn't hire a clown for a kids party and then ask him/her for money cause not enough kids showed up.
If the club doesn't know the band or think they will draw why let them play? Get one that will.
My band has already turned down several shows due to them wanting us to purchase tix then sell them ourselves. We did it once with death angel/god forbid and I think we out drew both of those nationals. Needless to say we only make about $100 of the $700 we brought in at the door.
So to put it bluntly fuck any club that expects money from us to play their shit hole.”
-Brian, Rage From Within
myspace.com/ragefromwithin
“Considering I’m a promoter and DO have bands sell tickets, there’s just sooo much to type that I don’t feel like trying to prove a point for both sides. I grew up and always will be a hardcore kid, but there’s just so many things that I could tell you to prove how much they have changed from even 5 years ago let alone 10,15,20, etc
The one thing I’ve learned in 6 years of booking is that you can NEVER make EVERYONE happy, just an impossible thing.”
-Charlie, Die Trying Booking
myspace.com/dietryingshows
The way I do things at my venue (not to be named), the bands take 200
tickets on consignment. Depending on the show, the bands sell anywhere
from 100-200 tickets and receive $1 for tickets 1-50, $2 for 51-100
and $3 for 101 and beyond. Now, the band has the ability to make up to
$600 (or more if they take more tickets) and play in a real venue,
supporting headlining talent. I see it as a smart business transaction
on both ends. I am giving the band a huge incentive to go sell these
tickets and they're guaranteeing me tickets in return (and not up
front). Now if the band comes back with minimal tickets sold; don't
expect to play again any time soon.”
-Anonymous
“That’s the most underhanded BS I've ever heard...The practice of CHARGING a band to play is absolutely ridiculous. I hope these bands have the gumption and self respect to just play somewhere else.
I was raised in teeny little Florida towns where bars at least pay with beer. Making the TALENT pay to be heard is so greedy I cant believe it! I don't care how small time they are, way to support local art huh?!
It’s about the talent, NOT the promotion.”
JD, People ‘R’ Pets
myspace.com/peoplerpets
As of late, this specific subject has really started to come up more and more in conversation. Asking bands to Pay to Play started off every once and again, and now it is simply ridiculous. Certain promoters spoken with have fully admitted that they do not enjoy asking bands to Pay to Play, but it is sometimes a necessary evil. You wanna play a good show, but they can not continually put these shows together without guaranteeing a certain amount of tickets sold. Fair enough. But, to book these shows with acts that are teetering on mediocre (and that’s being generous) just to tell a band they have to shell out hundreds of dollars? How many people really want to go see a washed up act from the 80’s perform their one or two hit singles, even if they do love the opener?
A lot of people are not aware of how these things work, therefore, I can not fault them for the choices they make. My goal is to have as many people as I can recognize the fact that these situations do exist. For as many bands that refuse to Pay to Play, there are just as many who will do so because they do not want to pass up certain shows. Your favorite band may be paying a stupid amount of money to play, so if you see a myspace bulletin promoting the fact that they have tickets and you are planning on going to the show, please do not buy them at the door. And don’t forget to say Thank You.
If you have also have an opinion on "Pay to Play", please feel free to comment below or send an email to: kristin@iconsofpunk.com.
