How to Attract a Booking Agent
“How do you Attract a Booking Agent if you haven’t built any Markets? And How do you build Markets if you don’t have a Booking Agent?”
Interview with Booking Agent & Manager, Erwin Schemankewitz of Ever Upward Entertainment.
Let’s break down how to begin your interaction with a booking agent, what they look for in a new artist, and how to position yourself to be desirable new talent for a Booking Agent looking to expand their roster of artists.
What is a Booking Agent?
The Booking Agent is the person responsible for arranging concerts, routing tours, and negotiating performance contracts with show promoters. Essentially, the booking Agent acts as a liaison between yourself (the artist) and the Promoter/Talent Buyer of an event. Booking Agents are paid 10% of the Artist’s Performance Fee for shows that they book, and are geographically exclusive.
A well-connected Booking Agent will place your band into shows and markets that you wouldn’t have been able to secure yourself, and is absolutely essential to all touring artists. They will coordinate all financial and technical aspects of a performance, such as performance contracts, riders, and stage plots. Booking Agents are a highly respected and integral part of the music business, and a good agent can make or break your career as a touring artist.
If you are a band, or you are managing a band, searching for a booking agent is the first real-world example of impressing a gatekeeper in the Music Industry. Having an Agent is absolutely essential for a touring artist, which is why the booking agent is the usually the first outside professional to join the team (aside from the band members themselves and a manager).
Interview with Booking Agent & Manager: Erwin Schemankewitz
I sat down with Erwin Schemankewitz to ask him the question on everyone’s mind: “How does a local band attract the attention of a regional or national booking agent?” Erwin is the owner of a booking agency in Denver, Colorado called Ever Upward Entertainment and is the Artist Manager for Leftover Salmon, a legendary bluegrass group with 25 years of touring experience.
“What can a band do to make themselves look more attractive to a Booking Agent?”
“The Music is always the most important thing. Music is why booking Agents do what they do, it's the heart and soul of the industry. I’ve taken on artists that probably won’t end up making me a lot of money just because I loved the music so much. Because I believed in the music that they were creating. So if you are a band, you have to do your due diligence and reach out to booking agents that are a good fit musically, and then from there you can figure out if you are a good fit professionally.
I really like it when artists and bands know what they want out of a booking agent. In that sense, I mean that the band already knows what markets they want to hit and has an understanding of the music industry as a whole. I always want my bands to have a few years of experience in the industry or on the road. And If they can come to me with a detailed Market History Report, that is a huge plus.”
How to Make a “Market History Report”:
A Market History Report is an organized account of your touring history. Usually in the form of an excel spreadsheet or Google Sheet, a Market History Report should be searchable, organized, and regularly updated. The Best MHR will include:
Hypothetical Market History Report
Show Date & Venue
How much money you made
Region, City
Performance Fee
Ticket Sales (#)
Ticket Price ($)
Scale of 1–5 on Quality of the Performance/Crowd (subjective measurement)
“What values do you prioritize the most when looking to work with a new artist?”
Probably the most important thing, other than the music itself, is having realistic expectations about their career. The Music Industry is a long, slow working machine. Anyone with real industry experience knows that you are in it for the long haul — that it takes years of performing and touring to build reliable markets.
The booking agent ends up becoming part-manager, especially in all things related to the live-concert and touring side of things. Production advances, deal structure, quality of concert… those are all things that fall under my responsibility. So I prioritize organization and professionalism just as much as a band’s tour history. I look for bands that are well self-managed and organized, or have a manager. That can communicate with me effectively, quickly, and professionally, and that can solve problems. That can create content for their audience as has already created a community or engaged following. A band that has a good grip on their finances — what they need and what they can afford. And of course, a band that has an extensive tour history. I won’t take on a band that hasn’t toured outside of their state, for example.
I also look at what the band is willing to do into the future. Things like, Gross Revenue per year and the # of shows that the band is willing to do. I work with bands that play up to 110 shows a year, sometimes more. That’s just the reality of being a touring artist — a willingness to play as many shows as possible on the road is a high priority for me.
