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Current mood:  ninja
you coulda called me an armchair blogger recently... i've been sitting comfortably, not doing much! i've been writing my shit poetry, and updating my facebook status entirely too often for most people's palate. but i'm happy with my inactivity - i have had uni work to do after all! so, yesterday Amanda fucking Palmer posted this wonderful piece on why she's not afraid to take YOUR money (http://blog.amandapalmer.net ). now, most people that know me will know that this subject is very close to my heart ... I BELIEVE IN GETTING PAID FOR MY ART like amanda, i am the brash, loud, uncouth person asking you to your face to pay me for hearing me play. i am the one who doesn't apologise. i am the one demanding a decent door split from the venue, or even for a flat fee. and i am the one asking for a decent sound engineer and decent equipment in return. i think that many people underestimate the amount of work and soul that goes into creating music... both on a CD and live. i value the work, effort, soul, catharsis, heart that i put into creating this stuff. therefore i kinda have an expectation that others should too. i don't write the songs for the specific purpose of entertaining you, that is just a bi-product, but for me to perform them to you requires effort on my part and money, and time, and well, if i do all that shit to deliver you a fucking bi-product that'll rock you, love you, make you cry, make you bop, make you feel something, anything, then isn't that worth something? i have been given a fair amount of shtick over the years for this opinion. in fact, i've even lost friends over it. which i think is bullshit. but hey, i can't help people's ignorance. grin. i have friends who work solely as musicians, they survive completely on the worth they and you place on their music. so tell me, if you like something in a shop window, and you want to have it/use it/listen to it/etc, you pay for it right? so, why is it different for a live performance? you spend ridiculous amounts of money on seeing crap comedy acts at the fringe festival each year, yet begrudge a couple of quid to someone you enjoy listening to... for the artists who 'just do it for the love of the music, man' - here is my only words for you... keep doing it for the reasons you do it, but recognise that there are musicians out there who rely on this business as their livelihood - and by playing for free at venues that can and do pay, that you essentially lower the bar of expectations that venues have of performers and their fees. being paid by a venue, or by the audience is a good thing. it shows that they value you and your talents. it is not something to shy away from. are you worth it? for those who don't know how to go about asking for money... if it's a venue, most should ask what your fee is, but if they don't make sure you ask them what their going rate is - if it's lower than market standards, ask for more - all they can do is say no (be sure to ask nicely of course!). if you're playing for free, make it strategic - is it a trial gig, a beautiful venue, a one-time opportunity, or a great audience that will love you forever? make sure you check if the venue is PRS registered, so that you can get your percentage of their license fee through the pubs & clubs scheme, and don't be afraid to sell your wares to the audience afterwards. mention to them if you have a CD for sale, give out your website flyers, ask people to sign a mailing list. people that love you = people that will support you = people that will pay to see you... simple really. or at least i think so. i'm not afraid to tell people how much money i've made from music. so far this year i have made approximately £2000 from a mix of self-employment tax rebates, gig fees, PRS royalties, and CD sales... and this is from a part-time gig (i work 9-5 too y'see, so music is my side-project). if i can raise this much with my half-arsed attempts this year, then i'm sure full-time musicians could make a decent wage. and why the fuck shouldn't they? what they produce is culturally enriching, valued by many, and should be revered like it used to be - did you know that roman poets and musicians would have a 'sponsor', who would pay them to create art and music and in turn only ask for the occasional song or poem to be written about them. a pretty good deal really, given that the artist would be given a villa or house and wages! this segue brings me nicely to my final point - my new band Augustalia (a roman name). my drummer asked 'you mean we're charging for our first gig?' and i was like - 'umm, yes, if we're good enough to play in public, then we're good enough to be paid'... the audience didn't seem to begrudge us this, enjoyed themselves immensely, and even had spare cash to buy 4 cds off me afterwards! plus we now have enough cash in the kitty to pay to get to our next gig. show us the love, and we will show you love back. love love love! ok, rant over. i love you, amanda, we both rock heaps y'know!?! on a more personal note, i have been laying low musically recently, with a nasty case of post-festival laryngitis, but will be reappearing at a venue near you soon. in the meantime, keep your noses clean, kids! i'm working on a plan for a DIY music video, so hang tight while i figure out how to accomplish this feat! love & laudanum, Hann x http://www.hannahoreilly.com http://www.myspace.com/hannahoreilly http://www.myspace.com/augustalia http://www.twitter.com/hannahoreilly currently listening to: Your beauty must be rubbing off - Hawksley Workman Ampersand - Amanda Palmer Lizard Jack - The Gods Were Convicts Strange Fruit - Nina fuckin' Simone!
8:16 PM
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