How to Hire Live Bands For Your Community Event
Community Events can be quaint and wholesome affairs that are merely organized to allow neighbors to get to know each other, to raise money for a cause, and more. Sometimes hiring live bands for a community event is a great way to jump-start a joyful atmosphere and give people something to bond over. Here are some tips on how to seek out musicians for hire for your community event.
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Write the Budget
This one is a no-brainer, but deciding ahead of time what percentage of funds and base amount you are willing to spend on live entertainment for your community event will assure you a boundary that you can self-enforce. While it is ok and expected to allow wiggle room for unexpected things (and you may be in a position to haggle, though this is not common when hiring live acts), your safest bet is to know the limit ahead of time so you don’t break the bank.
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Know Space and Time
Before hiring talent, it’s best to know what you are dealing with in terms of time, space, and technical specs. You don’t want to book an act that will require additional equipment like lights and sound systems that they’ll charge extra for if they aren’t available at the performance space. Try to lock down a date and venue, and know all the technical specs of the event locale before reaching out to potential acts. Chances are that with a community event, you will be outdoors in a park-like setting or in a small dinner hall. Seek out Bands that are prepared to perform in those kinds of areas
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Know What You’re Looking For
Chances are that long before you reached the budgeting stage, you already knew the type of musicians you wanted. This is the main step for figuring out what you’re looking for, but you’ll want to consider things like age and culture of the audience as well as attendee expectations when selecting a live act. Community Events will attract families, including very young children and the elderly as well. Your best bet is to seek out musical acts that have a broad and PG-rated appeal.
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Interview Performer
When reaching out to the band, see if they’re willing to have a quick phone call, zoom call, or text exchange to go over the details of the event and your financial/contractual offerings. While booking talent based on the art you see and written information can be tempting, you really don’t know what you’re getting into until you have a conversation with someone. They could be brilliant and talented, but a loose cannon, or have financial demands that will make you realize they aren’t right for the gig.
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Write a Contract
No matter the size of the event, or if it is public or private, you need to have a contract between yourself and the band leader or band representative. This will ensure that your financial agreement is set-in-stone and there won’t be any last-minute surprises. Contracts can be fairly simple, ranging from one created from a template online, to one you write and finalize with lawyers. Chances are the former is more likely with a tighter budget. The thing to remember is that verbal contracts are not legally enforceable, so get it down on paper.