“What are some red flags when looking to work with a new artist?”
The biggest red flag for me is when a group has unrealistic expectations of themselves or of their career trajectory. Or when a band has their head in the clouds, so to speak. I like to work with very grounded individuals that understand the hard work and behind the scenes is required to make a career as an artist. People don’t see that, they don’t see the 25 years of touring, rehearsing, and community building when they see a band perform on the main stage at a festival. They don’t see the grind. Some people don’t understand what it takes in this industry to get to the next level and that’s a red flag for me, on a professional level at least.
“What is the ideal email for a 1st interaction?”
For a cold email, its pretty simple. I want the music and the tour history straight away, and if I’m interested and available then we can start to develop a relationship. Often, I’ll have a full roster and couldn’t take on another touring act if I wanted to. But you tickets sales numbers are the most important thing to pitch. How many tickets do you sell, for how much, and where do you sell them.
Example of a Cold Email to a Booking Agent about Representation
In this example, I begin the email with the clear objective: “Hey Erwin, I am the Manager of *band name* and we are looking for a booking agent!” Make sure to include any notable press about the band to build credibility. Then you can include a brief description, and maybe an RIYL (which stands for Recommended If You Like). Make sure send hyperlinks to your music and no attachments. Finally, conclude with a“Market History Report” of your strongest 10–20 markets to show off your touring experience. Remember to keep your email as concise as possible!
You could format a cold email like this:
“Hey Erwin, I am the Manager of *band name* and we are looking for a booking agent!”
Any notable press about the band
A blurb description, maybe an RIYL
Link to the music (no attachments, please)
A “Market History Report” of your strongest 10-20 markets
How to Classify Markets:
In the Live Concert & Touring industry, markets (cities) are classified into three sizes: Tertiary (smallest), Secondary (middle), and Primary (largest).
Tybee Island, GA
Tertiary Market:
the smallest of the three classifications of market size. This is a small city or town, somewhere with a population of fewer than 50,000 people. Doing well in these markets can be attributed to a limited nightlife and music scene. Or it’s the hometown of one of your band members and you pack the club out with your homies. These markets typically do not have theaters, but small clubs or large bars. This market sells 50-1,000 tickets.
Secondary Markets:
The middle classification of market size. These are small - large cities with populations between 50k and 1 million. These markets have large theaters, developed arts communities, and an active nightlife. This market sells 200 - 5,000 tickets. Artists typically grow a dedicated fanbase in these markets. Because of the size of these markets, you may find yourself being co-opted into existing communities that exist in these cities within your genre. You will be limited by the size of those communities but will find strong and consistent support from them. The majority of your touring will be spent in Secondary markets.
Asheville, NC
Atlanta, GA
Primary Markets:
These are really big cities: LA, Atlanta, Dallas, New York City, Toronto, Seattle, Nashville, Boston, Chicago, etc. Success in Primary markets is crucial to a booking agent because these markets are the most scalable. An artist can grow from 500 tickets sold to 50,000 in the same city. Routing a tour through Primary markets is the most lucrative for all parties involved, and if you do well in one Primary market it is safe to assume that you have the capacity to do well in others. Therefore, building an audience in a Primary market is an essential step in landing an agent.
When are you ready to approach a booking Agent?
In the US, you are ready to approach serious booking agents about representation once you have established ten 100-person markets. As your band grows, you will open up opportunities to work with better and better agents that can get you better and better shows. The next tier will be ten-300 person markets, then, and then from there ten 1,000-person markets, and then 5,000-person markets and so on.
Working with a Booking Agent introduces certain expectations that your band function as a business. Many artists think they are ready for an Agent, but they have not established an effective system of operations required to run their band like a business.
These are things like:
Creating an LLC
Reporting Income to the IRS & Paying your taxes
Distributing 1099’s to each team member of the band, thus proving fiscal responsibility.
