CULTURE: Educating the Music Fans- Lanai Jarrico Reporting...

The Intent of this article is to create a common ground in the SL Music Community. In favor of helping Venue Owner's, Musicians and fans to relieve the strain on high venue fees as well as educate the SL Public about the importance of working together to Preserve Live Entertainment in Second Life. 

Who Really Benefits from Live Music the Venues or the Artists?

With music setting the stage for our daily entertainment whether it be hosted by a Dj , a Live Musician or your favorite station, It’s all about the atmosphere created that draws the crowds.

Looking deeper into the Venue/ musician relationship something just doesn’t seem right

From a Venue owner's point of view there are many benefits to having a live Musician. For one It draws a crowd of its own and brings fans & groupies that follow the musicians around.

In turn this can bring in potential customers to nearby shops but its no guarantee.

After concerts most just leave and do not stick around to browse the area creating a problem for those wanting to generate sales.

In order to create an interest in potential shoppers, special incentives have to be offered during concerts such as Hosts welcoming visitors, handing out Gift Certificates and freebies from the nearby shops and most importantly , having a networking plan to keep visitors informed about upcoming events, special offers and such.

Many Venue owners want the traffic to help bring awareness to their businesses and to generate some Linden Love towards their expenses. But due to many venue complaints is it really worth it for them to Pay a Musician 5-10k for an hour performance?

 In a month’s time if venues had one performer a week it can cost just about 20k or More and when it’s all said and done there’s still big bills to pay at the end of the month. Should the blame be placed on the Musicians or the venues themselves?

Most venue owners can relate to this neverending Struggle to pay the bills and could use some cooperation from Musicians that know the unbalance and still want to be booked in these venues.

The inspiration behind this article comes from someone I knew who purchased his SIMS, for entertainment only unlike many who acquire sims and use them as a form of Income, (which is not a bad thing) . He did it to provide a place where all his closest friends can come work and play together with the opportunity to earn as a whole and just have fun.

  As long as his tiers are covered whatever was left over was to be distributed to all involved by lowering tenant's rent and giving back to everyone involved on the sim. He wasn'tlooking to profit of his friends. It’s a relief to know there are people out there that are this thoughtful of others and willing to work together.

 Its apparent that the money spent by him and other venue owners compared to the Musicians benefits from having these events…is a big debate . I'm not taking any sides.,just stating what is being mumbled in the background on both sides.

 It just doesn’t seem to add up so I felt it my duty to shine my big ol’ spotlight on this topic in hope it helps create a place where Musicians and Venues alike benefit and earn their worths. We all work hard at what we do.

The Music Fans who come to see free shows benefit the most, especially those that don’t even bother leaving a tip!

 They would most likely lose interest if they were asked to pay a door fee…so the dilemma grows…

A door fee of approximately 166L per avie based on a 30 avie venue would have to be in place to cover a 5k Musician. Are fans willing to pay that to see their favorite musician every time?

So who‘s left to reap all the benefits?

Let’s face it no one likes dead air. Musicians & Dj’s play a major role in our virtual world Entertainment, They are worth every Linden spent because we can’t have events and parties without Music to keep people interested , interactiveand so on. Most of the artists here in SL have a talent worth being the Next American Idol.

Some would argue if the musicians & DJ’s are so confident about their talent then they should trust the fans to pay them their worth or have ticket prices.

It Makes sense if they are confident enough to trust that their fans will cover their fee but I also agree that they should be paid something by the venues who expect them to make their places a success.

Perhaps a booking fee affordable & reasonable for an hour worth of service taking into consideration, we base our second Lives currency on Lindens.

From a Musicians point of view, the argument on who’s responsible for a successful venue Is a bit different. Their talent is certainly worth something and I agree. From my personal experience , I’ve met some really amazing artists that rock and I support them and their talent. (I tip the Venues too!)

  In no way am I saying they should stand sidewalk style with a cup hoping for donations by passer byers…but it would make sense to make an SL living by the fans support and work with venues and think more about exposure then lindens which will prove to be more valueable in the long run..

There are 3 main reasons to perform here that can make all the difference in a Musician /Venue relationship.

Music is a wonderful gift to share with others and if a Musican does it for the love of performing, they will work with venues by giving discounts on normal booking fees, going over there time if needed and rockin out to have a good time, the real reason avies come to listen.

If its for fun & exposure with linden love as a bonus , it will do big things for an up and coming musician and venues.

  If it’s all about the money and the talent isn’t there then it’s a waste of Investment for the venue and an unfair lose.

 Looking at Venues under the same microscope from behind the eye of the musician who has to hold a wieght on their shoulder because venues seem to pay what they cannot afford, expect musicians to be repsonsible for everything or simply not having the basic skills to manage an active venue.

Maybe the problem isn’t the Musicians… and a lot of it has to do with lack of management skills that cause the struggling venues to blame the Artists. To avoid going broke They need to pack it up and move on …

Without Musicians, Venues dont get traffic so before Iming the next musician with complaints, thank them for there hard work in learning there skills, performing at your place and shouting out promotional things during concerts and giving a venue a real reason to be standing...

 Either way this could be looked at by the venue owners, fans or the Musicians themselves. From my point of view , All sides work hard at what they do to earn lindens so the benefits should be equal for all involved in an environment where everyone can simply work together in improving the relationships between Musicians Venues and fans.

Without Venues where would Musicians Play and without Musicians...What good are the venues? And OMG..what would the fans do???

 ~Lanai Jarrico

P.s. Your tips are greatly appreciated!

 If you have an opinion please feel free to email it to lanai_jarrico@yahoo.com.