How to get into weddings

[Jamesemt]

As a band we have always wanted to get into weddings - nothing too serious, couple a month.

Just wondered what the best way to get them is? Wedding events or something else?

Also apart from the obvious demo and photos, what kind of info package do you give to potential clients?

We are thinking of a wedding version of a press kit in a printed cardboard folder with a CD pocket...

Any ideas/advice? We've been together two years and are getting relatively tight

[Chris2112]

I used to work in a big hotel which regularly hosted 5 or 6 weddings a week in the wedding season (summer). A great way to get into the scene is by leaving your details with the hotel, and suggesting the hotel offers prospective customers your details telling them they'll get a "discount" if they book the hotel's recommended band. Then you've got them interested in your stuff and you can give them a "discount" price, which is actually your normal fee! Then take off a small premium for the hotel's recommendation and give them their cut and you're good.

Most of the best bands in the scene are hired by word of mouth, so all you need is one good gig to get some repeat performance. It's breaking into the scene and getting a gig as a wedding band in the first place that is the toughest part, I suppose.

Going to wedding events is as good a way as any, but you'll need to give it a hard sell or produce something which really grabs the punters, as the pro wedding bands do pretty well to monopolise these events! If you're dabbling your feet in the water, it probably won't be the most productive avenue. Try getting on Facebook and find a friend or family member who is getting married, and play the gig for free. Take some photos, some good video and use that as an advertising platform.

You just have to try your best to be professional. The best band I've seen play at a wedding (Bass player is a member here, Mike if I recall, played a lovely Pentabuzz, a Spector and a Marcus Miller 5 string...) never wore suits to the gig or anything but looked like a pro outfit, were as tight as hell and could fairly play, but knew they were hired to play the typical cover tunes. If you can put on a good show and dedicate yourself to the market, you can do quite well locally.

That said, I've seen some bloody crap bands playing at weddings. A "revelation" it was not....!

[Jamesemt]

Thanks for that, anyone else??

[Pete Academy]

I used to work for this company - www.alivenetwork.com - the biggest online entertainment agency in the UK. They handle loads of wedding bands, so they'll be perfect to advise you. Try emailing [email protected]

You will need good audio tracks and photos, maybe some video too. It costs nothing to get on their website (that's if you're accepted, of course). They don't take a commission like other agencies - instead they take a deposit from the client, then your band is paid the fee you decided upon, usually on the night. Travel expenses are also factored into the quote.

Basically, to be a good wedding band you need an ultra-professional attitude. It can be a tricky gig, especially as the clients are on a high and expect the best. You need to be prepared to deal with awkward situations. Make sure you are suitably-attired, punctual, friendly, have top-end gear and PA, in the MU, have all your gear PAT tested, are fully covered insurance-wise, and have full breakdown cover to and from the venue.

Offering a DJ service with a laptop is also recommended, and clients will pay extra for this. An 'acoustic' set is also a good thing, as you can offer to play during the meal and drinks reception in the afternoon or before the evening set. Again, this is chargeable. Versatility is the key factor.

Check out 'Hipster' on the Alive Network website. They are their most successful function band, and make a decent living from it.

Edited January 24, 2010 by Pete Academy

[Sibob]

My band does a lot of weddings and functions etc, and ALL of them are word of mouth and people seeing us at both public shows and the functions....it's a domino effect!

I know that doesn't help much, but the trick is to play plenty of public shows, we're out usually 2 times a week as a band, not including the guitarist and singer going out as a duo, the sheer amount of gigs means that people are gonna see us and want to book us at some point.
2 Years ago, we had very little function work, 80% public work probably. The last two years have seen it go to maybe 60/40 public to functions, possibly even 50/50, it's that domino effect at work.
We don't have any 'press packs' or demo CD's, never done wedding fairs etc. We have some videos on youtube, but most people who book us have either already seen us, or we do enough shows to be able to invite them to see us!

Si

[thepurpleblob]

Think weddings. Adjust your set list to give the impression that you would make a good wedding band, dress a touch smarter (maybe), put it on any posters and advertising that you are available for functions and weddings. Then get out and play. Sooner or later someone will come along and ask you to play at their wedding. That's how it's always happened for me.

