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Having your music resonate onstage and being surrounded by fans and friends is a great feeling. If you’ve reached the point where your live show is a must-see performance in the local community, all the power to you, because that's an accomplishment to be proud of. However, life on the road only gets harder, and the transition to performing out of state can be a humbling experience.
Staying within the confines of your home comfort zone may feel safe, but the true test arrives when you find yourself in unfamiliar territory among strangers. During these shows, the majority of people in attendance won’t know your name, and, even worse, they may not even care to learn about you as an artist. It’s your job to leave a lasting positive impact at these moments, and we’re here to provide you with some tips on how to do so when performing out of state.
1. Research all the details on the location in advance
After accepting an out-of-state performance offer, the first thing you should do is research the location and the venue. Click around on the venue website and look at gallery pictures of previous show setups. If the pictures look professional and decent crowd sizes are shown, that's a good sign. Venues with outdated websites and no reviews online should stir skepticism, so don’t accept all offers just because they're coming from an exciting new area.
Once you have full confidence in the opportunity, complete all your transportation and lodging plans ahead of time. The last thing you want is to get lost or be late to the show or have nowhere to stay afterwards. Simply put, get all the details lined up and organized so you can focus on what’s most important: delivering a great performance and gaining new fans in the process.
2. Tailor your show promotion to the area you're performing in
When performing at familiar local venues, the fact you're already established in the area is promotion within itself. But when taking your talents to a new city, tweeting out the flyer on the day of the show is just not going to cut it. Extra promotion will not only benefit you, but it'll be greatly appreciated by the event organizers who are taking an innate risk in bringing you to their city and showing faith in the quality of your work.
Whether it's friends, cousins, or random fans from the area messaging you on Twitter, utilize every relationship you have in that location and promote the event for at least two weeks before show night. By tailoring your marketing to the city you're performing in, you increase the likelihood of reaching new fans who will treat you less like a stranger and more like a welcomed guest.
If traveling out of state is a special sort of occurrence for you (which it usually is early on in indie careers), don’t be afraid to demonstrate your excitement, and try not to book yourself for any other shows a week before or after that date. Creating buzz around your shows should be considered a requirement, and the significance of doing so increases when away from your core fanbase.
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3. Show appreciation for the local artists on the bill (and the city in general)
There will be some out-of-state shows where you're on bills with artists you’ve never heard before. If this is the case, take some time to listen to their work and share your favorite songs/videos that you find on social media. Showing appreciation for the city you are traveling to is something that will be respected and will automatically create a positive atmosphere during those valuable pre- and post-show conversations.
If you have the time, try to explore the city you're performing in and take some "landmark" type pictures that are bound to go over well on Instagram. The little things can make the biggest difference, and showing appreciation for your peers is on top on the list. No one likes the out-of-towner who shows up for his or her set at the last minute and leaves right after completing it – so don’t be that guy or gal.
4. Properly introduce yourself to the new crowd
When performing in front of a crowd filled with strangers, it's imperative to understand that they will likely not be familiar with your music. Therefore, interacting and engaging with the crowd becomes extremely important in order to earn their attention. The art of interaction is something you should practice at home even among friends, because it'll come in quite handy during these situations. Tell stories, tell jokes, tell the crowd to move closer to the stage. Do whatever it takes to ingrain your name in people’s memories, because the act of performing song after song without any engagement is usually not enough to become a fan favorite.
You don’t have to try too hard to be a comedian and ramble too long about something irrelevant, wasting your set time in the process – just be yourself and showcase what you represent as an artist and as a person. Speak your truth, and do so with confidence in the fact that your craft has taken you beyond where you came from.
Eric Bernsen is a marketing/public relations professional and music journalist who specializes in the genre of hip-hop. You can find more of his work at HITPmusic.com (where he is an editor/writer) as well as HipHop-N-More.com, where he contributes album reviews. Follow Eric on Twitter @ebernsen.
