No matter where you are located, there is a good chance that you can hire a local
country band for your upcoming event. Music is everywhere! One of my absolute favorite quotes is from the infamous American poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882), “Music is the universal language of mankind.”
4 Things You Should Know Before You Hire a Local Country Band
- Town/City – Of course you will need to know the town or city of your event to successfully search, locate, and hire a local country band.
- Date – The date is important to determine which local country bands are available to hire for your event. The further out you can plan, the more options of community bands you will have.
- Duration – How long are you wanting the local country band to play? The length of time that you want them to play is significant. Some artists play for a single 90 minute set, while others are willing to play up to 4 hours.
- Booking Agency or Do It Yourself – You will need to decide if you are going to use a booking agency to help you or if you are going to do this on your own. Here is a previous blog that can help you decide. And if you do choose to have an agency assist you, here are 7 Questions You Should Ask Any Entertainment Booking Agency.
Once you know the above 4 things, you can get started in your quest for the right local country band for your event.
Other Beneficial Details to Know Before Hiring a Local Country Band
Other details that would be beneficial in knowing, but are not necessarily required, to get the ball rolling are as follows:
Nature of your event? A wedding, gala, birthday, quinceañera, family or class reunion, corporate gathering, fair or festival, grand opening, holiday party, graduation, etc.? Maybe you are the proud new owner of a club or bar and are looking to hire local country bands. Or perhaps a long-established country music venue has closed down, and you are looking to fill the void by hiring local country bands to play at your venue.
What is your budget? Having a budget will determine which local country bands you can afford to hire.
Where will the event take place as far as venue location? Will it be at a club/bar, restaurant, your backyard, a park, community center, country club, etc.?
Will you need a stage? Some places already have a stage but many locations do not. If your venue or event location does not have a stage then you will need to decide if you want the local country band you hire to perform on one. This is completely up to you. The size of your event audience might influence you one way or the other.
Will you need lights, sound, backline or will the hired local country band need to bring what is needed? Some bands have all this equipment while others do not. This is certainly a detail that will need to be addressed at some point in the process. Here is a quick and informative read on what the terms “backline vs. frontline” mean.
What type of local country band do you have in mind to hire? Are you looking to hire a local country band with a specific sound? Perhaps, you want a band with a female or male lead singer? Do you want a local country tribute act, a local up-and-coming original artist, or a country cover band that plays well-known radio-tune. \If you have the budget, you may even want a local artist who is now a national star. If you are wanting a national artist then you will need to seek out a booking agency in order to help you.
What genre of country music are you looking for? There are many different types of country music as you probably already know. Do you want classic country, bluegrass, red dirt, Texas country, pop country, or a mixture thereof?
Ways to Hire a Local Country Band Without a Booking Agency
- Ask friends for referral. You can either do this face-to-face or you could ask for recommendations on Facebook. Post something such as, “What is your favorite local country band in Bay City, TX?” Once you get a list of possibilities, then create a poll on Facebook. This can help you in deciding which band is most popular.
- Ask local clubs for referral. By simply reaching out to local clubs that book country music on a regular basis, you can get a list of possible bands that could fit your event. Make sure you learn about each act’s reputation. Are they well liked music wise and personality wise? Are they dependable as far as showing up on time and not getting drunk on the job? Are they easy to work with or are they high-maintenance prima donnas? These are important questions to have answered before you go to the next step.
- Seek out local county bands at local venues where country bands play. You might find a band you like playing there and approach them directly about playing at your event.
- Ask Google for a referral. Google “country bands” plus your location. For example, “Riverdale, CA country bands.” Most likely you will find suggestions will be from GigMasters and GigSalad. These are local directories, aka like the yellow pages, but specifically for entertainers
Your Next Step is to contact the local country band you want to hire.
Once you have a list of bands you can look up them individually via the Internet using Google or Bing or another search engine. Most will have a website or a Facebook page. Their site will have contact information, or you can reach out to them on Facebook Messenger. From here you will need to ask the following questions:
- Are you available “X” date?
- Will you play at my location and type of event?
- Can you play for the length of time I need?
- Do you have your own PA sound system?
- If lights are needed, can you supply them?
- What is your price?
- Do we have a deal or when can you confirm?
Once a decision is made, you need to confirm everything in writing. If you are hiring a local country band, generally an email confirming everything is enough. Unless the band is well known, you probably do not need a contract. Make sure thought that both parties agree on all the arrangements and pricing. You should check back periodically to make sure everything is still a go. That’s critical as you get closer to the event. Most bands are reputable and will keep their commitment. On rare occasions, a better offer may entice a less scrupulous band to drop your event in favor of the higher paying one. That’s why it’s important to keep checking in with the band.
Benefits to Hiring Local Country Bands
Price – Price is normally lower because there are no travel expenses, and the band can easily get their equipment to your location.
Band’s Familiarity with Venue/Location – If you are a venue, the band is most likely familiar with your establishment, the location and the amenities like stage, sound, and lights. If not, they probably know another act that has played there that they can ask.
Communication –Interacting with a local band is a lot easier. Because they are a local band, you can easily stop by to talk in person and check everything out for yourself, if needed.
Local Fans – When you recruit a nearby country band, you can expect for them to already have a large following of fans. People are more likely to know their music and reputation. If you are a venue, this equates to more money being made through ticket and drink sales.
Word-of-Mouth Media Campaign – If you are wanting a local country band for a personal type of celebration, then promoting your event is not needed. If you are a venue, then promotion is vital. Besides online promotion such as Facebook, a word-of-mouth campaign can be extremely effective in this situation. Just make sure you start your campaign early enough to be effective. Try to start 2 months out. Increase it 1 month out. Then really turn up the heat the week prior to the event.
I hope now you have a much better idea of how to hire a local country band. You can see that it is possible to do by yourself, but don’t’ forget that using a booking agency makes the process MUCH easier for you at no additional cost. Let TSE Entertainment take the grunt work off your hands while you sit back and be the hero at your next event! Give us a call at 1-800-765-8203 now to speak to an agent!