There are specialist agencies but you might struggle to get taken on with no track record. Worth a look / ask I suppose.

EDIT:
Just to reinforce what others have said. It's not something to take on lightly and not an easy gig. You *all* (and I absolutely do mean all of you) have to have the right attitude. It's all been said before but you have to go in with a "what if" and a "can do" attitude. In particular if something goes wrong you*have* to fix it. Also it's not about you - you have to keep smiling no matter what. If you are not 100% about all of this then don't even think about it.

Edited January 24, 2010 by thepurpleblob

[Sibob]

I find it odd when people say you have to have a certain type of set list for weddings!
You can't decide what songs you'll include until you know who you're playing for, or even until you get there!

Most of the people getting married now are 25-35, and so they want pop/modern rock. Yes there are other, older guests, but for the most part, people are younger at these things now. I rarely (and I mean RARELY) play any disco/funk music at weddings.

Each function is individual, so although we get booked from people liking what we do (and so rarely have to change our sets drastically), we're always ready to swap songs in and out as necessary onstage. Like was mentioned above, you just have to br prepared and good at what you do.

I should also mention that we're just a 4 piece, one guitar, band.....not a 'wedding' band.

Si

p.s.
[quote]Just to reinforce what others have said. It's not something to take on lightly and not an easy gig. You *all* (and I absolutely do mean all of you) have to have the right attitude. It's all been said before but you have to go in with a "what if" and a "can do" attitude. In particular if something goes wrong you*have* to fix it. Also it's not about you - you have to keep smiling no matter what. If you are not 100% about all of this then don't even think about it.[/quote]

Although I disagree with your setlist comment....in principle anyway....this above is massive +1

[thepurpleblob]

[quote name='Sibob' post='723146' date='Jan 24 2010, 02:42 PM']I find it odd when people say you have to have a certain type of set list for weddings!
You can't decide what songs you'll include until you know who you're playing for, or even until you get there!

Most of the people getting married now are 25-35, and so they want pop/modern rock. Yes there are other, older guests, but for the most part, people are younger at these things now. I rarely (and I mean RARELY) play any disco/funk music at weddings.

Each function is individual, so although we get booked from people liking what we do (and so rarely have to change our sets drastically), we're always ready to swap songs in and out as necessary onstage. Like was mentioned above, you just have to br prepared and good at what you do.

I should also mention that we're just a 4 piece, one guitar, band.....not a 'wedding' band.

Si[/quote]

I really meant *variety*. If you can play everything from Mustang Sally to Biffy Clyro then you're probably on the right track. I certainly don't advocate a completely overhaul of the set list - more some creative tweaking.

Edited January 24, 2010 by thepurpleblob

[Pete Academy]

The clients usually specify what they want beforehand. They will browse the band's setlist and choose. A good wedding band will cater for all types.

Again, see Hipster's setlist on the Alive Network site. This is why they're so successful.

[Sibob]

[quote name='thepurpleblob' post='723153' date='Jan 24 2010, 02:45 PM']I really meant *variety*. If you can play everything from Mustang Sally to Biffy Clyro then you're probably on the right track. I certainly don't advocate a completely overhaul of the set list - more some creative tweaking.[/quote]

In which case.....agreed

Si

[OldGit]

There's a good thread on the subjct here
[url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=5436&st=0&p=56924&#entry56924"]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=...amp;#entry56924[/url]

We get all our weddings from our website and word of mouth.
Agents don't bother us unless they have been let down. We are just too easy to find on the web.

So I'd say get the right approach (as on that thread) and a decent website and it will happen.

[FuNkShUi]

[quote name='Sibob' post='723127' date='Jan 24 2010, 02:27 PM']My band does a lot of weddings and functions etc, and ALL of them are word of mouth and people seeing us at both public shows and the functions....it's a domino effect!

I know that doesn't help much, but the trick is to play plenty of public shows, we're out usually 2 times a week as a band, not including the guitarist and singer going out as a duo, the sheer amount of gigs means that people are gonna see us and want to book us at some point.
2 Years ago, we had very little function work, 80% public work probably. The last two years have seen it go to maybe 60/40 public to functions, possibly even 50/50, it's that domino effect at work.
We don't have any 'press packs' or demo CD's, never done wedding fairs etc. We have some videos on youtube, but most people who book us have either already seen us, or we do enough shows to be able to invite them to see us!

