By Sarah Dea
Many amateur musicians daydream about rock stardom, but few come close to realizing it.
Cue battle of the bands events such as Emergenza, which kicks off in Ottawa Feb. 8 at Cafe Dekcuf.
With the promise of a shot at winning studio time, fancy equipment and a chance to play gigs in Europe, Emergenza seems like the miracle solution for struggling artists. But at what cost? Let’s take a look.
Emergenza requires a $75 registration fee that guarantees the band’s place in an elimination round in their city. After payment, the participants are, according to the Emergenza website, free of any further fees to the organization.
Though this may be true monetarily, there is still legwork to be done by the band. This comes in the form of ticket sales. Participating bands must sell tickets that cost approximately $14 a pop for the first round show. Ticket prices increase by $2 for each subsequent round, with three in total.
The contest involves bands drawing their own audience, usually consisting of family and friends, so they can “vote” for them at the end of the night. The winner of the contest is, essentially, “chosen” by audience members, therefore ticket sales are imperative.
So, already, there are multiple situations that require payment of some sort.
Also, consider that the performing bands aren’t even required to play all original material during their 30-minute set. Not to mention that they must play on Emergenza-issued equipment.
What do bands get out of this? For $75, Emergenza promises “free” strings and drumsticks for band members, having to endure dozens of amateur bands, a 1-in-64 chance of winning a slot for a show in Toronto and a 1-in-4000 chance of winning a gig in Europe.
Why bother with this pay-to-play model when musicians can instead set up their own basic show, have a decent turnout and not lose money by postering, handbilling and webposting?
All it takes is a small group of bands, experienced or new, that play different types of music, who are willing to work together about tickets and posters.
Next, for $300, organizers can rent out a local venue such as Mavericks, line up five to eight bands to cover rental costs and sell 20 to 50 tickets for $10 each.
This way, participating bands will break even, play to real music fans and even make some money to put towards buying a touring van or studio time to record a demo.
This do-it-yourself approach to playing shows is more rewarding for musicians because of the valuable skills learned, the satisfaction of accomplishment and taking the road less travelled.
Emergenza’s promise of a hassle-free performance, free gear and the slim-odds chance that a cover band will be sent to Europe is not the way to rock stardom. It simply does not justify the participation in an event whose sole purpose is to make maximum profit off the band, their friends, and something they love to do.