Unsigned Artists

Steve owns the Avalon Hollywood, LA’s leading nightclub three years in a row.

Q: WHAT IS A STREET TEAM?

SA: STREET TEAMS are a group which goes out and does exactly that: Promote your act on the street through flyering. The common process is contacting the principal of the street promotion company and telling him/her what you need done: promote my band’s next show, our new cd etc. Word of Caution: these companies make their money by promoting up to six things at the same time. Charging you $10/hour sounds great until you find out your flyer is being given out buried with five others. In almost all cases you are responsible for printing your own invites, and getting them to your chosenpoint person.

In dealing with a Street Team,

DO:

Get the all the information on the company you can. (check website, references,etc.)

Meet with the actual people handing out your flyers. Don’t forget, they represent you and your image.

Ask for their location schedule, and the time they will be there. Follow up and make sure they actually show up.

Get an overall budget ahead of time. Depending on the city, prices range between

$8 - $12/ hr.

DON’T:

Take anything for granted. Stay on top of the Street Team to get the flyers out to the public. No one will care about your band like you do.

Have unrealistic expectations. The truth is, a street team is only as good as what they have to promote. An unknown band whose flyers are covering streets, is exactly that: an unknown band with flyers everywhere. Note of Advice: The more unknown you are, the more interesting your flyers have to be.

Q: DO I NEED A BAND WEBSITE?

SA: Electronic media is one of the fastest growing forces in music. Fans use websites more and more on a daily basis to connect to their favorite acts. So, you do need a website, but the issue is always about on thing: money, i.e., the cost to develop a website.

Solving the “I don’t have the money to build a website” problem:

Online music sites - these sites was built around solving this issue. They can serve as your website page, and you can make money doing it.

Trade - find someone who’ll put up your site for trade. i.e. you’ll do their sister’s wedding for free.

When your site is ready to go, make sure that you take in to account the ability to sell merchandise, music and representing what you are all about. Remember: your website is probably the first thing people will see (and hear) about you who don’t know you personally.

Q: WHAT IS THE ROLE OF A PROMOTER, AND HOW CAN THEY HELP ME?

SA: Promoters typically work in a way that can either help you, or make your life miserable. Promoters usually make deals with clubs to “take” a night, which means they play a flat fee to the venue, and it’s up to them to figure out how to cover that cost. They do this by booking bands and keeping a large portion of the cover charge.

So, the promoter has the ability to get you into the venue you want to play, but the catch is you have to draw a quota of paying customers, not an easy feat for a new band. How to get around this “pay to play” system is to simply use it to your advantage. Save your money and buyout the tickets yourself (say 50 tix @ $7 = $350), and give them to your fans. Do this once or twice and you’ll start to be known as a band that has a following, which creates buzz, which make you more attractive as an act, which allows you to get a better deal the next time around. When you get to the point where you have built up a paid following, you can approach the venue yourself, without a promoter!

Steve Adelman is a leading nightclub venue owner and music scene innovator, including founding the AVALON nightclubs in Boston, New York, and Los Angeles. He is credited with being one the founders of the electronic music scene in America, being the first to bring over DJs such as Paul Oakenfold and Sasha from the UK into his nightclubs. Mr. Adelman has been featured on “Entertainment Tonight”, “E NEWS” and in “The Wall Street Journal” to name a few, with respect to the nightlife industry, and frequently consults on a array of projects, including band and venue start-ups along with creative and interior design.