Si[/quote]

This is what happened with our band. Never intended to play any weddings really. After playing one as a kind of favour, it all took off. We probably play one wedding a month, which is plenty for me. Only so much of "wonderful tonight" i can play!! So yeh, go out,play some shows and get your singer to make it known to whoever may be watching that you play functions/weddings etc. And, as everyone has said, a good bit of online marketing is sure to help!
Just a quick side question. What seems to be the most popular choices of 'first songs' other wedding bands play? I'd say ours was definitly Wonderful Tonight. Although "Im Yours" is definitly getting to be a popular choice.

[Malc62]

[quote name='FuNkShUi' post='723803' date='Jan 25 2010, 07:54 AM']This is what happened with our band. Never intended to play any weddings really. After playing one as a kind of favour, it all took off. We probably play one wedding a month, which is plenty for me. Only so much of "wonderful tonight" i can play!! So yeh, go out,play some shows and get your singer to make it known to whoever may be watching that you play functions/weddings etc. And, as everyone has said, a good bit of online marketing is sure to help!
Just a quick side question. What seems to be the most popular choices of 'first songs' other wedding bands play? I'd say ours was definitly Wonderful Tonight. Although "Im Yours" is definitly getting to be a popular choice.[/quote]
My mob get asked for Lonestar's "Maybe I'm Amazed" a fair bit.

[OldGit]

[quote name='FuNkShUi' post='723803' date='Jan 25 2010, 07:54 AM']This is what happened with our band. Never intended to play any weddings really. After playing one as a kind of favour, it all took off. We probably play one wedding a month, which is plenty for me. Only so much of "wonderful tonight" i can play!! So yeh, go out,play some shows and get your singer to make it known to whoever may be watching that you play functions/weddings etc. And, as everyone has said, a good bit of online marketing is sure to help!
Just a quick side question. What seems to be the most popular choices of 'first songs' other wedding bands play? I'd say ours was definitely Wonderful Tonight. Although "Im Yours" is definitly getting to be a popular choice.[/quote]

We don't play the first dance ourselves. We offer our CD.iPod playr instead..
However this was the "First Dance Wedding Songs - The Official Top 10" from some DJ's website
What makes it official is anyone;s guess..
Mind you this was a year ago so it's probably "Wild Horses" and "I'm yours" (which we play for a called barn dance dance) now

Don't Wanna Miss A Thing by Aerosmith
Everything I Do (I Do It For You) by Bryan Adams
Amazed by Lonestar
You're Still The One by Shania Twain
From This Moment by Shania Twain
Have I Told You Lately by Van Morrison
You're Beautiful by James Blunt
Truly Madly Deeply by Savage Garden
Angels by Robbie Williams
I Will Always Love You by Whitney Houston

Edited February 9, 2010 by OldGit

[JTUK]

If you haven't been asked to do any, then that probably tells you something...

It isn't something you want to blag...as there is a lot on this sort of date... ha ha ..

I'd stay out of weddings unless specifically asked to play them. They can be very demanding and as anything can go wrong on the day, you don't want it to be the band..

I've done zillions of weddings and the money can be very good, but I am always the dep...I don't need the other hassle, and I don't have to collect the money.

[alanbass1]

My covers band get wedding gigs, although I don't particularly like playing them the money is good. We got a few from recommendation or someone seeing the band. Howver, the majority of wedding gigs we get are through an agent. Other bands I know that play weddings tend to get these gigs through an agent more often than not. My advice would be to send a demo, CV and photo pack to a number of agents booking gigs in the areas you want to work. The positive side for me is that the agent gets us corporate functions as well that tend to be more fun and even better paid (around £1200 for my band as opposed to around £800 for a wedding).

[NJE]

This is really quite interesting because functions and weddings was basically where I learnt to play my instrument, I had been playing a year when I was thrust into my dads band aged 16.

We started off doing pubs and such and quickly got asked to do functions, charity events but mostly weddings. I am tallking 10 years ago now so things have changed but we had no website, no CD, no youtube videos and barely any business cards. We got every gig by word of mouth and being reccomended. It also helped that we did public events as well so we could invite people down to see us in action.

