What's your price?

therobinator

Junior Member
My friend and I just started gigging and are now being asked how much we charge and I have no idea what to say. The gigs we're playing are acoustic jazz/funk gigs. So, my quesions are: How much do you charge? How much do you think my friend and I should charge? Any input would be greatly appreciated.

Info. on our gigs:
- just drums and guitar
- usually play for 2-3 hours
 
My friend and I just started gigging and are now being asked how much we charge and I have no idea what to say. The gigs we're playing are acoustic jazz/funk gigs. So, my quesions are: How much do you charge? How much do you think my friend and I should charge? Any input would be greatly appreciated.

Info. on our gigs:
- just drums and guitar
- usually play for 2-3 hours

That's really not nearly enough information...some things we would need to know to make a recommendation:

- Where are you located?
- What type of venues are you playing? (Clubs, bars, coffeehouses, etc)
- What style of music?
- What size crowds do you usually get?
- Do the places you play have a door fee?
 
Well for what it's worth, on my gigs I typically earn between 60 - 150 per night depending if I'm playing with my 3, 4 or 5 piece bands. These are not high profile gigs, just bars and parties and some outdoor events. If you're making a ton of money for whoever hires you you can ask for more, if you aren't making much money for that person, you will get less.
 
That's really not nearly enough information...some things we would need to know to make a recommendation:

- Where are you located?
- What type of venues are you playing? (Clubs, bars, coffeehouses, etc)
- What style of music?
- What size crowds do you usually get?
- Do the places you play have a door fee?

Currently we're located in southwest Arizona. The population's around 100,000. Lately we've been playing art openings at the local gallery, and will begin playing for our city's "Friday night socials"( fancy name for block parties)down town. We play jazz/funk,and are pretty much acoustic, besides a small amp. The crowds are 100-200, but are not really there to see us,we are just there for ambient music. Most of the openings do have door fees. Thanks a lot for the help.
 
Currently we're located in southwest Arizona. The population's around 100,000. Lately we've been playing art openings at the local gallery, and will begin playing for our city's "Friday night socials"( fancy name for block parties)down town. We play jazz/funk,and are pretty much acoustic, besides a small amp. The crowds are 100-200, but are not really there to see us,we are just there for ambient music. Most of the openings do have door fees. Thanks a lot for the help.

No problem, man.

I can't speak of prices in AZ, per se, but it sounds like you're not in a major city, which means that you can't get New York/Philly prices (that's not a problem). For the kind of stuff you are talking about, there can be a lot of variety in pay. For instance, when I do local art gallery openings (I have done a few), my buddy and I (we do an acoustic duo) charge $150 - $200, depending on set length, if there's free wine, and if it's the gallery whos manager I have a bit of a crush on (it's true, even if I'm married). These are small galleries, too, not major ones. I would ask for more from majors.

Now, when towns have block party type things, they generally have a budget that they can use, and they can't do more than that, but they are also willing to do right up to it with no problem. Thus (and I just did two of these this year, so I am familiar with what you are talking about), I will usually shoot high, but say something like, "Well, for a gig like that, we'd usually ask for $400." If they flinch at all, say something like, "However, I know you are on a budget, so what do you think you could do for us? Anything close to that?" You'd be surprised how often you will get a "Yeah, we can do that," or, "Well, that's a bit much, how about $300?" for a gig that you might have only asked $150 for. If they say, "Oh, wow, I didn't realize, there's no way we can do that," just say something like, "Well, it's still good exposure, plus, it IS my hometown...so what can you afford?" Then decide if you will take it or not.

My best advice to you is to find other artists who play the places you play, and ask what they make. There is a bar in my hometown that pays $300 for bands. That's all they will pay. Doesn't matter if it's an acoustic duo, a jazz trio, or a 14-piece funk band. I know that, because I know just about every band that plays there. So, when I was in a 6-piece rock band, I didn't even bother pursuing it, because we didn't want to play for less than $50 per person (after sound and management and our rent fees). However, when I joined an acoustic trio that does it's own sound and has no rent fee, it was suddenly a great place to pursue.
 
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