Jimmy Fleming writing about his experiences of playing a musical festival gig. Jimmy has played many festivals over the years and would like to share his experience of playing a music festival or live event.

What is it like to be on stage at a music festival?

Well after my first 15 years doing 4 and 5-hour shows in bands in clubs A music festival is a joy, you have a short set that is actually being more focused on as opposed to a bar where the first priority is the interpersonal conversations. So you have a real chance of getting more gigs as you are bringing more focus to your music since people have pre-knowledge of your act in the brochures.

How do you perform at a music festival or what was the last festival you performed at?

I’ve found myself more at home in those situations. The last fest festival I performed at was the Feast of the Flowering Moon. The Feast as we call it is an annual celebration of the local Native American culture, intertwined with a general street fair or Carnival atmosphere in Yoctangee Park, Chillicothe, OH.

How much do artists get paid to perform at music festivals?

The pay varies from the nature of the event. I’ve been paid in thank you’s or in the case of being on a bill with a Major artist $350 for roughly an hour.

How do you get booked for music festivals?

The bookings have come through networking with local promoters and other bands, in-state or out of state by word of mouth often. The Best Festival I’ve found and have made return visits to is in North Carolina at The Little Creek vineyard. That came from meeting a band from there who were here in Ohio and we met and they said “Hey come on down and do that one” I like the DIY approach as much as having a proper booking agent. Grass Roots relationships mean more than just the contractual Here I pay me lifestyle.

How will music festivals be different post lockdown?

The post lockdown is really up in the air, for the Performer I expect it to be business as usual, the change will be more on how the audience is dealt with.

The Festival scene also allows you to present your own music where it’s given some validation, vs. Playing cover songs to the bar crowd. It’s also much more interesting to play to 200 to 3 thousand listeners who are open to what the artist is doing.

Do you have a video of yourself playing a music festival?

There are several in various states of poor audio and visual. There are Two that things were worked properly. One is from The Feast and one from Little Creek a few years back. Some magic gets captured and some of the best things always slip through the cracks and aren’t documented. It’s funny the two that exist in the best quality were in the worst conditions. 90 degrees in Ohio and then 45 degrees in North Carolina. The Feast was part of a solo show. Little Creek was a band situation. I like doing both. If you enjoyed this article then please leave a comment below about any questions you may have regarding playing a music festival or any other questions you may have about playing. You can check out my playing on my SoundCloud profile where I play tunes like Born of the Black Tree and youtube videos. This video here is me playing the festival of theflowering moon back in 2012 I hope you enjoy.