Ep 35: What Musicians Wish Venue Owners Knew

In this episode, John talks about the things musicians wish venues knew that make the gig easier for the musician and, more importantly, the things that foster a good relationship between venue and musician.

Musicians want venue owners to succeed. However, there are many things that often go overlooked that make the gig difficult for the performer. Some of those things are inconveniences, some are health concerns, and some are frustrating hurdles that shouldn't have to exist.

In a perfect world, musicians can communicate the things they need to be as successful as possible, and the venue will listen and take action.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

You are listening to the Gig to Live Podcast. Welcome everyone. I'm John Folsom. I'm a full-time working musician. This podcast is about building a music life that holds up over time. It's practical, enjoyable, sometimes uncomfortable, but it's always about helping you stay in the game and actually enjoy the life that you're building. We'll meet some wonderful working musicians from time to time. So whether you're just getting started or you've been doing this for years, you're in the right spot. This podcast is for you. Good morning, or good afternoon, or hey, good evening. I don't know what time you listen, but I'm sure glad you do. Thanks for being here. A while back, I did an episode called What Venue Owners Actually Want, and it got a lot of traction. So here we are a few months later, and we're going to give venue owners the musician perspective today. This podcast is designed for gigging musicians. Now, I don't know how many venue owners will actually listen to this episode. I hope some will, but if they don't, I think there's value in it for us, the musicians, because many musicians simply accept whatever conditions we've been given because we assume that that's part of the job. My dog is just choosing to eat and drink right now as I start this podcast. Hey, buddy, you think you can wait a little while? Okay, where was I? Oh yeah. Talking about the things musicians wish venue owners understood helps us identify what we actually need to perform at our best. It gives us permission to ask for reasonable accommodations, communicate expectations clearly, and think more intentionally about the business side of what we do. There's also something valuable about sharing our experiences with one another. Musicians often work alone, and it's easy to think that we're the only ones hauling gear across a parking lot or playing in the blazing sun or setting up next to a noisy HVAC unit or trying to scrounge up the bare necessities for the gig. So hearing other musicians' stories reminds us that these challenges are common, and sometimes the value isn't in solving the problem as much as it is realizing that we're not the only ones dealing with it. There's a certain comfort and camaraderie and shoot, even humor that comes with commiserating with people who understand exactly what the job is like. So at its core, this isn't really an episode about changing venue owners. It's an episode about helping musicians advocate for themselves while also celebrating the shared experience of gigging, this thing that we love. And the more we understand what contributes to a successful gig, the better we can communicate those needs and establish professional standards and build stronger relationships with venues. And you know, sometimes it's just nice to gather around the virtual campfire and swap stories with people who get it. I've been wanting to do this episode for a bit, but recently I had an experience that put it over the top for me. I was playing a venue. It's a regular venue for me. It's a place I really love, uh, a place where I really enjoy the staff, the owners. I rarely have a hiccup. But at the end of the gig, I went to get my meal, as I usually do, to take home and eat. I take it to go. And I was told, as I was standing there, you know, after I decided what I wanted from the menu, I was told there's a recent change, and all musicians can only choose from a handful of items. The other menu items, they were available, but it would be offered to musicians at 50%, a 50% discount. Now, this situation happened to me two other times in the last six months. One other venue put together a musicians-only menu, which is a list of the cheapest, most boring, easiest to prepare food. And another venue handed me a bill at the end of the gig and said they forgot to tell me that I had to buy my own beverages now. So thank God I'm not a huge drinker, and that bill only came to 150 bucks. No, I'm I'm kidding. I only had to buy two drinks, but still, that was 20 bucks that I was not planning on spending. You know, when you get a $20 tip, it feels great. And to think, well, there goes a $20 tip because I had to buy drinks that I I didn't even really need, and I thought I got for free. So it was it was weird. I'm getting anxious just thinking about these scenarios, so I'm going to launch into a top 10 list. Drumroll, please. The top 10 things musicians wish that venues knew. Number 10, it's an easy win to feed the musicians. We already started talking about this in the preamble, so I'm going to finish it. I'm gonna round it out. I used to own a venue, and I can tell you it doesn't cost the venue an arm and a leg to feed the musician. It's an easy win. If you need to cut back on costs and some knucklehead musician is making it bad for the rest of us by picking the most expensive things on your menu, then give us a budget. If it helps, tell musicians we can have a stipend for food and drinks. That feels way better. But giving us a meal creates far more goodwill than a 50% off-your meal offer. Most of us left home hours ago and we're not going to get back until late. And we're used to driving through Taco Bell or eating leftovers. Making us choose from the bargain bin or giving us a discount, or worse yet, making us pay full price for a meal like a couple of venues that I've played at, it feels like a slap in the face. It feels like a guy who tips us 20 bucks and reaches back in for change. So it's an easy win. Number nine, we need a good place to park and unload. Hauling gear three blocks through crowds, upstairs, downstairs, through