How much should local musicians charge for performances?
It is known fact. Corporations and organizations in Kuwait will try and get out of paying a dime at any given opportunity. Just ask bands and DJs in Kuwait.
With more companies looking to hire bands for services, performance rates are up in the air and standardization of fees is still something that doesn’t look like happening. To make things worse, almost “every” company in Kuwait has a notion that if it is a local band that they should either perform for free or play for peanuts.
So, what do hard working bands who practice regularly and have elaborate setups do? Sit and wait? Engage in price wars with other bands who are not in the same class? Do heavy promotion in close circles and charge specific fees and hope something hits. There have been a few bands that have succeeded in landing paid gigs regularly, but probably too few to be considered substantial. What advice can they give other younger bands who want to earn a buck too and are tired of performing for a few KD just because they are “local”?
About the Author
Caesar (Kuwait Music) Caesar is the Founder and CEO of Kuwait Music. A passionate musician and web nerd, Caesar spends most of his time thinking about how to build a healthy music business in the region Follow Caesar at the below links: Google+
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With Mojolaters, when we performed in Rotana the tickets were KD15. Perhaps a bit pricey but it has a hotel + you had a buffet dinner.
I think it depends on the venue and the type of performance; when we did Starbucks it was a free event. Same when I did Blend Music Fest. Those events were about promoting music and less about making business.
I can’t do a mufti thing on this one because I’ve never been involved on the business end of the whole thing.
I dunno, if I wanted to look at the business end of it. I’d look into Fugazi for lessons on how to stand your ground and say no to high ticket prices. But again this is another group’s experience not mine.
I’m clueless so I’d like to read from the bands who actually got paid for playing gigs.
Switchback provides a complete show – a big, professional sound system, light show, DJ during the breaks, top-notch cover band, and we take care of anything related to the entertainment for the evening. We also have a crew of 4-6 people to set it all up, run the show (sound engineer, light engineer, DJ etc). We also provide custom visuals if required. All this costs serious money to purchase, transport, run and operate..and then on top we have 6 musicians as well.
We probably charge more than anyone else in Kuwait, but then, 47 gigs later, we only have happy customers behind us. We do what we do as professionally as we can. Yes, we do lose gigs to bands willing to work for free or for peanuts, but all the gigs we lost that way came back to us – You can’t charge KD 15-25 per person and bring a lousy band with a lousy sound system and no light show – people expect value for their money, and if you are an organizer, you better deliver that value. Acoustica charges less simply because, being primarily an acoustic band, we don’t need such a big sound/light system, and we have less musicians in the band.
As for why ticket prices are in KD15-25 range, I have written about this before – most of the money goes to hotels. Hotels don’t charge for the room itself, but you are forced to pay for food…anything from KD8 to KD18 per person. The rest has to cover printing invitations, promotion, decorations, band, sound, lights etc. So, of all the people involved, the least amount of money goes to the band itself, without which there would be no event at all…
@ Dejan, well said!
yup, thats very true..!
good one Dejan .. all that is right- however, the question remains..how do younger bands charge for services? some dont have a clue and not everyone is as professional as switchback. any advice on how to go about it?
My advice would be – practice until you are confident that you can do a really good show. Rent good equipment until you can save up to get your own (Switchback was renting for first two years), think of everything that you as a band can do to make organizer’s life easier. Be professional in all you do – communications with the client, timing (being late is VERY unprofessional), and always deliver what you promise. Once you have all this laid out and are ready to start gigging, figure roughly KD 50 per band member plus cost of rental/transport.
Re. equipment, buying your own is actually not really worth it – there are not enough gigs to justify the cost. I have done it because equipment is used by two bands (Switchback & Acoustica) as well as being rented out. But renting it out is also a lot of work, knowledge and experience. If you lack these (plus KD 10,000 plus), it’s better to just rent.
Another point to add i think is that there could be a kind of camaraderie in this area, if bands want paying gigs yet there are many bands who will do it for free then the organisers are going to swing that way naturally. unless you can provide equipment/ experience or other things of value to the organiser. So if the bands all agreed to start charging (roughly the same give or take for number of members or provisions etc) for gigs, and stick to this policy then competition becomes a little fairer and will then be based more on performance than money….I know this is a lot to ask or hope for but just an idea i had…and i also know this is not how it usually works else where but we need to remember we aren’t elsewhere we are here where gigging is hard enough to begin with without the normal politics adding to it.
The younger or upcoming bands should know first of all that is is a long road to start gigging… They should polish up their act and pull off a few gatherings with their own friends to get the hang of it…. I remember back in the days when we used to gig underground in basements and even a squash court
with all that sound bouncing like hell… It was all free and got us into the feel of having to lay for a crowd… It points out some of the things you need to know and work with along the way….
When the act is set, then I think it’s the venue basically and the kind of backline/sound equipment that is required. Most of the local musicians do face the ‘Local’ Tag when it comes to a paid gig with all the hype about the venue managers saying stuff like ‘ We’re giving you a place so you can promote yourself. It’s a good chance’ etc… You have to live with that for awhile if you are a newbie but not let it become a constant phenomenon….
I’d agree with Dejan with 50per band member. The organiser should be responsible for the venue/stage/light & sound/ Requested Backline.
*play for a crowd*
damn lay doesn’t sound right loool
Squash courts ? Haha – that’s a first !
I wish we had a squash court when I was starting up…I played in horse barns (pretty comon in UK in the ’70s), on rafts, etc etc
Hmmmm… Turns out Dejan, pretty much hit it spot-on… left fractional room for comment….
(Keep in mind that target market majorly influences the prices charge)
DISC JOCKEYS (DJs) in KUWAIT
There are people who charge KD 20 – these are mostly the peeps who are struggling to get into the market, or they are just starting off, or some are “Computer DJs” …… Then you have the:
KD 20 to 50 – those who are focusing on getting a gig every now and then
KD 50 to 80 – I believe it’s safe to say this is the average price charged…..in my lil world I would believe this is the starting price for most of the DJs that play for the Western/European/Arab audiences in Kuwait…..
KD 100 + – DJs who mostly have a regular/ dedicated client or fan base … those are in high demand…
BANDS in KUWAIT
Most musicians I personally know, are way to passionate about what they do, that money ain’t what they are looking for. They’ve practiced everywhere imaginable (homes, terraces, basements, storerooms, vans, at the beach, isolated classrooms, etc.)… Rates charged vary (Nil and up)…
NOTE:
Most musicians in Kuwait (Bands & DJs) atleast some who I know, started their career playing for no charge at all just coz of their zeal for music… in fact some still continue to do so…
At the end of the day, I don’t necessarily agree that it makes sense to ask what they charge, but what we are ready to give (in cash or kind) to patronize or promote musicians in Kuwait…
(No disrespect or negative motive intended, just sharing the lil I know… difference in opinion very much welcome…)
Good post EveZ, and pretty accurate. Going back to what I originally posted, biggest problem related to gigging is inability of quite a few bands to listen to themselves objectively and know if they are good enough to actually gig. You see that on shows like The American Idol, The Voice etc – someone comes in, sings completely out of tune and yet they are 100% convinced that they sound great.
Same affliction can be found in bands, including in Kuwait. I know bands in Kuwait where guitar player will play Guns’n'Rose without distortion (????), do Pink Floyd of Funk without keyboard/brass (???????) and so on, not to mention a guy who played intro riff to Summer of ’69 and managed to hit few right notes purely by statistical chance (he played every note there is, some just HAD to be right!). You need an OBJECTIVE appraisal of your capabilities and how you sound before trying to gig!