Live Music Blog

Having a lot of individuals that know who you’re is always a worth and not a hindrance.

Just the other day I got a call from an individual who wanted to find out if I was available to performance bass with their band. I declined due to not having the room to take on another project but I gave them the number of an individual else I knew that would fit the bill perfectly.

That day, that performer found a new bass player and so the story goes.

That experience got me thinking that pretty much everything that I do in my dealings with the music industry is based on who I know.

people prefer working with others whom they trust will do the job they want them to do or prefer recommending others for jobs that they can’t tackle themselves for one reason or another. I recognize that when this specific band that was looking for a bassist finally found one through my network I was proud of myself. I was glad to stimulate an individual out.

That is what networkings really all about though is not it? Helping people?

For anyone who’s just starting out my recommenndation is to seek out as a lot of people and go to as a lot of functions and concert as you can.

Immerse yourself in your Regional scene.

The more that people know who you are, the more opportunities that will open up for the taking. Become the squeaky wheel that gets all of the oil. Have that belief in yourself that you are worth knowing and don’t be afraid of knowledge.

One thing that you don’t do nonetheless is to get to know individuals for what they might do for you. Get to know them for who they’re as a individual. Others might spot your insincerity a mile away (especially us cynical musos) and that is a real turn-off.

Personally I am chuffed when an individual asks me for recommenndation or just wants to have a chat about how things are going for them, but only If they are genuine about it.

A amazing place to start networking would be at open mic nights.

Get yourself involved in an open mic and just walk up to a person and say “hi”. Everybody is there for the same reason so there is some common ground. You could perhaps ask them If they’re going to be performing on that night and go from there.

Remember, the more you network the more you will be known and the more you are known the more work you will get.

In time your ‘little black book’ of names will become your most important asset.

I have met a lot of musicians along my journey and some of those I have gotten to know pretty well. All of them have a similar story as to how they started in the music industry and it goes a bit like this.

I don’t know how I started really, I just sort of fell into it and before I knew it I was in a band

Sound familiar? It does to me. That is how I got started.

I did not have a plan, did not have a clue and did not have any idea of what I was getting myself in for let alone what I wanted to get out of it.

I wanted to be a “rock star” so I could “meet girls“.

I has been only fifteen when I made that decision and thinking back on it I cringe and laugh at the same time but it does show me the importance of getting prepared ahead.

It’s substantially simple to get swept up in the hype of it all and before you know you are in the same place that you started but ten years have gone by and you are left wondering ‘where did it go’.

Before going any further you need to ask yourself some questions. The questions may be (in no particular order of importance):

1. Am I going to write tunes or not?

2. Am I going to be a solo performer or play in a band?

3. Am I going to sing, performance an instrument or both?

4. Am I prepared to practise, drill and rehearse my craft?

5. Am I going to find my own work or do I leave that up to a person else?

I think you’re getting the idea of where I am going with this.

You may be thinking that these questions may seem particularly easy and straightforward and in essence you are right however, I am never ending ly surprised how a easy question such as “am I going to be a solo performer or play in a band” may distract a person from actually moving forward.

I’ve seen it happen to many musicians and have experienced it myself.

Before you start have a evident knowledge of what you want to do and what you want to get out of it. Ask yourself these categories of really easy questions and from those answers a series of paths will be presented to you.

All you need to do then is to select which path you take.

Working to a plan will make your journey a lot easier to undertake.