traffic, it's a rough way to start a show. Now, sometimes it's inevitable. We get that. A lot of venues don't have any parking nearby. Uh some venues, uh all their employees, and in some cases, even the owner, has to park off site somewhere. But not all of them. Some venues have spaces close by and they still require the musician to park off-site. Kind of a bummer. Some will allow the musician to unload close to the venue and park elsewhere. Now, part of me understands why they do this. They want to free up space for patrons. And musicians actually want to make it so paying customers can have the spaces. But if a venue can make it easy on the musician to haul all of their gear, you know, to have a place to unload, a decent place to park, it would be a good gesture. Some venues that I play at have done a great job with this. Some venues have a musician spot reserved. That is always appreciated. I have one venue that pays for musician parking because you have to pay for all of the street parking in the area. It's metered parking, and the owner keeps a jar of quarters out for the musicians. I mean, what a great thing. It's only about three bucks and quarters for the whole gig, but that goes a long way to say thank you. We want to make it as easy as possible for the venue. So if the venue can return the favor, that would be great. Number eight. Shade, protection from the weather, reasonable temperatures, enough room to move around. That that all matters. Reliable power prevents a ton of headaches. I played a venue last year, and they told me before I started playing they were having some problems with their power going on and off, and the owner had to fix the outlet where I was. Now they didn't give me an opportunity to move anywhere else. They just wanted to let me know that my power would probably occasionally go out. Another venue last summer had their outlet in the ceiling. They didn't even know where it was. I had to find it. I had to go to my truck then and get an extension cord, uh, which the only one I had was like a hundred feet long, big, bulky orange extension cord. And then I had to borrow a ladder uh to reach the outlet. Musicians seldom complain, at least the ones I know. We often tolerate conditions that we would never ask customers or staff to tolerate because we don't want to be difficult. Number seven. Please don't stick us next to the loudest thing in the building. HVAC units, fans, blenders, kitchen doors, televisions, speaker systems, they can make it so difficult for us to perform. By the way, kill the TVs. Uh that's another topic altogether. But yeah, if you have volume up on your televisions when uh somebody is playing music, yikes. This year I told a seasonal venue that I couldn't play there anymore. Over a year ago, I told them it was difficult to play right next to their outside HVAC unit. It's so loud that it drowns out my sound system when I'm playing. Now everybody else can hear it because of the way it's situated, but when when I'm standing right by the unit, I cannot hear or barely hear anything coming out of my speaker. When I showed up six months later, they put me in the same spot. They weren't willing to change it. There are at least two other spots at that venue that would work wonderfully, but they're not willing to change. Another venue, I uh venue I used to play at put me right by the kitchen. I could hear blenders, microwaves, dishes, and you know, the clone of Gordon Ramsay in the kitchen yelling uh the whole time. Not to mention the servers almost crashed into me every time they came through the door, and I'm certain I wasn't making their job any easier either. So please just be careful where you put us. Number six. Good musicians are small business owners too. And we really want you to win. If your venue succeeds, we succeed. We're on your team. You're not hiring somebody to show up with a guitar or keys. You aren't just hiring a band, you're hiring someone who has invested thousands of dollars and countless hours into their craft. And we start working long before we get to the venue. Driving, loading, setting up, sound checking, learning songs, promoting, it's all part of the job. But nothing would make us happier than to bring a consistent crowd to your place of business and to see you killing it. Man, that would make us so happy because we get it. We are business owners. By the way, number five, we need you to promote the show too. Musicians should promote. But venues have a bigger audience than the musician in many cases, and the best results happen when both sides market the event. It always amazes me to see a venue that hasn't posted anything to their social media in months. No regular updates, no stories. How do they expect people to know what's going on? That's the question that I have in my head. Not only for music, but really how do they expect to be on people's minds if they don't use the number one tool that's available to them? So, my goodness. The other night I played a gig. I was so thrilled. The new owners actually hired someone to take care of social media. I knew something was up when one of my promos got shared on their social media a few days before the gig. That hadn't happened to me in three years of playing at this venue. And when I got to the venue, the social media manager met me and asked me if they had my permission to post video of me playing live. Are you kidding me? Of course. I mean, that may be the only time I've ever been asked that, you know, permission to do so. I thought it was great. Number four. Tell your staff that we're coming. It's so awkward when nobody knows that there's live music scheduled. I've shown up to a venue before where everyone's confused, nothing's prepared, and I become the biggest hiccup and inconvenience of their night up to that point, and it feels awful. Of course, uh, we work it hard and we put them at ease. We do our best to make the staff feel good with it, but it still feels awful. Especially if you hear the murmurings of the manager saying, Nobody tells me anything. Then you feel stuck in the middle as a musician. So, venue owners, tell your staff and then train them to greet the musician. A simple introduction goes a long way. A quick hello from the owner or the manager can