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Hello everyone Not sure if this is the right place to be posting or if anyone can give me any advice

I’m looking to grab as many tour gigs as I can as the driver/ photographer (as needed). I’ve been on 3 tours now. Understand the requirements, get along with crews, provide a helping hand wherever needed, and get crews to destinations safely and on time. My last 3 tours have been through word of mouth and as the new year rolls around I’m just nervous that although I networked a lot, there are no guarantees moving forward.

I have my class a cdl and can drive anything from a sprinter to a bandwagon and even small coaches.

Please let me know if there’s any opportunities/ advice that anyone can give me. Thank you

Brandon Frankel answered a few questions including what has helped him get to where he is today, his 3 biggest wins (including booking Major Lazer for the Cricket Finals in Mumbai), and what he believes is the most important thing to do in the industry.

Find the full interview here, and below are a few highlights:

AvA: 3 most memorable campaigns?

Frankel: Booking Major Lazer to perform the opening ceremony of the cricket finals in Mumbai, India was pretty wild (I went!), Yung Lean being one of the faces of Calvin Klein's global Fall campaign was pretty groundbreaking for him, and helping this Mexican rapper named Tornillo sell out his entire first-ever US run was pretty special.

AvA: One piece of advice for someone just starting their career? 

Frankel: Network, network, network! Don't be afraid to reach out to people on linkedin for a chat. Go to industry events and mixers. 

AvA: Reflecting on your career so far, what’s one mistake you learned from and one goal for your future self?

Frankel: Personally, I've always wanted more more more very quickly. Being hungry and juggling a lot can definitely help you get ahead very rapidly, but it's also important to maintain a healthy work-life balance. I think for me, I took on way more than I probably should have and my personal life suffered immensely, so I've made it a point to keep it a bit more even and I'm able to really enjoy what I do. It really took me meeting my now wife to really click.

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Find more on the link above, and we hope this was helpful for anyone looking into touring!

I’m looking to invest in a cordless headset mic and receiver that can easily plug and play at various traditional and non-traditional venues (I often perform at bars, schools, and small theatres). It needs to be strong enough for a physically demanding performance, holding up to touring life, with a designated receiver that can plug directly into a board (ideally XLR). Any recs?

I’ve been giging around the Philly area for a while now just trying to get me name out there a bit and feel comfortable enough to start leaving the nest a bit. Was wondering if anyone had any tips for setting up a tour for a band that’s just started to really get the ball rolling. Any of the gigs I get in Philly I’ve gotten through word of mouth or just right place right time, but I’d like to take a more professional approach. If that’s playing the social media numbers game and waiting for an agent/booker/label, I understand that’ll take some time and am not necessarily opposed to that approach. But I can’t help but feel like I could just set up a couple short tours to start getting the name outside of my comfort zone, a more grass roots approach rather than social media is what I was thinking. Appreciate anyone’s 2 cents on this

Have a management client touring Schengen this year. Most of the dates he’s brought in himself through extant promoter relationships, and a couple more I’ve brought in. Additionally, an EU agent has booked two dates for the tour. I'm happy to pay him for those dates, but I can tell he’s trying to insert himself as the middleman for the dates I/the client have booked. I’d rather not let that happen if I can avoid it, partially to save money and partially because I think he's kind of a schmuck.

All that to say - while my background is in mid-size events production, and I’m totally confident advancing shows in the US for my client, I’d like to get a sense of differences in EU booking practices and concerns so I can assess risk I’m taking by handling admin for these dates myself / not subcontracting the work for gigs we brought in to the local agent. What are legal and admin concerns that are Schengen-specific? I'm aware of VAT withholding etc, but I'm trying to uncover any unknown unknowns.

Thanks.

Indie Rock/Midwest Emo from Seattle on tour these dates. The band is very dynamic and genre-bending so they are open to anyone with a good draw.

https://preview.redd.it/kj67upelnufe1.jpg?width=2640&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=50eab1375678981ebb0503f583d94f52284db5fa

Heyy calling all fellow kit drummers 18 or older in Philadelphia, PA and the surrounding counties! If you have 5 minutes or less to spare, could you please fill out this survey for my AP Research project? https://forms.gle/65mUZKRvSuqoNoRv6 It will investigate the factors that influenced your decision to drum and correlate it with the passion you currently feel for drumming. Thank you for your time!

What is everyone using for selling merch/receiving payments while on tour? I figured I should use a QR code for a linktree and include my venmo, Square, and social media links, but is there anything else? I have not setup Square or linktree yet but will soon and thought I’d reach out here for ideas first.

Thank you.

I’m looking to build a website we can sell our band merch through and ideally I’d like to be able to accept payments (including cash) at gigs and have the inventory sync. I don’t have coding knowledge, so a builder I can use to make decent looking website is key. We’re a small US based DIY band but plan to do international tours on occasion.

So far for price, features, and ease of use, Bandzoogle seems to be the winner for hosting/building, although the lack of variety in payment processors is annoying and more expensive.

Looking at Square as a possible Inventory/POS for live, but wondering if I’m missing anything that would be easier to integrate. We use bandcamp and I like it, but it takes up a lot of time keeping up records by hand and updating inventory after shows. Looked into AtVenu as well, but I feel it's a bit too much for our current needs.

Does anyone use a Square reader for shows and have a better combination? Anything else I’m missing? TIA!

