Bandhive

Touring is a huge part of the music industry, but it's also notoriously difficult to make money. Most DIY bands lose their shirts when they go on their first tour.

The Writhers were able to do something most DIY artists dream of: go on a profitable tour. They were able to not only cover all of their costs, but actually turn a profit by being smart with their money. This week they joined us on the show and discussed their tour so you can do the same thing four your band!

You don't have to be famous or sell thousands of albums before you go on your first tour - listen now to learn more!

What you’ll learn:

• How The Writhers went on an 11-day DIY tour and turned a profit
• Why some cities just don’t work (but others do)
• What goes into deciding to tour
• Comparing yourself to the right bands
• How to choose the cities and venues you want to return to in the future
• Strategies for collecting emails at your shows
• What could go wrong on tour – and lessons learned
• Preparing food for your tour
• Finding reliable promoters
• What you need to know before touring

For full show notes, visit https://bandhive.rocks/105

As a musician, it's important to network with other musicians and build genuine connections with them. But how do you go about “networking” without coming across as slimy, rude finance bro?

Get ready to navigate the tricky waters of networking with other musicians and come out looking like a pro so you can find the right band members, book more shows, and become respected in your community.

Listen now to learn how to make the right connections the right way so you can boost your music career!

What you’ll learn:

• Why networking isn’t what most people think it is
• How you can grow your network by building genuine connections
• How your network makes you more powerful
• Where to find great musicians for your band
• How being a good influence in the scene pays off
• How to book shows in cities you haven’t played before
• Where you can search for other bands to connect with
• Why respect goes a long way in any relationship
• What to look for in a relationship

For full show notes, visit https://bandhive.rocks/104

Runescape and life may seem entirely disparate, but at a base level they are one and the same.

We have a finite amount of time to do what we need to do if we want to have a successful music career.

In music, this means honing the skills you’re best at and leaving other skills to people who have more practice and experience in.

It’s the same in Runescape, where it’s incredibly difficult to max out your levels in every single skill.

Which character will you choose in life: the Jack of all trades or the expert? One has a clear advantage over the other - listen now to learn more!

What you’ll learn:

• How Runescape relates to your skills in the real world
• Why being a Jack of all trades has benefits and pitfalls
• How to choose which real-life skills to focus on
• Why it’s important to focus on your core skills
• Why specialists are the people who get hired
• How to set goals for the skills you want to learn
• Why “skill levels” and goals are one and the same
• How to learn non-priority skills without wasting time

For full show notes, visit https://bandhive.rocks/103

Do you release a new song every month, all year long? Probably not.

We’ve all heard that’s what an artist has to do to become “successful” these days, but so few end up following through and actually releasing music that frequently.

But some artists take it to the next level – Todd Barriage of Theatria, who we spoke with on episode 81, has been releasing songs weekly for the past four months.

Listen now to learn how you can shift into the right mindset to forge ahead to release a new song at least once a month!

What you’ll learn:

• How to give a concise and clear explanation of what you do
• How you can record a great sounding track in two days
• What to do when the universe sucker punches you in the face
• When it’s ok to release “YouTube quality” music
• Where you can find inspiration in non-traditional sources
• Why it’s important to push forward quickly, before fear sets in
• How to balance quality and quantity
• How you can write a song in four hours
• Why your “aesthetic” doesn’t always matter

For full show notes, visit https://bandhive.rocks/102

The unfortunate truth about being a DIY artist is that most band members need to have a day job. This can create scheduling tensions and drama within the band...

But, not all day jobs are created equal.

British prog rock band Giant Walker have harnessed their creative power to build successful careers: each of the band's four members teach their instruments and make a full-time living from it.

Not only does teaching music help the members constantly improve their skills and knowledge, it also gives them the flexible schedule needed to be in an active band.

Listen now to learn how you can work a day job that supports your lifestyle and lets you have the flexibility to hit the road!

What you’ll learn:

• Why rebranding might be the right move after a lineup change
• How to choose your band name
• How Giant Walker create the freedom needed to play in a serious band
• Why relationships are more important than sales
• How to schedule band practice, shows, and meetings
• What should be prioritized if you’re committed to the band
• How to build a modular life so you can focus on music
• When being comfortable shouldn’t be the goal
• How the band kept teaching during the pandemic
• What goes into a well-planned single release

For full show notes, visit https://bandhive.rocks/101

The unfortunate truth about being a DIY artist is that most band members need to have a day job. This can create scheduling tensions and drama within the band...

But, not all day jobs are created equal.

