Just had a message from a promoter who got my name from a buddy of mine;
"We have a friday night at winchester called fat panda. All went tits up with the promoter and basically he fucked the night over and now we have no one who comes. We are trying to cover the night this friday as its the last, and hoping quite a lot of people will come. However we are unsure. Id be interested in getting you a lot more when we have established the new night and have a lot of people coming through the doors, (as i dont want you to play to empty dance floors) and at the moment we have an issue with funds for the event. If it is a busy night i could pay you with money from the door, however there is a chance it could be dead, therefore not having any money on the door. We can however buy you a create of beer or something as payment? .
Let us know what you think"
I never usually take unpaid gigs, but the guy is promising loads more once they get up and running. I have nothing better to do on Friday night, so i’m probly gonna take it. Just wondering what DJTT would do!
Depends how much gigs you actually get out.. If you are a regular at getting gigs then you may want to negotiate some with him.. Some beer and a little bit of cash would keep me happy and drink all night..
If you never seem to get gigs out snap the beer off him, ask for drink all night also and take the opportunity to get your name out there..
I know i did loads of gigs for basically shit all to get my name out there.
He got your name from a mutual friend and is using a very informal tone, almost implying that he somehow owes you something.
Why doesn’t he? Has he ever heard you spin? Who is he subjecting to these empty dance floors? So far, just you if you’ll take a gig for–essentially–free.
So…what are you doing that night? Were you spinning somewhere else or planning to go out?
I’d say, negotiate 5-quid cover for anyone who knows you by name and bring all of your friends that you can. Treat it like a house party with a bar and a big sound system (assuming both of those are true) and don’t expect to get anything out of it, because I’d bet money the promoter’s just looking for a nobody that he can abuse. Get your 5-quid per person you bring in as fast as you can, and spend it on your friends’ drinks. You’re not going to make enough for it to be worth anything else anyway unless I’m drastically misinterpreting the situation.
Don’t bring much of your gear without charging him for the rental…like…bring as little stuff as you can still have fun mixing on. And if he decides to treat you like complete crap when nobody’s there but people you brought…just walk. If he’s wrong and there are actual people there, that looks unprofessional. But if you’re bringing the music, the talent, the gear, and the crowd…and he gets uppity, he’s going to burn himself in the scene eventually anyway.
And, you know, it might actually work out well. I just don’t think you should ever take anything a club promoter says at face value.
find out what happened to the other promoter. what happens all too often here in the United States is a promoter makes the night popular, working very hard for little or no money with the expectation of a bigger payoff at a later date. the night gets popular, and the owner fires the promoter. the owner makes big bucks for a while, and then it fades away. the promoter gets screwed.
Do it…for me its not about the money, more the exposure and the fun I could have.
If it turns out to be a good gig, he’ll hook ya up! If not, oh well, move on!
If you nothing else to do. May aswel take it, test a few things with a real crowd (however small it may be) infront of you. All experience in my opinion.
better than sitting at home doing nothing, getting paid nothing, might as well have a laugh and get paid in beer! i do agree with mostapha though if he starts being an arse, stop the music and go home… watch him shit himself then
Depends on the reputation of the promoter. Majority of the promoters lure you into playing for free with promises of bigger, better, high paying gigs in the near future. I have been at this game off and on for 10yrs. I have yet have a promoter come through with that promise. I would at least get $50 out of him. These days I don’t play for free anymore. I even charge my CLOSE friends $100-200 to play.
WoW somebody certainly sucked the spirit out of you. Do you charge your Mrs for listening if she’s within earshot when you’re at home practicing
I’d do it, get some beers, put yourself out there. Who knows what other opportunities could arise. Its all about exposure, experience and having fun.
I suppose it also depends a lot on your motivation and what you get out of your DJ’ing. Its definitely worth the gamble on the possibility of further work, getting in on the ground floor so to speak!!!
If you’ve not got something better to do then you may aswell do it. Just get some mates down like some other people said and make a night of it. free drink and you get to choose the music, sounds like a good deal to me haha. Getting your name out there is also a good thing
i’d do it…once…without breaking my back…call some mates..get them some drinks…call some girls…
maybe he will ask you back and offer money they next time…
there is nothing wrong with doing a gig that doesnt take much more work than showing up and playing…and getting beers out of it…bring a bottle of liquor and pour some DJ booth shots for your peeps…
BUT…
there is a reason why he is asking you to play free…
Hell i would take it, unless you have another gig that could come up that night/morning.
at the least bit you can somewhat promote and tell your mates so the club can seem as though they are getting people.
Worst thing that could happen is you just got free booze.
I’d say do it, BUT, definitely re-define the terms and conditions of your agreement.
First, see if you can get a few bucks from anyone that comes to the door and drops your name or whatever. If not, still play for free drinks anyway. (of course, pending that you don’t have other shit to do that is legitimately more important.) This guy sounds like he’s in a pinch, and you doing him a favor could help him out, and definitely land you gigs in the future.
However, be very clear that you’re fine doing thing favor for him, but after one night of playing for free drinks/minimal compensation, then it’s time for him to pony up if he wants you for future gigs.
I personally would say “can you pay me $20 minimum if its dead and some drinks?”
start promoting the hell out of the night on facebook and get all your girls and guys out to support it. See if he can give everyone you bring 1 free drink. Let your friends bring their friends. you could have 20 people show up just by your friends alone. You would be putting your name out there and have a good chance to get to meet and talk to the management and employees.
good luck bro!
I wouldn’t do it. Simply becuase this night is dead and the promoter says its the last one. Why try to save something that everyone knows is dead. If anything, the promoter should be creating a new night. New name, new everything. In my 15 years experience, I’ve never known any nights like this one ever bounce back. It’s over.
There is opportunity there for you. You have an opportunity to show this promoter that you can bring people in. Make the venue/promoter dependant on you (I’ll elborate later). You will have to enlist your friends’ support though. Ask the promoter if you can create a guest list and collect the cover charge yourself. Take 10-25% of that and give the rest to the promoter. Or just take a percentage of drink sales. Make sure your people are definitely comming. You will essentially be building your name and your following; you need this.
If you make the venue/promoter depandant on you, there is no way he can fire you afterwards. I’ve been subject to this in the past and learned my lesson. As soon as the night got popular, they hired a cheaper DJ. The next week it was dead and tried to hire me back. And then they’ve gone under in less than a month becuase I was hired to play for the bar next door.
The promoter will be impressed if you can deliver and will want to invest the time and money in you.
Don’t just do it for the sake of doing it, or you have nothing to do. Take the initiative and exploit every opportunity.