Hi all,

My band, an experimental folk electronica duet, is playing at a festival in Germany near Düsseldorf this June. We’re trying to book a couple other gigs while we’re there as we’re based in the US - so it’s a big trip for us. Currently I’m searching cities and sending emails to venues in northern Germany, Brussels and Holland but it’s kind of tedious and I’m not sure what smaller cities might have good venues for us. Anyone have any lists or resources they can share that would help us in our search? Thanks!

Without delving too far into politics, one thing I’ve been concerned about is how these newly proposed tariffs are going to impact US based artists who tour internationally? Will it primarily hit merchandising or are things like our Carnet going to be impacted as well? Would sourcing merchandise from a vendor outside of the U.S. help avoid excess costs vs bringing merchandise from the States? I’ve got a lot of international stuff coming up this year (South America, AUS, CAN, UK/EU) & am beginning to feel an early onset sense of apprehension.

Trying to come up with VIP experiences that don't suck, and aren't run of the mill. We want people to be stoked about upgrading to VIP, because it gives them an experience that's actually memorable and valuable.

So far, we've run with the standard acoustic performance, Q&A session, and photo op experience. Anybody have good ideas outside of these that they've used successfully?

It costs too much and is way too bloated so I made my own touring software and it's been a dream! Is there anything else you guys use that you think is too expensive? I'm trying to build as many tools for small artists as possible in 2025 🫡

Hey folks. I’m a singer/Guitarist looking into finding a seasonal residency playing in an Irish Bar. I was playing around with the idea of Thailand. I have previously done this in Cyprus and am interested in trying somewhere else. Is there parts of Thailand that would be more suitable for me to look into? I would be interested in beaches, good nightlife and a young atmosphere (I’m 24). Does anyone have any advice ?

Hey all! Im hoping to build up my first tour, and I'm not 100% sure if I'm too late for the time frame.

Ideally: April 5-10

April 5: Pocatello/Salmon/Stanley? April 6: Nampa/Boise? April 7: Walla Walla ? April 8: Spokane (Booked) April 9: Sandpoint (Booked) April 10: Missoula?

I'd love some help finding leads for the dates not Booked. I've sent well over 100 emails and I'm perpetually coming up short 😅 am I too late?

Any help? Solo, live looped covers of Pop /R&B/Folk songs.

Hi all, trying to achieve some dreams and plan some epic stuff to grow my guitar and music career this year, but we live in an age where companies and show promoters seem to care more about an artists numbers online than actual quality of music. This is where you can help out:

Please feel free to give my music on Spotify, subscribe to my YouTube channel, and give a follow on Instagram, all links below. Your help on this would be very much appreciated and will not go unnoticed 😄

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5YnT9MiOGbWjihf0np9ozP?si=RNie4uBATuONPyNdRgeDrA

YouTube: https://youtube.com/@benchallengermusic?si=GjyA7Q60_Md58rq9

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/benchallenger/

I thought I was just losing my hearing. Fair enough, I was a rave kid before becoming a roadie. But after my last flight was plagued by intermittent ear pain, I got one of those ear cameras and found my bad ear actually has a wall of wax back there 🤢 looks like over a decade of ear plugs being a constant part of life has some consequences.

I got some eardrops and a little rubber bulb syringe, followed the instructions aaaaand...no significant change. It does say you can use it twice a day for four days before consulting a doctor, so maybe it's just that bad....

I fly again on Tuesday and after last flight, I'm not looking forward to it without resolution. I'll go to a doctor on Monday if I have to but I'm hoping someone here has some tips, a favorite method or product. I'm definitely adding some sort of flushing method to my pack so I'm not going months just pushing more and more in there.

Trying to find the best business credit card for my band LLC, with great rewards, as well as any recommended standalone rewards cards you use on the road too (i.e. gas cards/hotel cards).

I personally have a 2-5% US Bank cashback reward card for my personal, and my wife has a Southwest Airlines card for her photography llc. I like them both, but I’m curious as to what else is out there.

Any financial pro tips that help with touring and the music industry in general are appreciated!

The last moments i had with him was him explaining he doesnt feel like a man because of his stature. He worked hard jobs just like everyone else and even graduated college. Some people just don't care. Watch for your friends. Tell your loved ones you love them right now. I miss you Carlos.

There have been a few threads in the last 1-7 years, so I thought I’d revisit…

What tshirt brand/style type is everyone using for their band tshirts these days? Gildan G500 still the go-to? All reviews I find are pretty mixed.

I used to work in screen printing for ten years about ten years ago, currently researching tshirts for printing. I have a one color press and will be printing my own band tshirts soon.

Thank you

Going on my first headlining tour in a few months playing drums. Hitting US Midwest and East coast. Clubs mostly 100-300cap. Any tips? What to bring, how to stay healthy, what to expect, what not to do. Anything helps! A bit anxious about it.

Has anyone gotten a first time visa to tour the us recently? How much was it?

Hey all I’m in a band from Texas going to the UK in march for our first tour abroad. Merch sales are a big part of our business and I was hoping to gain some info here on what POS to use to accept British pounds and euros at the merch table? The biggest issue I’m worried about is accepting those payments and having them disbursed easily into our bands business bank account in the US. Any help is GREATLY appreciated!

Seriously the things and views that people have there makes wonder if im speaking to a chat bot