We had one big setlist which we could move around to suit the mood but were never asked to play specific songs by anyone, except the occasional first dance which we were happy to do. Saying that, no harm being able to say yes to specific requests.

Someone mentioned going to wedding venues and giving your details and offering a "discount". Brilliant idea! other than that, word of mouth is a really good way of getting gigs, we were always busy without agents and stuff but then again we had no competition back then and there are now so many people doing teh function band thing.

I would say the following are pretty good ideas:

1. Have a good diverse set. A lot of weddings will be younger folk like sibob said 25-35 but remeber there are older relatives, mums and dads etc so have something for everyone IMHO.

2. Do the DJing yourselves, it will save the bride and groom money and you can ask a bit more. Never share the night with a DJ. I can count on one hand how many of them were nice, polite and worked with us rather than get in the way and play our entire set before we started.

3. Play well!!! get yourselves tight and then tighter again and learn the songs until you can play them in your sleep. If you can play without thinking you can enjoy yourself and have fun with the guests and I have never done a gig where the guests didnt enjoy a bit of participation as the night went on. When you have fun, guests have fun, it really does rub off i fyou have a blast and people will remember you and word of mouth is priceless!

4. Make sure your gear is good and you have plenty power for the venue. The last thing you want is your gear to fail half way through a set (its happened to me and its not fun). Check everything and never let your guitarist put his pint on any amps. Check leads all the time and carry spares. You might be thrown into some crazy venues that sap the sound away, have good powerful gear with headroom.

[The Funk]

[thumperbob 2002]

Looks like you live near me!
Check us out www.soulpatrol.org.uk

We do lots of weddings- never advertise ( other than the website ). We do a couple of monthly residencies at the Weir in Hessle ( first Thursday ) and the Fusion Tapas Bar in Beverley ( last Friday )
Almost every gig we do at these two venues brings in another function or wedding.

We dont change the set too much - everyone likes soul music do they not? and the main thing is to get everyone dancing.

Be prepared to set up very quickly- they will tell you to set up at 7.30 after the speeches but you will always wait an hour to do this. But just in case they are on time ( never happened to me in 30 yrs ) you have to be there on time. Look as though you really want to be there and as the man said act and dress smart.

Bob

[OldGit]

[quote name='JTUK' post='739763' date='Feb 9 2010, 10:46 AM']I don't need the other hassle, and I don't have to collect the money.[/quote]

Drunk Groom: Thankssssh guyssss.. Here's your money ..
Me: This is only half of the amount we agreed ..... (thinks: and all bl00d7 £50 notes - very bl00d7 useful )
DG: eeeerrrrr aaahhherrrr whaaaaaaaa?

Had to wait for them to get back from their honeymoon forteh rest of teh agreed fee. In short the guy was a div...
Top tip: Always send an email a week before reminding them of teh important details like start and stop times, fee agreed, etc. Then count the money there and then when they give it to you, and in front of them.

[OldGit]

[quote name='NJE' post='739886' date='Feb 9 2010, 12:35 PM']never let your guitarist put his pint on any amps.[/quote]

Buy them one of these for Christmas

[url="http://www.dv247.com/microphones/dv-beer-bottle-drink-holder--37328"]Here[/url]
Also clamps to guitar stands...

Edited February 9, 2010 by OldGit

[elom]

Thanks for suggesting the Alive Network. I found [url="http://www.alivenetwork.com/downloads/Alive_BandApplicationForm2009.pdf"]this form[/url] incredibly useful.

[OldGit]

[quote name='elom' post='784237' date='Mar 24 2010, 12:25 AM']Thanks for suggesting the Alive Network. I found [url="http://www.alivenetwork.com/downloads/Alive_BandApplicationForm2009.pdf"]this form[/url] incredibly useful.[/quote]


That's excellent...

[dave_bass5]

[quote name='elom' post='784237' date='Mar 24 2010, 12:25 AM']Thanks for suggesting the Alive Network. I found [url="http://www.alivenetwork.com/downloads/Alive_BandApplicationForm2009.pdf"]this form[/url] incredibly useful.[/quote]

Wow, that form is a lot better than the one we had to fill in. We found it very confusing when we filled their old one in.

Good luck with it and PM sent.