Singer/Songwriter, Guitarist, Gear-head, Video Maker, Documentarian. The 21st Century Musician.
Weekly videos on guitars, songwriting, creativity, the music industry, its past and and its future. Building a like-minded community of independent artists, because doing it yourself doesn't mean doing it alone.
"To achieve great things, two things are needed: a plan, and not quite enough time."
LEONARD BERNSTEIN
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My suggestion is just enjoy it. If you lose money, put it down to experience, and move on. Not everything in life can be controlled. In fact most of it is beyond control.
I usually hear about shows for bands I am interested in via their distribution channels like BandCamp.
Since I can't be there, support from the US. I hope it goes well and most importantly that you enjoy it! BTW...LOVE the necklace.
A brilliant mini documentary. Mary is so good at this stuff. Long live the music of the quiet master, may his gentle approach tread on forevermore, surprising the hearts of those that will listen
As a “consumer” of live events I get my information through instagram or facebook for artists I follow, word of mouth (which includes reposts of FB or insta by friends) and … good old advertising posters.
There is a guy here on YT known as Tank the Tech; a roadie for the last 20 years, at this moment the tour manager of Electric Callboy. On his channel, he has always been very open about the inner workings of the music industry, problems thetein and who earns the money. He went as far as sharing his tour bus calculation for Electric Callboy's 2023 US tour to make a point about rising costs. You could ask him if he was willing to do a collab video/interview whwre you two talk about the financial pitfalls of touring and how to avoid them. You'd learn a lot and create interesting content in one swoop. Just now he's heading with Electric Callboy to aJapan, but touring has not kept him from doing YT stuff in the past. I won't make it to one of your UK gigs. How would I know about you coming to Germany? Probably by yourself. Otherwise I actively look for tour dates of artists I like. What about some entertaining or maybe even hilarious YT shorts tjat in the last second promote your tour? You can do this youself, maybe by partially recycling existing footege, and drop them on Tik Tok and Instagram as well. Anyways, good luck qith your tour!!
Wow! Thanks for sharing all this information about the trials and tribulations of doing a tour. It seems a little daunting.
Nothing wrong with a "day job." I had one for 50 years, i.e., a half century. Best of luck.
I won't be able to physically come to any of your UK shows (living in the Netherlands and am too busy earning a living myself), but nothing would stop me from buying one or more tickets anyway. At a second thought (edited), perhaps I could sponsor someone to come to your show who hasn't got the money him/her self .... ?
Looking forward to the show in Bristol.
As a full-time touring musician who basically lives on the road for most part of the year, all I have to say is be careful what you wish for... Yet I still wouldn't trade my life for anybody's. A mixture of Facebook and Bandsintown (with all their hilarious flaws) marketing works well for my band. Plus finding the right local promoters - meaning at least half-decent human beings - is key. This is probably the hardest part. Break a leg!
That translates to $31,700.00 in US dollars. Holy crap Mary..!
Thank you for the video recommendation of "Why Am I Doing This?". One of the persons mentioned is Christina Bautista, who is an acquaintance of mine. Good luck on prepping for the tour. Besides the expense, even at a financial loss, touring and playing live is such an exhilarating experience.
the music business is fast becoming a pastime for the rich only, instrument prices, equipment everything. even concert tickets are way over priced now, especially festivals like Glastonbury.
Looking forward to seeing you in Glasgow, got my ticket when it was announced.
Your british accent is gorgeous 😊
Good luck with your tour.
If you come to Ottawa (Canada) you can stay for free with us!
And RIP Steve Albini, May 7, 2024 - His article, The Problem with Music, was a real eye-opener and very apt for this video you're posting even 30 years later.
It's hard to understand given ticket prices have been skyrocketing too. I remember I paid $7.50 to see Styx in the 1970s. But I trust you and your channel. I do find the ticket brokers like Ticket Master are thieves and tack on large percentages for what appears to be a totally automated trivial service. Good luck!
in terms of promotion HMV , for example the Manchester branch has a live performance stage upstairs and has local bands and some record release related performances
I do hope you'll come out of this in the green. I'm sad to say that I rarely watch live music so the best I can do right now is engage with this video and wish you the best of luck. Though if you'd come to Uppsala, Sweden and I got to know it I'd certainly attend.
You need to come to LA and collaborate with Pomplamoose. Your voice would blend nicely with Nataly Dawn’s. And Jack Conte (Keyboards) is also the founder of Patreon. Every dollar your Patrons kick in puts a few bucks in his pocket. And, he’s a killer musician.
You`ll be fine.
I'm a guilty lurker here, as your music is in fact not my cup of tea. But I remain here because you are a mensch and a savant and a fellow struggling human being, and your story continues to fascinate me.
