Hi, I just wanted to comment on the DJ/and or musician pay issue mentioned above. I charge $500 for the first 4 hours ($100 hourly overtime) and I'm at or below most of my competitors. I'm usually booked every Sat during the wedding season. Nightclub bookings pay $125 to $150. Most of my wedding/private party bookings come from the Yellow pages. I stongly urge everyone who is either underbooked or underpaid to look into this avenue if you aren't already there. Also, consider getting an 800 number that is routed to the phone number you are most frequently at. That way, if you move, your older ads and business cards aren't obsolete. I get my 800 service from Costco (a U.S. based warehouse discounter chain) and its something like 5 1/2 cents per minute with no monthly fee. (866) 24-PARTY rings at my house. If you letter your van or trailer, you may have more success with a vanity number like mine that is easy to remember at a 55 miles per hour glance! I'm in a small town so yellow pages ads are affordable. If you are in a big city, it might be prohibitively expensive to get an ad big enough to stand out.
Yellow page callers are very price selective and often the first person to answer the phone, answer the questions correctly, and quickly send a professional package with a nice cover letter, references, contract, and a wedding event questionnaire gets the gig. If you are also the cheapest or not too much higher than the other guys!
If anyone is interested, I'd be happy to post my wedding questionnaire.
I have often considered lettering my 14 foot trailer but I have always worried that it would be an advertisement to thieves. Does anyone have experience on how lettering your van or trailer has boosted your inquiry calls?

As far as people coming up to you when u are playing or singing.....
I was playing harmonica and singing Piano Man (which I have played for 21 years and am quite sick of but the audience LOVES it---and it's not my living room so I play what they want not what I do) and this drunk guy came up to me with a request. He kept asking me over and over while I was trying to play and sing. Finally I stopped the music altogether and said into the mic very nicely , "I'm sorry but can you come back in three minutes, I'm singing this song for somebody right now." Then I resumed the song.
A bit tacky but it sure did work! He apologized and came back and I was very nice to him and did his request. A firm word with a smile on your face usually disarms a drunk every time. If you have a smile, it is very difficult for them to elevate the level of rudeness or hostility.
Also, if you have a persistent person who has a request and you have 15 others ahead of him then I suggest showing him the list and saying "I can't wait to play your song--it's a really good one, but I have all these people who requested stuff ahead of you and I can't cheat." That usually disarms them. Nobody wants to be a "cheater." Again, say it nicely with a smile on your face. But be firm.
I've learned a thing or two about avoiding confrontations since I'm 5'6 and 155 lbs!

Yep, I see sequences used more and more. However, there are SOME singers who sing to tracks only; they do not PLAY anything. Thus, that type of difference (if they see your hands playing keys) is kind of what I was wondering about.

BTW, I know a girl who (supposedly) made good money in NASHVILLE, of all places. And all she did was sing to tracks. She had a regular weekly gig. She's also gorgeous, so, that's a bit of an edge on us.

That would definitely be a competitive edge! I find that I look best with lots of clothes on in a dimly lit room, lol.

I went to the Concert for America in Washington D.C. and probably a third of the national acts sang to tracks. Puff Daddy and Billy Gilman come to mind. Gilman, the nice little kid who sang Oklahoma and One Voice, sang to a CD music track. Unfortunately it skipped (in front of 50,000 people.) The kid never lost his cool and told the engineer over the mic to stop the CD and that he would finish it accapella. He brought down the house. It was awesome. Totally in key, moving, and he hit notes in the stratosphere.
Sadly I heard his label dumped him when his voice changed.

Gar, not at all. This happens to me on occasion as well. It's not only restricted to OMB arranger keyboard gigs, but even when singing & playing 'acoustic piano' on piano bar gigs as well. Depending onthe situation as well as my mood, I'll either ignore them, or engage them in conversation right in the middle of the song, right over the PA system. I might respond with a saracasticly humorous reply in song maintaining the original melody, or perhaps direct the mic under the intruder's face, having his/her voice broadcast over the PA system, of which typically embarrasses them. The best way to deal with unintentionally rude patrons is to respond in kind with humor. If they're stoned drunk, that's another matter, and that's the job of house management to boot them out, and they do. This is the firm agreement I make with all house management before I sign on to a gig. This leaves me free to do what I'm PAID to do: Sing & play.

Scott

Just remember Drax in "Moonraker".

I play with a live band with no laptop so people never think my keyboard playing is automated. While they can't see what I am playing they always know I am actually playing.

I am SO with Scott on this issue. If there is a fight or any type of drama I let the management or bouncers handle it. Our job as entertainers is to be liked by everyone so I don't get involved. I'm everyone's "buddy" at a show. The minute you get involved in any way in an altercation or any type of drama you alienate one side and you potentially eliminate future audiences at your shows.

My favourite was when I was playing using Moogs (yes this was a few years back) suddenly a little head appeared above my rig and a small voice asked "What happens if you twiddle these knobs, mister?", whilst busily twiddling the knobs to see for himself. Luckily our singer was a teacher who quickly removed the offender from the stage by his ear (I guess you wouldn't be able to do that these days). She didn't break stride, still singing her heart out at the top of her voice!