If you’re planning an event for your company, family, or a friend you should consider live music. Houston has a wealth of musicians and you’d be surprised how affordable live music can be. It may be difficult to find the right musician for your event because there are so many to choose from and depending on how soon you need music, you might run into a problem with schedule conflicts. However, it can be done! I’m going to tell you exactly what you need to do in order to find affordable entertainment for a private event in Houston, TX.
Decide What Kind of Music You’re Looking For
One of the first things you need to do is decide what kind of music you’re looking for. This will help focus your search and filter out anything that’s not a match. Are you looking for a 4 string quartet, a singer/songwriter, or a party band? What kind of music would you like to hear at your event? What kind of music would your guests like to hear? These are all questions you should answer first. You’ll be able to find all types of music in Houston because it’s such a big city. We do have a lot of Americana, Indie Pop, and Jam Band music, but you’ll also find some of orchestral music, soul music, bluegrass, and other genres as well. You just have to know where to look.
Find Entertainment Resources
Once you have an idea of what you’re looking for, you’ll be able to find the right resources to help you find it. A handful of general resources such as Google Search and Indie on the Move, GigSalad can help you pinpoint musicians in your area. If you’re in Houston, you should look at Houston venues that offer live local music. Go through their show calendars and check out the musicians there. Fitzgerald’s, Mucky Duck, The Continental Club are just a few venues who do live music. You can also check in other cities such as Galveston and League City. They also have a few venues that offer live music like the Saloon Door, MOD Coffeehouse, and Galveston’s Own Farmers Market. Be sure to look at future shows and past shows too. Feel free to check in with me too! I’m a soul/pop fusion artist. If I’m not a good fit for your event, I have a network of musicians I can point you to. In fact if, you find any musician in Houston but afraid they’re not a good fit, don’t be afraid to ask them for help. We are very supportive of each other and we’ll be happy to provide referrals for you.
Make an Offer
Now comes the financial part! The best thing to do first is determine how much you’re willing to spend. You should have a budget in mind. Any conversation you have with a musician should include your intended budget. This will clear up any misconceptions, assumptions, and communicate how serious you are about booking entertainment. If they can’t make it work with your budget, keep their contact information but reach out to other musicians. Maybe you’ll find someone who can make it work. You get to determine what’s affordable for you. It’s your event, it’s your money. Only you can say what’s affordable based on your budget. However, it’s also true that you get what you pay for. Make sure your budget allows for quality entertainment. Entertainment prices vary wildly, and it’s really hard to give an average cost of entertainment because there are so many factors to consider. However, a general rule of thumb is - you should plan on spending anywhere from $75 - $500 per hour depending on how many musicians you’re hiring, when the event is, for how long, and the location. That’s a very wide range, but as I mentioned, there are so many factors involved. The more musicians you hire, the more money it will cost. Events on the weekends tend to cost more as well.
In addition to your budget, you should include the time and date of your event, the location, how many guests you’re expecting, if you’ll need PA equipment or if you need the musician to provide it, the occasion of the event and your contact information. That should give the musician enough information to provide a quote. Reach out to multiple musicians. When you select a musician, be ready to pay a deposit. Most musicians will ask for a deposit in order to book them.
Have the Best Event Ever
Once you make your deposit, keep in touch with the musician. Make sure they know where to go, where to load-in, where to park, etc. Open communication will help your even run more smoothly.
Have the best event ever!
I’m Anitra Jay, a soul/pop fusion artist in Houston, TX. Contact me if you need entertainment at your venue or event. If I’m not a good fit, I may be able to refer someone who is!
