Maybe it's the people you're counting on, and the location.

You can't expect everyone to go everywhere. And if they're not gonna support you like you need, then don't count on them like that. Too many people are just all talk.
 

Absolutely, that's a given. But I'm running into that everywhere, and so are a lot of fellow musicians. Too many people really ARE just all talk though; especially in this biz.
 

Trust me fam, I know EXACTLY how you feel. Support? Hell, I can't find support from anyone but my family, and even that's thin sometimes. I believe firmly that Hip-Hop is the hardest genre of music to break into, mostly because people expect the most bullshit out of rap. People want something to dance to that pretty much has an instrumental and no words (especially no words that mean anything deeper than how phat a woman's ass looks), while I'm trying to bring back the essence of true Hip-Hop. Noboby wants to hear the big words anymore, nobody wants to listen to the medaphores that go through one side of their tiny brains and out the other. But you know what? If people like us make it to our dream, then they end up eating it in the end. Because then they pretend to know you, and THAT'S when they realize that you have nothing left for fake people. Sorry for the rant fam lol.
 

I feel you bro especially for an original band its even more difficult to get support b/c most of my friends are more interested in chasin tail on weekends and unfortunately the most popular bars want cover bands. I do my best to promote because I know the original venues need a good turn out in order to keep the scene alive. I personally could care less about the money though I just do it for the love and the adrenaline rush whether its in front of 30 people or 200 it doesn't matter to me. This new Rex's is going to be pretty sick from what I hear it should give a nice boost to the original music scene around here.
 

The problem is that there just isn't that much great music out there, at least not on local scenes. And at the other end of the scale the stuff in the charts is generally so bad that it makes you want to remove your own head with the nearest sharp implement just to make it stop.

There IS great music out there but just like knocking about on myspace, you have to dig through tons of crap to find it. And even if there's a perfectly competent band, if you're a picky swine (like me) you still have to actually like the music rather than just acknowledging the competence with which it's performed. So the field is cut down still further.

I totally agree that it's bloody hard to get people to come out to shows a lot of the time. Actually we're pretty fortunate in that we have a lot of local support but I've been in bands and done gigs where people just couldn't be arsed. I'm not blameless either - I stopped going to random nights years ago because the quality was so low. Now I try to cherry pick gigs I have a fair idea are going to be good and that seems to work OK.

Looking forward to receiving the CD by the way and hope you're groovin' on mine...
 

I dont think the problem is lack of good music on the local scene, but a lack of taste for something new and engaging ON THE BAR SCENE (which leads to the real problem, which I'll get to soon). There are hundreds of musical acts in and around chester county that are doing something thats provoking if nothing else. But people at bars and clubs just want something with a strong, dance-able rhythm and good hooks to sing along with. The rest should just be shit that they feel okay about shouting over to talk to their friends.

So really, there aren't any REAL MUSICAL VENUES for local artists to showcase themselves, with the exception of various open mics which are pretty limited and usually feature singer/songwriter/poetry. Which is cool, but there needs to be something more encompassing.

we need a stage with an audience that wants to hear music and a fair chance at playing it.
 

If we have anything to do with it....
There will be a physical place to showcase
Stay tuned chester county !

CCIR
 

I used to co-own a large music venue in Saint Cloud, Minnesota. We built the place from the ground up; a true underground district right on the west side of town. Walls tagged up, culture rich, down to earth. Within less than a year (about 8 months) we had to close our doors because not enough people were out there to support us. We really made sure we kept our end of the commitment - good advertising, good hours, good (albeit a bit counterculture) reputation. Full kitchen with a full menu and a couple full time chefs (soul food, baby!) and still, it feels as if we were to little avail. It was never a problem booking musicians. We had live music almost every night. The problem was that folks just weren't willing to get off their asses to come out and make the movement a reality.

The conclusion is pretty clear to me. It makes me sad and angry, but I think I understand it. This Hip Hop life<myspace>style</myspace>; this Hip Hop culture is not as important to many of the folks involved as it is for me. This is my life and my life<myspace>style</myspace>, and for some others it is a whim or a fad. But there will always be a core, and that's who I make my music for. The ones who come over to my apartment after that new track is done and they can really vibe on it. That's it. That's all I expect these days.

Good topic choice Fitzy, way to hit on an important subject.
 

you played the grammys but your friends and kids in your area won't pay 5 bucks to see you perform locally. it's retarded. majority of people just don't like music anymore.
 

Great analog! I think there's still just the reality of the odds...sometimes the people that don't want it as bad, or the ones that are on the low-end of the of the talent spectrum, that are the ones that find success. The strongest example of this, in my opinion, is the White Stripes. [gag]

You're totally right though about being supported by other artists...it can make a huge difference. I hope that the sense of community increases in this area; do you pick up on the disconnection?
 

I think Nickelback is over-rated. Grady David's . . . . I'm so there at the end of April.
 

Scheduling events around friends' shows... I'm not sure it can be expressed how much that kind of stuff is appreciated by us musicians.

The last-minute promotion thing is tough to avoid, though I completely understand. I've found that when and how you promote the show, and the success of the process, is completely relative to the demographic. I can't seem to get people my age to remember about (or come out to) a show unless I tell them about it the day before, and then the day of, and then a couple hours before the hit time. The older you go, the easier and better it is to give people advance notice. The driving force/issue..whatever you wanna call it behind all of this is the nature of booking said shows. Sometimes you get the date a couple days beforehand, sometimes it's months in advance.

C'est la vie.
 

Try a different approach, maybe. Although I'm often guilty of this too, I noticed I really only hear from some people when they have a gig. Not only this, but it's usually in the form of a text message so there's no commitment. I also unfortunately rarely follow up with my fans to thank them personally for coming out to see me play which I bet would probably help.

Also, I noticed that when I add incentives such as prize give aways (been as simple as stupid random shit I own from "tHe goOdy bAg!" ) I get a good response. Plus it spruces the show up a lot by making it interactive and it really shows appreciation for their support. I always liked the phrase 'give to get'

My thoughts..

Hope all is well man. Hit me up soon.