Hope you're all staying well and busy! I know I sure am. This past week was filled with lots of local events to attend and although I tried my best, I couldn't attend them all. On that note- as we move into winter season, your focus should be directed towards one HUGE thing.

The indoor music venue & restaurant/bar scene.

Restaurants and venues know that local Minnesota winters are rough on business. People feel less inclined to go out in the evenings, or even leave their house at all when it means bearing the harsh temperatures. (Guilty as charged!)

This means that a demand for enticing live events goes UP! Venues and bars start to host more events and run more specials, however, one can only host so many "Office Trivia Nights." This means these businesses need YOU!

Not only do they need you and your music, but they need your creativity, your assistance in marketing these events, your ideas for ensuring great turn outs, and your reliability. Be thinking residencies. Be thinking "what can I provide to these places that would relieve some stress on them?"

More than likely, lots of these places have their winter lineups booked already because they KNOW it's a must when it comes to giving their business the best shot they can this winter, but that leads us to my next point- cancelations.

These places also know that winter screams cancelations left and right. Car accidents, artists getting sick, band vans being stolen while warming up, the list goes on. SO- even if you can't get yourself booked on every bill you reach out to at this point in the year, what you CAN do, is request to be put on a cancelation call list. These venues want RELIABLE. If the band that is scheduled cancels day- of, are you available to jump in on a few hours notice? Things to think about.

Doing this for a venue builds trust and could even get you onto the main bill if they really enjoyed what you provided for them!

As artists, we're often inclined to think about what others can to do help our careers, but as the old saying goes, it's really all about what you can give to others.

best,

Jada

Old photo of my mom's cats Oliver (left) and Marilyn (right) making sure I've packed everything I need for a winter show. (2020)