make the musician feel so welcome. And if you tell us in advance who our contact is, it's even better. Who do we talk to when we arrive? Who handles the questions? Who pays us? Number three. We need the stage area prepared. In most cases, stage areas are small and the venue needs the space for seating. We get it. We don't like the clutter either. So where do we put our cases? You know, there has to be some area, especially for bands. Dear Lord. If we can have a place to set our stuff out of the way, it will make everything better for everyone. And actually, this was the issue that made me start using my guitar case as my tip case. Nowhere to put stuff. So I thought, bah, well, why not just use my case? When I used to play in a band, I would sometimes stack our cases like pieces of furniture, and then I would leave the top one open for tips. And one time I just put a lamp on top of it to make it look intentional, like a piece of furniture you'd see in some shabby chic shops. So I can't tell you how many times I show up at a venue and I have to make my own stage area. I have to move tables, chairs, I have to vacuum a lot of the time, bust dishes out of the way. No joke. Most of us show up an hour early to set up. Please just have a spot ready. I think in some venues, I really think they don't want music. They just think they should have it and they put up with it. And that gets communicated to us when we show up and we see, you know, messy dishes all over tables and chairs we have to move out of the way and figure out something to do with them. It communicates that they're just putting up with us and it feels kind of gross. Number two, the little things matter more than you think. Musicians aren't asking for special treatment. At least not most of the time. Some can be, you know, weeners, but no, we're not asking for special treatment. Most of what musicians want isn't extravagant. It's the same thing every professional wants. We want respect, communication, and the tools that we need to do our job well. But we remember how we're treated and musicians talk to each other. Venues develop reputations just like musicians do. I used to play a venue that was always really hot. Now I can usually take the heat if I have a fan, if I have shade. Most of the time. I travel with my own fan now, but at least shade. Although some health issues that I've recently, you know, acquired, they have made it harder for me. So I played there last summer and the shade they provided was a broken umbrella. One of the sides was broken and the umbrella sagged like right in your face unless you turned it the right way, and then, you know, it was right in the way of anybody being able to see you from the crowd. It only gave partial shade, it looked really crappy. So I asked them to replace it. Six months later I came back, same umbrella, except it was more broken. So I canceled all my future gigs there. In other news, I played a recent gig where I waited, wait for it, 30 minutes to get paid. I was packed up and waiting for 30 minutes. My wife was in the parking lot with my granddaughter waiting for me. Text me when you come down the stairs, you know. She said about 20 minutes into it, and I was trying so hard just to get in touch with someone. I had to talk to three people just to get a check. Were they busy? Um, not really. But that doesn't matter. Nobody likes chasing down payment after the show. So, venue owners have a process and stick to it. Cut the check in advance, have it waiting. It's no fun to finally find the person in charge and explain to them how much you get paid and how to spell your name. I had a gig last year that argued with me on how much they usually pay musicians, and I charged more. Well, I had to go through all my emails and find the agreement with the owner. And then the manager mumbled about how they were going to get in trouble. Well, they weren't. I had it in writing, but I understood the position they were in. It's tough for them, so it shouldn't be that hard. Just have the check ready and let us know who we talk to to get it and to get it promptly. Guess what? We are also your customers. Many of us musicians eat and drink and bring family and friends to venues where we're treated well. We want to support you. You know, but if that shenanigans keeps up, then we find other places to play and other places to celebrate. Number one, don't assume that tips make up for low pay. Some nights our tips are great, and some nights they're non-existent. Musicians need predictable compensation. We agree that we aren't getting a base pay of what we're necessarily worth. We know that few venues could actually afford us if we charged what we actually should make. So we calculate a bottom line based on our time and our worth, and then we pray for tips. If you're trying to undercut your musician and pay a low rate, thinking that oh, they're popular, they'll they bring in a tipping crowd. Well, think again, tipping is sporadic, it's weird. Sometimes it's magical, but mostly not. Hey team. By the way, I'm talking to musicians now. Here's a good way to get venues to listen to this. Post a link to the episode on your social media and just put a little note about how the episode is helpful and you wish every venue would take note. Maybe some of the venues that you play will listen to it. Who knows? That would be super sneaky of us, right? Better yet, post a link and praise a venue. I'm so happy that most of the venues I play at think through all of this important stuff, and I wish everyone did, because really we want to sing the praises of the venues who are doing a great job as well. Or not, you don't have to. It's just good to talk about it and get it out of our systems, right? And maybe we all learned something today. We feel empowered to ask for the things we need, not to be pre Madonnas, just to be as successful as we can be, and to make it really successful for the venues that we love and want to support. Please do me a favor, subscribe and follow this podcast. If you're feeling extra kind, please give it a good rating, say something nice on Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen. They allow ratings there on Apple Podcasts. So tell your friends. All right, stay creative, stay after it, and stay hired.