Over time, music has become widely accessible to many audiences around the world, with different types of gigs to accommodate various settings.
When you are starting out as a performing musician, you will find yourself specializing in one or two types of gigs, with the different gigs calling for different skill sets.
However, you should not limit yourself to only a few and instead seek to explore the vast industry.
To help you understand better, here are 5 common types of music gigs that can be found.
Busking
- Difficulty: Medium
- Income: Low
- Accessibility: Medium
Busking equals street performance. You take your instrument, go on the streets, and serenade passers-by with your wondrous music.
Difficulty
Though simple in concept, busking requires a level of boldness when putting yourself out there and subjecting yourself to judgemental ears.
Buskers typically operate as a one-man show, creating music through instrument and voice. That is not to say that duo and group buskers are uncommon.
Income
Musicians earn revenue through charitable donations from the public, which makes earning an income unpredictable at times.
However, you can skew the odds in your favor by increasing your exposure to traffic, taking control of:
- Time of day (Peak hours = Higher traffic)
- Location (Bustling areas = Higher Traffic)
- Performance (Better performance = Increased success)
- Consistency (People recognize you = Increased success)
Accessibility
Breaking into the busking scene can range from as simple as freely stationing yourself on the street to having to audition for a license.
Different countries impose different laws regarding public entertainment, and busking is not exempted.
Therefore, it is good due dilligence to find out the restrictions placed on street performance so that you prevent yourself from getting in trouble with authorities.
Bar Gigs
Many bars, clubs, and even restaurants provide live music for patrons of the establishment to bring in more traffic.
That is where you as the musician come in.
Difficulty
Bar gigs often come with a myriad of requirements from the performer, such as a set genre, the ability to take song requests, and entertain the patrons while they wine and dine.
You have to ensure both the customers and owner of the establishment are satisfied with your performance, which can be a tough balancing act for many musician.
In this trade, the need for jobs and money often brings about politics in the scene, pitting musicians against one another.
Those who can navigate the performances and stay out of politics can lead to successful streaks of gigs that pay the bills and bring some fun to their music career.
Expect late nights filled with music and drinking, though many choose to opt out of the latter.
Income
If you are looking for an income stream that is more stable and substantial, bar gigs are a good one-up from busking.
You can potentially earn consistently at a market rate of $100-300 per night playing 3 sets for 45 minutes.
The best scenario is if you are well-integrated into a venue and are established as a recurring act, giving you a concrete way to survive as a musician.
Because of this, plenty of musicians undertake bar gigs as their full-time jobs, playing for nights and filling their wallets with moolah.
Accessibility
You may wonder: How do musicians land themselves a bar gig? Here are the usual routes taken:
Connecting with other musicians
Finding like-minded musicians who are already part of the scene can help rope you in.
You can typically find communities of musicians on channels such as Facebook and Telegram.
Join a group, and you will be easily connected to many potential band members.
Open Mics
Open mics are sessions where anyone in the audience can step onto the stage and perform what they want for the rest.
Some bars offer these sessions weekly, and they are perfect opportunities for you to meet musicians or even be scouted by the bar.
It is a great way to showcase yourself in a more relaxed environment, where expectations are lowered.
Direct approach
Last but not least, you have the traditional way of writing to bars or approaching the bar owners and asking for performance opportunities.
Most establishments will ask about your performance experiences and request video recordings to ensure that you don’t unknowingly drive customers away.
You can easily find the bar’s contact through their websites and give them a ring. Most bars are open to having a discussion, so don’t be afraid to reach out!
Events
Have you ever walked past a roadshow or exhibition, and chanced upon live music being played for the crowds participating in the event?
You will find that it is not uncommon for live music to be used as a means of entertainment or organized events where a large amount of people gather.
These events can include:
- Roadshows
- Exhibitions
- Festivals and Celebration
- Product Kick-off
- Weddings
Difficulty
Unlike bar gigs, event gigs rarely require musicians to entertain the crowd and only need to provide supporting music to the ambiance of the venue.
At the same time, good quality is highly sought after because these events are usually set in a more formal setting, where there are more at stake such as a bigger audience.
For example, wedding bands are crucial in providing good entertainment to guests and most importantly, making the event memorable for the spouses-to-be.
This allows little to no room for mistakes and the performers must be confident that they can deliver a good time.
Income
When we talk about earning money from events, we are talking about amounts that can range from abysmal to incredibly large.
It all depends on the organizers who are in charge of planning the events, as they will also be responsible for the budget.
As there are no standardized market rates for events, organizers will try to approximate the amount.
If you do end up in an extremely high-stake event such as playing for important members of a company, you can potentially earn a higher amount if you do deliver the required quality.
Accessibility
This is where the brakes are applied for musicians pursuing event gigs.
It is usually quite tough to break into the scene without a good connection with an organizer.
You can’t get gigs if they are not aware of you anyway.
You can’t ask to play in an event that has already been publicized because the organizer would have already found someone to play for it.
Moreover, the volume of organized events pale in comparison to the number of bar gigs that can be found around your area.
However, there are still ways to increase your chances of getting a gig.
Upcoming Gigs
Connecting with an organizer is easy. Most of them will outright announce themselves through social media posts of events that are organized.
