Booking Agent?! Why?
I remember the first concert I produced. 1977! In the brand-spanking-new Georgia World Congress Center Theater in Atlanta! Great concert! Awesome music! No money…
With all the hassles of producing a concert: venue-act date matches, advertising, production, tickets, sales, etc. – to end the evening with no money, in debt, required diligent re-evaluation.
What the heck went wrong? What about that gorgeous ring I put on layaway in anticipation? What now?
After the heart wrenching diagnosis I had to accept – between the acts and the promoter, the only folk that made money were the acts and the agent who sold them to me, the promoter.
It was then I decided since I no longer had any real talent for making music – I was going to sell it!
I’d become an entertainment agent! A Booking Agent! I will sell entertainment.
Generally, an entertainment booking agent makes 10-20% of the artist’s fee. That’s not a lot of money when it comes to local bands who may be making $500 to a $1,000 per night. But celebrity entertainers nowadays are making as much as $100,000 – 2 million per engagement!! Ten percent of those kind of numbers add up quickly.
Realistically… you may not get that $2 million per night client BUT a lot is to be said about $25,000 per night entertainers. The $2,500 commission can go a long way. At 10%, a $5000 act will garner a $500 commission and that’s not chump change. But we all know, it’s never (all) about the money. The opportunity to provide excellent entertainment… the joy of increasing a club’s bottom line because of your entertainment assistance…the roar of the crowd at an event you put together… all of these are very satisfying and motivating when you love music and live entertainment - AND – the money is good!
So I made the decision to book shows. Sell entertainment, be a Booking Agent…
Now what?!
“I’m going to need some acts and some buyers” - simple as that.
Independent Productions, Inc. was born. We would be a temporary employment agency, specializing in the employment of musicians, singers and other entertainers.
It worked.
Through the years we have developed a varied roster of celebrity entertainers. We’ve booked acts all around the country for colleges, corporations, clubs and more. Although we cannot brag of booking acts all over the world, we do have some international sales under our belt also.
After a couple of decades, diligence, and dedication – we are now ready to “show you how” to be an entertainment booking agent also.
Enroll in our school (Learn to be a booking agent).
We may even hire you…
