Central Texas Venues

There are two uses to the links shown below. If you are just here to see what live music is going on in your area, click on the 'Events List' link under the places you would like to check out. A new window will open for each. Click on as many as you would like. If you are an artist or band looking to find a place to secure a gig, scroll down to the bottom and get my take on getting gigs from this list.

Click on the 'Event List' links of the venue you might want to get a gig. Take a look at who they hire. Do they hire the kind of music you play? If you are a rock band, you might not want to waste your time at Bos Barn for example. Bos Barn is strictly country and mostly country western at that. Also, are they hiring only on weekends or maybe only on Thursdays or Mondays. Do they hire only solo and duo acts? Do they mind it loud? It might take you a bit to create a list of venues that might want to hire you.

The next thing is to realize that most folks that are doing the hiring are really busy once dinner starts if they serve food. If it is strictly a bar, they might not even open until 2 or 3 pm or later. It is ok to try and connect through messenger to find out who does the hiring, but you will want to try and meet them in person at some point. It is best to call and make an appointment, they may be only working on a particular day. Be respectful of their time. I find the best time to meet these folks is sometime just before dinner starts. It does not leave much time to make these appointments and if you have a day job, it is even harder. Bring a business card, or a sheet with a little about you, links to your music, places you might have already played, and a sample song list. Something that will sit on their desk they have to look at. I have business cards that I have put magnetic backings on. They end up seeing that card every day. It is called 'mind share' and you want as much of that as you can.

Be ready to play and do well. Do not get out there until you are ready as an act. The worst thing you can do is get out there, do poorly, and regret it. There is just not that many venues and one bad night might get the word out not to hire you. These venue owners do talk. As a solo or duo act, you need at least 2 hours, but some places ask for 3. 3 hours solo even with breaks requires a minimum of 10-12 songs per 45 min set. If it is 2 hours, I play with no breaks. Anything more than that, take 15 min breaks each hour and plan accordingly. That is if you do not do a lot of talking. Band sets are usually a minimum of 3 hours for most places. It used to be 4 hours everywhere, but that hass changed over the last few years. For my band, that comes out to 8-9 tunes per 45 min set. It is less tunes because full band songs with longer lead sections usually take longer.

As far as what to charge. Most of these venues are paying $100 per person. Sometimes that stops at $300. Some events pay as much as $500 or more. If you have 5 people in your band, keep that in mind. There are a lot of trios out there for this reason. If you are a solo or duo act, you can charge usually $100 to $150. Yes not great but that is the state of things. Remember, the venue is having to pay you out of what they make that night. It is a partnership. If it is a stormy night, and folks are staying home, you may get paid, but you may want to call first and talk to the venue, maybe it should be rescheduled. If you can bring 30 people every show of your own, then you can charge more, but otherwise, take what they are paying or say no Thank you. Also, a bar tab and/or food tab can make up for some of that income. You may not be able to guarantee a large crowd, but you must at least be able to play well enough that the folks at the venue stay and order more food and drinks.

If you are too loud or the singing is way off, you will be chasing them away. You are not ready. If you are just starting out, you may not get paid anything or open up for another band until you get a little exposure and experience. Lastly, If you have been around and have a large following, you can charge what you want.

So I hope all of this helps a little bit. Welcome to Central Texas Live Music and the Music Association of Central Texas. We hope you find this valuable set of resources useful and worth your membership. Do not forget to check out the Facebook Groups page we have prepared so you can get the word out where you will be playing next. And I hope I get to see you playing and entertaining somewhere around here very soon.

If you want to comment, correct me or have me add something, please email me at james@accountcraft.com