Booking a Successful Tour

Touring is and will always be one of the most important parts of being in a band. However, without a booking agent taking care of getting your band on the bill it’s a very time-consuming and difficult job to book a tour. Even if you have a booking agent, the artist to needs to be highly involved when decisions are made regarding when, where and how to play shows.

Reverbnation quite recently interviewed Sharyn Goldyn, an ex-Windish Agency booking agent and currently artist manager, to have a talk about what artists need to consider when going on tour. The interview is split into two parts and can be found on Reverbnation’s website, here and here.

Before bands leave for the road, Sharyn recommends that they establish a strong local following, and that they “become that strong local band that can sell out the best small venue in the market. Be the go-to band for promoters who need an awesome local to open a big sold out.” Further she states that new bands will most likely lose money on touring but that it’s a crucial part of the artistry, since touring will be one of the main sources of income once the fan base has grown.

Sharyn says that bands should aim at downsizing as much as possible before going on tour, claiming that a often made mistake is bands not being economical enough. “You don’t need a fancy van, multiple hotel rooms, sound engineer or a tour manager early on… Sleep on couches and floors on the road. Bring merch. People actually buy CDs at shows and that will make a difference as to how you will pay for gas to the next city or not.”

In the full interview, Sharyn talks about how to generate interest from music festivals, the chicken-and-egg problem between agents and record labels, and what makes her, as a music industry professional, interested in a new band (besides great music).

Read the full interview here.