Cover Band Confidential's Podcast (Music Business, Gigging Tips & Making Money as a Musician)

Some episodes have a lot of meat. Others have a lot of meatballs! Everything from Jamiroquai to duelling piano. From gilt-framed Elvii to relative minors to cat-6 cable. This week's episode is the DEFINITION of "a free-wheeling ramble"!

This week's #musicianmonday post is the audio from a Youtube video posted on October 15th, 2021.  In it Adam discusses how most people who say they want to pursue music professionally aren't willing to challenge their mindset enough to make things happen.   If this resonates with you or you think it would resonate with someone else please share with your friends & bandmates! Thank you so much...

Today we deal with the main thing that matters in the entire universe--that, alarmingly, most people seem oddly unaware of: Dan's new band had its first gig. Oh and also, we unpack a listener email what happens when about another band encroaches on your brand. What to do? How to respond? We deal with it all. Join our Patreon! It's awesome! http://patreon.com/coverbandconfidential

Happy Musician Monday! Enjoy this snippet from a conversation we had last year around how to get more requests at your gigs and how to stack those requests in your set to make them go as far as possible. Be sure to tune in every Monday for a short bonus topic from the podcast archive or our Youtube channel! If this is new to you be sure to go to linktr.ee/coverbandconfidential to keep track of all...

A couple points of high Internet drama this week. First. a conversation kicked off by a comment about the potential relationship between original acts and their tributes.  Second a followup/clarification on a comment of Adam's about being "the entertainment, not the help". Know your value, and learn to say no! Everybody wins, except the jerks who expect you to act like "the help". 

What do you do when that venue you've played at for years suddenly changes direction and you're OUT? How to move on gracefully (or, you know, NOT gracefully) to whatever's going to be next.

Lots of activity in ya-boys gigging lives this week... all overshadowed by a glorious Gig From Heck story. It comes from our buddy Martin of the band SmallTalk, all the way from Brighton, England. Ever find yourself playing a wedding... by surprise? Martin did! SmallTalk: https://www.facebook.com/smalltalkcovers

While Adam was climbing stairs in Colorado, Dan was busy getting the new band ready for its first exposure to the world, including lots of things that are likely of interest for all the rest of us!

Lots of moving parts for yer boys this week, from basketball-forced schedule changes to near-misses with stage fireworks. But the main topic has to do with persistence, the lack of sour grapes, and opportunities that come when they come.

Many topics on this week's episode, including: Line6 DL4 MkII Looping hardware Subs on Aux Turning Red and We Don't Talk About Bruno And then MOST critically: People in our scene's view that $100 is the standard and anything else is impossible. Get in touch with your value, Band People!

Sometimes you luck out and something amazing drops into your lap. What do you do with that--wing it, or learn to deliver in a way that honors the request? This week we cover the kinds of chances that pop up in the cover artist world and what it takes to rise to the occasion! And on the off chance you need a Children Of Bodum coffee mug, please see our linktree: https://linktr.ee/coverbandconfident...

This week, spurred by Dan's new project and his emerging go-to-market strategy, we kick off a Whole Big Talk on the topic of "is it legal to play covers"? Answer: Yes. But it takes licensing and permission. Can you even stream and sell your versions? Yes! But ditto! So listen here and find out the deal.

Friends, it's Episode 200. We did our best to have this episode not be totally consumed by the milestone of the number Two Hundred.... And we failed. It's our 200th episode and that's a big deal no matter how you slice it. Also Smash Mouth. Plus of course, Tears For Fears. Also Sir Duke. It's not NOT those things. And yet: 200!

They can't all be winners! It's just as true about podcast episodes as it is about gigs! So what do you do when it doesn't go your way? Do you spiral, or get creative?

And no it's not about sportsball. The Superbowl halftime show revealed something very interesting about changing demographics and age/era nostalgia. It's our job, as weaponizers of nostalgia, to tap into what that show showed.  Also Dave Grohl is wrong about something. There we said it.

Looking to show up in your scene as a competent participant, ready for paying work and opportunities to fall your way? Learn to exhibit these five signs of professionalism in a musician's behavior!

Is something about how you approach the cover band business getting in your way? Sapping your joy, costing you gigs and opportunities? Maybe these toxic mindsets need looking at, in yourself and in the people in your sphere. Also HEY NEW ARTWORK! How cool is that??

You got em! Now how do you keep em? This episode: our strategies, tips, and techniques for grabbing those organic bar randos and turning them into repeat followers!

This week's episode addresses struggles we all go through. As performers and artists, sometimes it feels like it hits us uniquely hard. Help is available at the National Suicide Hotline, at 800-273-8255. It's worth acknowledging: We're in a tough moment. Again. Which we should have been out of, like, a WHILE ago. But we're not. Band folks seem to be struggling in a way that is new and yet oh so fa...

We're back from the new year FULLY this time--Dan's out of isolation, things are moving, and despite the world being in a weird covid-y place, we're still making plans and moving forward with stuff. A lot of good gear talk happening this week, then a dive into the world of backing tracks. There are original studio multitracks out there to be used, for those what have the wherewithal. This conversa...

The more things change, friends. Wasn't it this time last year we were feeling like we were supposed to be all done with this Covid thing by now, but the end just kept getting further away? Seems somehow... familiar. Only difference is, this time around one of us is actively plague-ridden. Listen up to find out who is and who isn't-yet.

The ball is falling on 2021, friends! And as the Earth hits this arbitrary point in its cycle, we pause to look at the year just passed with all its successes, challenges, and growth opportunities. And we look forward to the next one, full of opportunities, risks, possibilities, and uncertainty. What are you thinking about, here at the turning of the year? Let us know at coverbandconfidential@gmai...

The holiday is upon us! Quick update of gigs and events, a sudden change of plan around Dan's new project, and the beginning of our thinking to review the year-just-passed and plan for the year-just-starting. Hit us up with your year-end reflections at coverbandconfidential@gmail.com! 

Oh sure--in past years we've spouted opinions. And yes: "Christmas Shoes" will always reign supreme.  But this year we've gotten SCIENTIFIC. We crowd-sourced a bracket of 16 of the worst of the worst of holiday nonsense, and with the help of a certain lead-singer-and-spouse as a tiebreaker, we narrowed it down to the VERY WORST Christmas song of all time. Here are the tracks we started with, for t...