Damian Keyes maybe a hint with regards to self promo. I watched your video saying to take control as the promoter as it were when being solo vs being in a band. I recently posted a picture of a poster for a gig along with pictures on some flyers I made myself to give to people around the area on the night of the gig. Where do I draw the line between promoting a gig and looking like I'm desperate for people to turn up?! Or is there a line? Do you think people would see I've made flyers and think, "shit this guy is really struggling with getting crowds" or would it raise more interest! Any help regarding specifically soloists with self promotion would be great. Or a link to a video if I've missed it! Peace xx
I would say the line is very far away.. To start with the self promotion is all about giving people value to come down and lots of gentle reminders.. I wouldn't worry about home made stuff it has a certain charm about it. I think you could spend a month promoting a gig but in different ways.. Rather than bombarding people online you could ask in different ways, do competitions, make funny songs to remind people so it feels like you are asking them again and again but they wont mind as its fun or funny or different :)
Cyro Scariot Schmidt i reckon you should do exactly the same another 50 times... you won’t know unless you shout ‘I AM DAMIAN KEYES!’ Many many more times 😊
Jason Blasingame we had banner made with our band name and logo and used a frame to told hit up. It covered up our backline. And we had lights on them.
@@daveg4236 Both that and the kick head both help but having done both at every gig, we STILL have idiots come up and say "hey what was the name of your band?" Even when we're the only one on the bill playing at a bar or something. People don't pay attention that well especially when they've been drinking so you kind of have to hold their hand.
I've been gigging for 25 years, and I can say that these are absolutely critical. I don't care who you are, or what genre you are, this is what you need to be doing. I've heard these tips in one way or another over the years but never have I seen them so well organized and presented. I'm going to write down the list and print it on a huge banner to display in my studio.
0:50 *1. DON'T PLAY VENUES TOO BIG* 1:27 *2. FILL THE SPACE ON STAGE* 2:02 *3. THINK ABOUT YOUR STAGE CLOTHES* 2:21 *4. DON'T PLAY FOR TOO LONG* 2:54 *5. USE TIME ON GIGS WISELY* 3:36 *6. OPEN YOUR SET STRONG* 5:06 *7. TELL PEOPLE YOUR BAND NAME* 5:49 *8. AVOID PLAYING COVERS* 6:40 *9. FRONT THE BAND CONFIDENTLY* 8:21 *10. MEET THE AUDIENCE*
Hey Damo, once again awesome video! I'd love to see you make a video about how a band can go from getting a slot supporting bigger bands and how to work your way up the ranks. Is there need for a manager? A label? Thanks in advance :)
We've been wanting ideas on how to tighten up our live set, as people seem to be responding. well to us. This is the best video we could have found. Props Damo, thank you for all of your helpful knowledge and advice!
Finally someone teaches these kids something about stage presence cause I️ look at some bands and just be like....what are u wearing....etc all of that is extremely important
Dallas Bentley well said Dallas! I agree with you, your look is very important! Take pride in being an entertainer and develop stage charisma and presence 😎👍
Different cultures, I guess, but here in MX you most definitely NEED to play at least one cover when starting a new band. The craziest the crossover, the better: cumbia-symphonic, hard rock-lounge, bolero-jazz, you name it.
This is an excellent video! SO well done and killer advice. We are a full-service talent agency and we could not agree more with this information. What does Damian do? Is he a booking agent or consultant? Man! This guy is good!
I've seen a followup guy to a band who just played acoustic guitar and sang called Myles Knight, and I found him to be better than the 4 other bands that had played after him. He had a great connection with the audience and had some funny stuff to say and was just relaxing and super down to earth and was super nice to the audience on his way out. The singer of Ruby Tuesdays spoke to me that night too and he was super nice too, I think being polite and on the same level as your listeners is a huge part of getting people to enjoy your band a lot more, that's the way I see it anyway.
Low Level Play Hey friend I hope your performances are going really good for you! Hopefully you are able to relax and just have fun doing what you love to do.... always remember to be animated, and smile ALOT! people want to see that you are having fun up there! best of luck to you and your entire band 😎👍
I dunno why this video doesn't have a million views. I am yet to find a video on here that explains better than you in a down to earth manner regarding this issue. Thanks a lot. This was very helpful and all upcoming bands needs to hear this!!!!!
Must admit that this video doesn't come off as 'ways to improve your gig', but rather 'ways to improve your sales pitch'. An audience appreciates being treated as an audience, not as a customer. All of the jargon is better suited at a merch table.
