Buzz Magazine October

So You Wanna Have Live Music?
Entertaining in the Tampa Bay
By Daniel Childs
“The Entertainer”
When you work in the entertainment world, you often get asked questions by people who have an authentic
curiosity about the inner workings of musical business. One such conversation that I’ve had with people over
the years is how an establishment should go about becoming a venue for live music. Here in Florida, many
smaller restaurants and bars have added live acoustic music to enhance their atmosphere. Many larger ones
have decided to host full bands on a regular basis. And some venues do both.
As a Tampa Bay area-based musician, I’ve discovered that most venues around here are extremely professional
and kind to the musicians that come to play. Following this standard in becoming a venue is a great idea as to
develop a solid reputation in the local music scene.
It’s a given that live music can increase the livelihood of an atmosphere, but what kind of things should an
establishment take into consideration when considering having live music? Based on my own experiences and
conversations with others, here are three points that I believe can lead to band-hosting success.
1. Consider your space.
When considering having live musical entertainment at your establishment, it is important to assess the space
that you have available for hosting musicians. Try to envision an entire band with their instruments and sound
system in the space you have available. Also, play some loud music in the room to assess whether the room
works for full band music. If you find that the space you have may not be able to accommodate full bands, you
may want to have duos or soloists (guitar / vocal acts) instead. And here in Florida, there are enough working
soloists to fill up your calendar all month.
It is important to have a designated space for musicians to play in. Some venues will put a musician or band in
a space where they are constantly crowded by customers walking within a foot of them. This is a terrible idea,
because when the evening comes and people are drinking, customers will run into microphone stands, knock tip
jars over, or even sometimes fall onto a musician. Take it from someone who’s seen these things go down, it is
important to assess your space needs so that you can host the right-sized musical acts and so that musicians are
able to do their jobs without problematic interferences.
2. Be hospitable.
If you own a bar or restaurant, you already know that showing hospitality is vital to business. I would encourage
you to consider being hospitable not only to customers, but also to the people who work at your establishment
- employees and musicians alike. Musicians absolutely love to play at venues where they are treated well.
They tell other musicians about these venues, they invite people out to hear them at these venues, and they are
loyal to these venues. This is good for business and good for the venue’s reputation.
The science of treating musicians well is not a difficult mastery. There are a few things you can do that are
guaranteed to yield success in hosting musicians. For one, make sure the musicians have an easy parking situation.
As a musician, when I have to carry in a sound system, being able to park near an entrance and have easy
access to my vehicle is a huge blessing. Musicians will absolutely look forward to the gigs where load-in is
easy.
BAYBUZZ.ORG / OCTOBER 2016 / 27