I disagree with you Uncle Dave because in another recent post you said you charged $150 for the majority of your nightly gigs which is what ordinary sidemen have charged for decades. If that's more than your competition charges, you need to move to a better market.

Singing is overrated as are many singers... entertainment value and professionalism is what counts when you go after classier venues that are able to pay more than your regular beer bars. I charge more as an instrumentalist than my singing competitors, but I look and sound like a very expensive act and people expect to pay more for that. Nobody ever expected to pay less for Liberace than Hank Williams just because one of them sang... it's a matter of the market and your personal marketing.

I purposely located myself in an area that has a lot of resorts and establishments that cater to an upper-income market, then worked on my image and presentation to outclass my established competition and went after their gigs aggressively. Taking over the nightly gig market then allowed me access to the area's private party market. If you want to swim with the sharks, you gotta have an appetite...