Wow, very nice advice, thanks a bunch. Let me add some nice feedback. I play with two underground metal bands for some quite time now and we never learned about stage presence of the band. This has resulted in a lack of structure and organization in our live performances making them go somewhat randomly. Our music si not the worst (I hope), but sometimes, ppl would tell us that the music was fine but not all of us looked engaged, or that we made too big of a pause here and there, or that the way we danced to the music was awkward. Since the whole band is pretty much just pot-heads doing what they like (smoking pot and playing metal) we never really thought about it that much and said things as "We will just naturaly wing it and we ll see, it will at least be authentic." Yea, our shows were definitely authentic xD I can already see how this could improve our shows in a really short time and I'm gonna try it rn. I will translate the points back to my native language and present it to the potheads. (I also like weed, sorry :D) Wish me luck!!
Seriously good tips. People tend to like my jokes. But I think You're right. I should leave them out and just be direct. I tend to play three - four hour solo gigs quite often. But, for the full band gigs (which can also be three hour sets) I'll scale back the humor a bit and just keep the music flowing. Thanks for this.
Thanks for that, Damian. Really useful points. The 'black clothing' issue is a classic. Many times I've had that conversation. Do you look cool in the photoshoot? Sure! Do you disappear into the backdrop on stage? Absolutely!!
With point #4 is it really such a bad thing if some people end up at the bar though? The venue owner is hiring you based on how many people you can bring that they can sell drinks to so I figure they'd be more likely to have you back if this happens.
Bob LeGlob it takes time to drive there as well.. sadly the audience doesn’t care. The bands who win are constantly thinking about the audiences needs and wants and not their own
I've been watching all your videos, they are great. I've also taken on board loads of things you said. We did a gig last night, got people to get their phones out and like us. Def worked. Looking forward to catching up in 2018
Tip #4 We are a local cover band. Most of the gigs we play want us to do three sets at 1.25 hours long. We have even been asked not to take a break at all.
@@DamianKeyes Yes. 4 hours of music. I am from Southern Wisconsin. That's 4 hours with no break. Some of the bigger bands do it by staggering their breaks. One man will go to the bathroom while the rest of the band continues playing.
No way in hell I'd ever play with no breaks. 3-75 minute sets ain't bad though, 10 minutes between. Give the audience a chance to order drinks and hit the bathroom/smoke break/etc
AD.3 I would say the more important is to be consistent in terms of clothing throughout the band. I've seen the shows where everyone was wearing just a black t-shirts, with no logos on them and it looked cool, and it wasn't some beginner band, it was actually one of the biggest and most popular bands in Poland. But when one dude is wearing Metallica t-shirt, the other is wearing a hoodie, and the third person is wearing a shirt, it's just inconsistent. Just have your dresscode.
As the frontman of my own band, I can say that fronting the band confidently is key. Sometimes it’s very nerve racking to get up on a stage and talk to people but ever since I’ve been doing that the shows just feel better. Better crowd interaction, more CD or merch sales, and an overall sense of success. These tips helped me out so much and now I’m going to be using the same tips at our show tonight.
Honestly, I have thought about this. I recently saw a video of Concrete Blonde when they were touring with Sting (1991 maybe?). Johnette is wearing a long-sleeved black dress and black tights. For the few songs where she's not playing bass, only her face and hands are visible. But I only wear black. So I'm not really sure what the solution is here. Other than not to wear a long black velvet dress on a stage with a dark backdrop. 😺 do i break out the shiny pants and studded belt? Short skirts (I'm 6 feet tall.... Most skirts are short on me. 😸) and fishnets?
can't tell you how many times I've been at festivals and seen a band member walking around right after they just played, Usually I would say hi or give them a high 5, and a lot of times they would ignore me
I loved this video! I recently joined a band and will definitely use these tips during shows! Also, What advice would you give for a new member of an already established band.
Do as your told by any member of the band not just the frontsman, always be at your best on and off stage, and be patient and earn your respect which could take years.
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Damian your videos are helping me very much. I’ve been taking your advice on how to run my band’s social media and how to set up gigs more effectively and I’m beginning to feel an extra layer of confidence and motivation from you. Thank you :)
Hi Cobey thank you so much, that really means a lot :) I have some new ideas for some new content which i will be releasing soon but i'd really value feedback with regards vlogs vs tips vs rants etc
