I recently had the displeasure of speaking with a very rude business owner who called to try to book me to play music in his venue.
Apparently several of his regular customers had requested me specifically, having heard me play in other venues. He had already picked out a bunch of dates, and several of them worked in my calendar. Things were looking great...
He then told me that the pay for the gig was $100. When I explained that the going rate generally starts at twice that, he became defensive and offered to throw in a few drinks. At this point, I thanked him and politely declined the gig. His exact response was to laugh at me and say, "Are you serious?".
He seemed awestruck and offended that I had turned down his offer, so I tried to explain that a business needs to turn a profit, and at $100 I would be losing money. It was not that I didn't want the gig...it was that as a professional I couldn't play gigs that cost me money. He laughed sarcastically and his ignorance became further apparent when he ranted, bitched, and moaned for awhile about how HE would be losing money if he hired ME before abruptly hanging up.
Now, you might think I would be angry at this guy. However, I believe his excellence at demonstrating his ignorance helped me realize what the music profession is up against, especially in these tough economic times.
There are several factors, but I have tried to break down the problem into two major categories:
1. There is a difference between a "musician" and a professional musician.A professional musician runs a legitimate business, plays 5+ shows per week, and makes his living doing it. He creates a product and a "brand" through his music selection, the sound of his guitar, the quality of his audio equipment, and the quality of his performance. His product needs to command the price that allows him to remain profitable and to stay in business. The professional musician also is always aware that he has been hired to entertain, and in the case of bar/club gigs to generate income for the venue. This means he must constantly improve and adapt to ever-changing audiences, musical preferences, and economic challenges.
A regular "musician" is someone who might play solely for the love of playing, does not need the money, and might charge little or nothing to play in a venue. He might play once a week, perhaps only a couple times a month.
Now, there is nothing wrong with a regular musician. They play for all the right reasons, and in many ways they are a more "pure" form of musician. However, there is also nothing wrong with the professional who chooses to use his talent as a career.
The problem is that the general public seems to lump both types of musician into one. Many people believe that the regular musician who plays for free is a much wiser investment than the professional who might charge $200 to $500 per performance. Yet, I can attest from personal experience that the venues that make the most money are those that consistently hire and properly compensate professional entertainers. The reason is simple...the professional has the experience, the equipment, and the NEED to keep that audience entertained and in the venue. The regular musician is more likely to have a smaller repertoire, inferior equipment and sound quality, and to sound less polished overall...generally the last thing on their mind is whether or not the venue is making money.
Another great example of this concept is the high-pressure situation of a wedding performance. A bride wants her wedding day to be perfect, and music is often a big part of the ceremony and reception. The solution is to hire a professional...someone who has played weddings, has the equipment to sound right, knows how things work and is ready to adjust to keep the ceremony moving smoothly. It will cost you more, but this is why you hire a professional to play your wedding...because they are
professionals. Getting it right is their only option, and they
will deliver.
And finally...hiring musicians is just like buying cars, computers, or guitars. The old addage applies: you get what you pay for.
2. It COSTS money to play music!First...we drive. We drive a lot. Usually at least 500 miles a week. The size and amount of equipment we must carry dictates that we drive large cars or SUVs and we rarely get over 20mpg. This translates to at least $60 per week in fuel costs. But what about tires, oil changes, depreciation, insurance, wear & tear...etc.?
Even the IRS now acknowledges the cost of operating a vehicle for business at $0.585 per mile. Sadly this is WAY too low...but since it is an "official" number it is what we must use to calculate travel costs. So, if you're not great at math, that means for every gig I play that is 50 miles away, my travel cost is $58.50. For 100 miles away, my cost for travel is $117. But wait there is more!
A professional uses professional equipment. The big costs are instruments and sound equipment, as well as home office equipment. This initial investment is generally in the $5000 to $10000 range. But things break and wear out so there is a constant fluctuation in microphones, mixers, speakers, cables, stands and even instruments. As a rule of thumb I figure this cost at $200 per month...the built in overhead of the business. For calculating this cost I factor in $10 to each show ($2000 per year).
The day to day things that really add up are guitar strings (a new set at LEAST every 3 shows usually), picks, batteries (several 9V's each week), etc. For me, these items account for an average of about $7 per show ($1400 per year).
And what about food? Generally at least one meal is required during a trip...often two and sometimes all three meals are on the road. I factor in a cost of $4 per show ($800 per year) for meals...based on my actual numbers, this may still be too low.
Sometimes there is lodging, sometimes there are special expenses (costumes for Halloween shows, special wardrobe requests for wedding gigs, lighting rentals, additional sound equipment rentals, and so on). Add another $2 per show ($400 per year) to cover these special expenses.
So far, the cost of playing that gig 100 miles away is up to $140. And believe it or not, there are MORE costs to running a business. Things like printer paper and cartridges, office supplies web site fees, professional organization dues, tax preparation fees, and on, and on, and on!
And did I mention that this is all before taxes...and that self-employed persons actually pay TWICE the rate for FICA that everyone else does?!
Maybe you can understand why I didn't take that $100 gig. Maybe not.
The fact is that this is a real business with real expenses, real overhead, and a real need to turn a profit. So the next time you are inclined to hire a professional musician, please don't act shocked when it costs you at least as much to hire them as it costs them to perform!
-j
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