Written By Petra Hule
Imagine having to practice and rehearse your show whilst also scheduling and booking everything, such as where, what time, and how many shows. Every artist has to start somewhere, but scheduling is manageable once you get organized. What happens when you can’t juggle it all, need new places to perform, or are looking to expand your horizons?
A booking agent is key when meddling with such thoughts. Booking agents look to invest their time in artists that can provide sell-out performances because the better you do, the better they do. We’ll be able to get into the nitty-gritty parts of it all including how it all works, what agents look for, how to find one or be discovered by one, and the sorts later down the track. To begin, let’s ask and answer the most basic question.
What Is A Booking Agent?
A booking agent is your eyes and ears in the world of music. They put your work out there for the world to experience it live, taking you away from your social media presence and into the real world. They often come with a great deal of knowledge for which venues to look at, locations to tour, promoters and sponsors that are looking for musicians just like you. Not only are they in charge of finding places and promoting you as an artist, but also manage the scheduling and planning of how best to organize your life for your music and career to prosper.
What To Look For In An Agent
Let’s cut to the chase, essentially, we are dealing with your passion and career when discussing tours and how best to manage your life schedule. After all, your life is revolving around the success of your music. Thus, it is just as much about them discovering you as it is about you wanting to be found by them.
To break it down, agents that are well networked with have good connections and access to sponsors which will benefit you in the long run. Although you need to be scouted by such agents that are established and have these connections, it’s also vital that you work well with them and trust they have your best interest at heart. Ensuring you work well with them on a professional and personal level and finding a balance between the two is crucial.
How Do You Find A Booking Agent & How Much Do They Charge?
Agents usually reach out to artists they’re interested in. However, don’t let this hold you back from emailing and sending out samples of your work to agencies. Going back to your one key takeaway from reading this: Booking agents often know other booking agents and artists.
Thus, if you’ve met artists that already have agents maybe they could introduce you to one another. Even if their agent doesn’t pick you up, connections go a long way.
The general price that a music artist pays for a booking agent is 10% of the artist’s earnings for each show respectively. This is the typical range for any agent and usually wouldn’t exceed 15% nor would it be any less than 10%.
How Do Agents Scout Music Artists?
This leads us to also answer the question “how do agents find me?” When you’re at the right place at the right time, your chances of being seen by someone who might know someone in the industry, increase.
Play As Many Live Shows As You Can
Not every artist starts with an agent, so booking and signing up for as many live shows as possible, to begin with, is a great way to start the journey. This gives you more exposure, but also creates a timeline to see how well your set is doing and if you’re able to sell tickets. Remember, an agent benefits from how well you do. Not only does this give you exposure to audiences, but other musicians as well which can benefit your career just as much.
Become Well-Networked In The Space
If you are to take one thing away from this post let it be this… Connections. Are. Everything. This isn’t just about, “how can they make me successful?” It’s about gaining knowledge and insight into the industry you want to be a part of. Say you book a small gig down at the local pub alongside other musicians, you never know what stories or experiences they’ll share with you, which can place you in the right place at the right time.
Keep Up With Your Social Channels
Along with agents scouting out talents, in reality, it would only make sense they do their research to see if you’re serious about your career in music or if you’re looking to do this as a side gig. Keeping up with your socials is just as important as how you present yourself in real life.
When agents look you up and see you’re putting your work out there on socials such as Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, and the like, they’re more likely to reach out as they see you’re looking to build and sell yourself as a music artist.
Always Remain True To Yourself
Finally, and most importantly, be your unique self. You know yourself and your music. If you’re looking to be acoustic and enjoy performing when it’s just you and your guitar or the keys on the piano, stick to that and find places that are looking for that kind of vibe.
Although you’re looking for someone to reach out to you and show their interest in you, you too are able to control who notices you based on where you choose to apply yourself. On that note, look for opportunities that fit you and your music brand, as the opportunities are endless, and hey, you never know who you might meet by taking that coffee shop gig.