I purchased a ticket for your The Joiners gig in Southampton on the 4th October. Just wanted to let you know, that for me, it was enough that I follow your videos on KZread to motivate me into buying a ticket. It would be nice to think other sales will be generated in this way. You Tube being adequate enough promotion. Not many artists to my knowledge, give their potential audience such an insight into the artists personality like you do. Hopefully that will pay off for you.
Good luck Mary. Money is tight! When there is food, shelter, and bills… very little is left over right now.
I'm around 5.2% of your views from Canada.
In the US, 5 decades as a Sound Engineer but in every case not involved in any of the details of the tour. Now retired ... wish I could be of more help!
Don’t forget to video every show. A best of video would be a great marketing opportunity.
artist are always poor. booking a tour is crazy expensive. i have no idea how small bands can afford tours anyways. only hollywood singers can afford their tours. good luck mary <3 only tour nearby. true fans will fly out or fans can pay for your live streams ^^ we are all in the great depression. soon ww3. enjoy life right now because things are about to go crazy with the death of iran president...its just going to get worse
Just bought a ticket, see you in London!
I find out about shows through Bands in Town, city event website and billboards or posters throughout my city.
this is very interesting - i think maybe 5 years ago all i heard was that artists no longer making money on record sales because of youtube and spotify etc, and they are making money from concerts.
Hello Mary, I don’t know if I just interpreted most of your video differently than others but you may not like the first part of my response. My first thought is that wouldn’t your research or knowledge beforehand indicated to you that it would be difficult to break even? I have watched your videos and you do not appear to be naive about the industry. Therefore, we all have choices in life to make. If you didn’t have the capital to lose then why choose the route you have? Now the positive thoughts. You are obviously very talented. I live in Miami, FL and there really isn’t a live music scene here that I am aware of. But have you thought about living in an area where you can get a gig as the house entertainment to develop a footing and then try to branch out from there? How does Josh, Carson, and the Reina del Cid girls do it? Is it better to team up with a group of talented musicians and share the cost versus paying your own band? Times have significantly changed but John Prine was a mailman that played at a small bar in Chicago until he was discovered. He was payed to play versus having to pay to play. If you read Bruce Springsteen’s book you learn that he hustled locally until it worked out to travel. I watch a lot of videos about musicians gigging in Nashville. Many of them are just scraping by but are constantly networking. On the flip side, I think Eric Church said in an interview, “If you want to make it in country music then leave Nashville and play somewhere else.” I think John Mayer started his rise out of Atlanta. Many an artist also started out working as session players. Many videos have musicians choosing to be session players because it’s stable money and home life. KZread is one thing but my opinion would be to find a place to make it your home area and perform daily. Get payed without have to dish out your own money. I hope you succeed.
Looking forward to Leeds (not a sentence you'll read often!)
Maybe scale back. Solo performer with minimal staff and equipment.
Firstly, I must apologise as I will not be able to see you on this tour. The nearest show to me is a 4hr drive and it's a Monday so it's not likely to happen. But I want to ask about festival gigs. There are a lot of small-to-medium festivals across the summer in the UK that I would imagine would be a guaranteed audience - whether these are Weekend-in-a-Field or Series-of-Standalone-Concerts, you'd be an excellent candidate for these.
As someone who’s toured as a session musician; best way is to partner with a company and have them arrange everything with a % of sales, so you don’t make a loss
You've got some good venues there, Mary. Loved playing the Brudenell. Great crowd, good staff. The Joiners is a great venue too.
I think the future of live performance will be virtual. It is way to expensive to go to concerts anymore.
Seen a guy on YT that toured with his band through the USA leaving them 20.000 in depth 😢
I recommend that you do a high quality multi camera video recording of one (or more) of the last gigs in the tour, once the band has gelled and everything is tight. You can do multiple things with that content - edit it down to a DVD that you sell to fans from the US that couldn't make it, selectively release individual songs on YT to tease your US tour, etc. There are costs to doing a good video of live gigs, but fairly good chance you can recoup and profit from it over time.
Seen you in Bristol and Brighton and I'm gonna do either Birmingham or London for the hat trick! 😀
Here in Canada, a lot of rising artists participate in Summer/Fall festivals. Mostly outside but a few inside. That helps greatly to be known by non-followers and can give a good feel for roadshows. I love your work and inspiration to play. You can count on me whenever you will play in Canadian Maritimes ❤
Wishing you luck Mary. 🙂👍
I really think you should interview The Warning, as they were independent for many years and had figured ways to fund their albums and tours, using social media.
You make it sound as if I was lied to all those years ago. Its not "money for nothing and the chicks for free"? I, like everyone else here, certainly wish you all the best with crowded venues and massive merch sales. Can't help myself as I'm on the west coast (Vancouver) but good luck. PS> would love if you could make it here someday.
Looking forward to seeing you in Cambridge! 👍
I'm really looking forward to you going on tour in Germany. 😎🎸