Assigning a Manager
Establishing a reliable system of communication, including a hierarchy of responsibility (email threads, Slack group, FB group, a shared Google Drive, etc)
Building a Tour Budget
Building a “Market History Report”
Rules for finding your First Booking Agent:
You, as the artist, should be thorough when vetting a potential agent because the way they operate with Promoters and Talent Buyers will speak on behalf of you as an artist.
Booking Agents only get paid for shows that they were responsible for booking.
Unlike a manager, who has a claim to all revenues generated, a booking agent should only expect to be paid for the shows that they curate. Meaning that you won’t have any fiscal obligation to a booking agent once you stop working together.
Industry Standard payment for a booking agent is 10% of the Performance Fee.
If you Settle with the venue for a $500 Guarantee and you sell $200 of merchandise, the agent should only receive $50 from that show. They will not take money from other streams of revenue outside of what the Venue gives to the band at settlement.
Find a Booking Agent that has worked with artists in your genre/scene.
If you are approached about representation by an Agent with no prior experience in your scene, this is a red flag. That Agent may be trying to scoop up as many young artists as possible and will not give your group the attention, routing, or opportunities that you deserve. Different scenes operate on different formalities. It would be disrespectful to ask a Jam band to play a 30 minute show, but it would be similarly uncharacteristic to ask a punk band to play a 3-hour show.
Talk to other bands on an Agencies Roster before agreeing to work with a Booking Agent.
Their opinion on the performance of their booking agent will say a lot about them. Something like “Our Agent is great, but I wish that they had more time for us” should be seen as a red flag. Also, If you are friends with another band and want to join their agency, a personal recommendation goes a long way.
Look up some groups that are around your size (or a little bit bigger) and reach out to their agents.
It’s totally cool to play the field by putting out feelers to multiple agents at once, especially for your first. If a Booking Agent likes your music and business but has a full roster, they may be able to point you in the direction of another Agent that could take you on. Booking Agents are geographically exclusive, so you may choose to work with a different agent in a different part of the country or even try your own hand at booking shows. Just keep everything honest and you’ll be good to go!
The grass is NOT always greener on the other side.
Booking tours is a difficult job that takes years of relationship building and hours upon hours of email correspondence. Sometimes tours don’t get routed in your favor and sometimes they do. Every band has played a Wednesday door deal for no money because it routes out to weekend plays in better markets. So if you find an agent that you like and who works hard, stick it out with them and try to grow together.
The Booking Agent Catch 22
How do you build markets if you don’t have a booking agent?
How do you attract a booking agent if you haven't built any markets?
Agents want to see a commitment to the long-term sustainability of your band as a business, and they will appreciate and resonate with your band having already built that foundation. So, the answer to that question is: You just have to do it yourself. All of the functions of a booking agent can be performed by someone in the group. Want to book shows? Send your music to Promoters. A tour? Start asking for holds 4-6 months in advance. Rent a Van, and get out there and do the darn thing. (I talk much more in depth about this in my “A Comprehensive Guide To Book Your Own Tour” article). When you have already put in years of hard work building a community and a couple notable markets, that will go a long way in the eyes of a legitimate Booking Agent.
“Erwin. Do you have any final words of advice?”
“It takes time, keep going”
If you like this article, check out the
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This 102-page book is a practical guide for navigating the music industry as an artist or band. Together, we examine Publicity, Marketing, Touring, and the Album Release, as well as Record Labels, Royalties, Copyright, Artist Managers, Booking Agents, Social Media, Creating Content, Building a Brand, DIY Publicity, Advertising, Booking a Tour, Navigating a Record Deal, and so much more..
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Meet Your Teacher:
26 Years Old
Youngest Current Published Author with Mel Bay Publications
Full Time Freelance Touring Musician
Published 3 Books for Bass Guitar
Studio Engineer
Live Engineer (FOH & Monitors)
Venue Bathroom Cleaner
Biased because he’s writing his own “About Me” section
The very best
Josiah Garrett, photo by Cathy Marszalik