Once you can get in touch with someone in the organization, it is a good chance to ask them about any upcoming sessions planned and if they are looking for live music.
For this method to work, persistence is key. Making yourself known to event organizers is already a major step in advancement.
If you continue to keep it up, you are sure to find event organizers who are interested in you.
Of course, they will ask for the usual video submission for proof of experience.
Underground
On the other side of the coin, we have gigs that are detached from the mainstream and herded by small communities of music hobbyists.
These gigs are often populated by avid music hobbyists, with styles that are deemed unconventional as compared to popular music, allowing for more creative freedom and expression.
Underground music often comes across as raw and unfiltered mediums for self-expression, which appeals to niche groups.
Gigs typically have a Do-It-Yourself vibe to them, and are organized with the purpose of allowing smaller acts and artists to showcase and share their music.
Difficulty
Compared to bar gigs and events, the only people you need to please in an underground gig are the community of audiences.
Expectations can vary between communities, but oftentimes, as long as there is music to appreciate, audiences will be appeased.
Because underground gigs are more tied to freedom of expression, there is less judgement among members of the community, therefore music does not have to be of top-notch quality.
With that being said, many bands still strive for that near-perfect performance to make a mark in those communities.
Income
Due to the nature of underground gigs being small and niche, they are usually not-for-profit and therefore do not offer much of a monetary incentive for musicians and bands.
In exchange, they allow musicians to express themselves in ways unique to them, and provide some exposure to a community, however small.
If you decide to pursue an underground with your band, be sure to focus more on the experience than the money, and who knows? Maybe you guys will work your way up the music industry.
Accessibility
You can find an abundance of underground gigs around your area for sure.
Facebook groups are also a gold mine when you are looking around for like-minded musicians.
Once you have found a community that you will be interested in, go down and explore. Hang around and connect with musicians, and you may even find a band to jam with.
To land gigs, you need to start by talking to organizers or people who can connect you with them. Connecting with local bands and making an impression on them can be a great way to get yourself spotted.
Concert
We cannot end this post without talking about the most lucrative music gigs out there – concerts.
Concerts are shows designed to showcase a series of music performances for medium to large audiences.
If you have ever been to a concert, chances are you will see large crowds gathered in front of an elevated stage where musicians perform sets of songs for audiences to enjoy.
Often large-scale, concerts provide a spectacle for music lovers.
Once you get to more well-known artists, concerts are very frequently pay-to-watch for members of the public, going as far as to sell our massive locations when we talk about world-famous musicians.
Difficulty
Playing in a concert requires you to be near-perfect in every note you sing or play. You can’t play a sloppy concert and expect audiences to give you a roaring ovation.
You must also be experienced enough to command a large crowd, with many eyes and cameras on you.
With all of these taken into account, one wrong move could mean the end of your career or the beginning of a journey.
It is thus crucial to possess the necessary skills to not only sound good but also impress the folks who will be silently judging your performance.
Income
Venues often pay musicians to appear in concerts, instead of the other way around where musicians pay to get into one (although that is also possible).
In order to acquire the desired artists that they want, venues will offer monetary incentives to entice artists to be present and rocking.
Because of this, concerts can reward musicians with a hefty sum if the transaction goes through.
Venues do this because they are hoping to attract a large crowd that can rake in cash for their business, and are willing to pay for a quality attraction to draw in the public.
On the other side of the coin, there are charity concerts where artists play for free in the spirit of giving. In these cases, they will often perform out of goodwill and rely on exposure as compensation.
Accessibility
Landing a spot in a concert is like landing the perfect skip when skipping stones. Chances are slim and it takes a lot of practice and time to be able to land it.
However, once you can land a few good ones, it slowly becomes more consistent and eventually you will be able to do more and more of them.
Compared to bar gigs, there are far few number of concerts for a large number of aspiring musicians who want to perform on the big stage.
If you deem yourself as suitable for concerts, there are still ways to build yourself up to playing for larger audiences.
Putting yourself out there
How do you start increasing your chances of receiving concert gigs? By making your presence known.
Very similar to the previous 3 types of gigs, consistency is key to making a name for yourself. You may even need to do all 3 types of gigs before even securing a spot on the big stage.
Musicians who work hard to busk, play in bar gigs, and perform in events, see themselves growing in musical prowess, performance etiquette, and network with other musicians and organizers.
This applies to both yourself as an independent musician and your band if you have one.
Brand and Image
If you go to a concert, you may find some artists more memorable than others, because they have certain characteristics that make them stand out.
These can include how they look such as costume and getup, style of music, or quirks such as being a one-man-band.
You need to understand that audiences remember their favorite acts through a combination of showmanship (which includes how good of a performer you are) and your image (how you look like and portray yourself).
A good question to ask yourself is “How do I want my audience to remember me?”.
Why should you want audiences to remember you? Because it will help you build a following, and a solid reputation as a musician, eventually drawing the attention of people who can get you into concerts.
Conclusion
Gigs are not hard to come by if you know where to look for them. By reading this article, your sense of the musical scene will have increased ever so slightly to prepare you for the road ahead.
Of course, these types of gigs are not the only possibilities.
There are so many more options to choose from such as online streaming, radio, live TV, and more!
Be sure to keep your eyes peeled for opportunities when they come by, and seize those gigs!