"Pay to play" on the club scene never made a lot of sense to me. For one thing, record company people are not idiots - they know what bands paid to be on that stage and what bands can actually get people in the door who want to see them. It's is not impressive to anyone that you came up with $800 to get that slot. It would be more impressive if you sold out at a place like the Echo or Satellite where no one pays to play. You can't get booked as a headliner in those rooms unless the booker expects you to do well.

For another, based on the couple of times I went to see friends doing those pay to play shows, they are not put together with any thought and care for a good bill. Most of the audience are friends of the band members who will show up 10 minutes before their friend's scheduled set, and leave 1 minute after it is over. It's not a crowd that wants to come early, stay late and check out some new music.

The only advantage I can see is, you get to play at the world famous Roxy or House of Blues or whatever and feel like a rock star for half an hour while you are on stage. There's enough people willing to pay for that feeling to keep the racket alive.

bobzilla77 said:

"Pay to play" on the club scene never made a lot of sense to me. For one thing, record company people are not idiots - they know what bands paid to be on that stage and what bands can actually get people in the door who want to see them. It's is not impressive to anyone that you came up with $800 to get that slot. It would be more impressive if you sold out at a place like the Echo or Satellite where no one pays to play. You can't get booked as a headliner in those rooms unless the booker expects you to do well.

For another, based on the couple of times I went to see friends doing those pay to play shows, they are not put together with any thought and care for a good bill. Most of the audience are friends of the band members who will show up 10 minutes before their friend's scheduled set, and leave 1 minute after it is over. It's not a crowd that wants to come early, stay late and check out some new music.

The only advantage I can see is, you get to play at the world famous Roxy or House of Blues or whatever and feel like a rock star for half an hour while you are on stage. There's enough people willing to pay for that feeling to keep the racket alive.

Oh god, don't get me started on the friends and family who only turn up for their mates' band. Not that I'm bitter or anything....

Aaaanyway, with bullshit like this p2p business, and all the other bullshit that goes on in the live music industry at all levels, like grotesquely inflated prices for tickets, meet and greets and 'hospitality' and the collusion with ticket touts, promoters need to be careful that they don't kill the goose that lays the golden egg.



Live music is one of the few areas of the business that is thriving but, once the 'boomer' generation of performers starts literally dying off, are we only going to be left with the few acts who were financially privileged enough to get over the huge financial hurdles to breaking into the concert circuit? And will the only people able to go be bored rich old people and distracted yuppies on corporate junkets. It's an exaggerated scenario, but I doubt the business will be so thriving if things really move in that direction.

It's kind of the opposite concern of the world's most famous stars paying to play the world's biigest circle jerk, but I feel you.

This is ridiclous.

If past performers did not have to pay, why should future performers?

The Half Time show was always meant to draw big exposure for the artist. It appears the league is trying to profit off that exposure That doesn't seem fair.

The only halftime shows I ever watched were Prince and Bruno Mars. Otherwise, it's snack time. Just give me the damn game.

uPtoWnNY said:

The only halftime shows I ever watched were Prince and Bruno Mars. Otherwise, it's snack time. Just give me the damn game.

Same here. But I don't even watch the game, just the show.