British prog rock band Giant Walker have harnessed their creative power to build successful careers: each of the band's four members teach their instruments and make a full-time living from it.

Not only does teaching music help the members constantly improve their skills and knowledge, it also gives them the flexible schedule needed to be in an active band.

Listen now to learn how you can work a day job that supports your lifestyle and lets you have the flexibility to hit the road!

What you’ll learn:

• Why rebranding might be the right move after a lineup change
• How to choose your band name
• How Giant Walker create the freedom needed to play in a serious band
• Why relationships are more important than sales
• How to schedule band practice, shows, and meetings
• What should be prioritized if you’re committed to the band
• How to build a modular life so you can focus on music
• When being comfortable shouldn’t be the goal
• How the band kept teaching during the pandemic
• What goes into a well-planned single release

For full show notes, visit https://bandhive.rocks/101

Usually I’d write something about challenges and solutions, blah blah blah, here…

But today I just want to say thank you. Thank you to everyone who has listened to the Bandhive Podcast, shared it with their friends, or been a guest on the show. You all rock!

Join us for this special episode where Matt and I talk about our favorite music – we hope you’ll find some new favorites of your own.

We also want to hear what your favorites are, so let us know! There’ll be a post for episode 100 in our Facebook group where you can share your favorite albums in a comment.

Thanks again, and keep rockin!

James

What you’ll learn:

• Matt and James are über music nerds and made 250+ references in one hour
• Love for a band is subjective, but appreciation for music is universal
• Matt and James both have guilty pleasures
• We managed to record this whole episode without a single Rick Astley reference

For full show notes, visit https://bandhive.rocks/100

Songwriters are often confused about how they can make money from their music – thankfully selling your own CDs or getting streamed are not the only way to earn money from writing!

There are five different income streams for songs, and it’s up to you and your publisher to decide which of these streams to pursue – one, two, or all of them.

Listen now to learn more about the five income streams songwriters can take advantage of to earn royalties!

What you’ll learn:

• How you can earn money from songwriting’s five income streams
• What songwriters get paid when their song is used in a recording
• What five income streams you need to be aware of
• How to get paid every time your songs are played in public (whether live or recorded)
• Why some venues don’t allow covers – and how those venues are cheating you out of royalties
• How to take advantage of sync licensing
• Why you shouldn’t block fans from sharing tabs online
• How international licensing works
• Why it’s important to track your setlists for every show you play
• How basic publishing deals work

For full show notes, visit https://bandhive.rocks/99

Touring is a huge part of the music industry, but it can be one of the most expensive aspects of your career. If you're not careful with your money and don’t have a budget in place, you could find yourself losing thousands on a tour that could have been profitable. 

You've probably seen someone lose their shirt on an unprofitable tour before. It's sad to see people who are passionate about music throw away so much hard work and money because they didn't know how to manage their finances as musicians. 

Listen now to learn how you can create a realistic tour budget for a successful run so you don’t end up with massive losses like Pomplamoose did!

What you’ll learn:

• How not to run your tour
• What to plan for in your tour budget
• Why it’s important to know how much you spent… And earned
• How to handle crew expenses
• Where to draw the line between personal expenses and tour expenses
• Why buying a tour vehicle might be better than renting
• Which expenses are way too easy to underestimate
• How to make sure you have a profitable tour
• Why the people who have systems, budgets, and a plan are those who succeed
• How to get the big picture for your next tour

For full show notes, visit https://bandhive.rocks/98

Get the Bandhive Tour Sheet now! https://bandhive.rocks/tourbudget

Most bands are missing out on money. A lot of money.

How? Too many artists make arbitrary decisions based on gut impulse or what they see other artists doing and don’t take the time to test their methods and collect data to see what works best for your specific project.

Everything in your band is sales, and that means you need to test everything. Not all at once – in fact, never more than one element at a time. But, over time you will find that you’re able to sell more tickets, music, and merch, by following just a few basic business principles.

Listen now to learn about testing each aspect of your band’s business so you can get more fans, sell more music, and have a healthy career!

What you’ll learn:

• How to improve your sales rate… Without more fans
• Why the tried and true method isn’t always the best way to do things
• What you can do to optimize your live shows
• How to calculate your merch “per head”
• Why only ska bands are allowed to wear cargo shorts
• How to find out what merch sells best
• How to create an experience for your fans
• Why you should experiment with different pricing
• Why it’s important to remember that everything is sales
• How to ignore flukes and anomalies in your data

For full show notes, visit https://bandhive.rocks/97