Music Is Your Talent. Ask For Payment.

I hear fellow musicians and artists say, “Okay lang walang bayad, basta maka-perform, basta may exposure” after performing in some big “benefit” concerts. Sounds cool. But not when you found out that the bouncers and even technical assistants got hefty “talent fees” and the musicians did not.

I’ve been to a lot of music festival and events, big and small. Paid and unpaid. And I saw a lot of homegrown talents from drummers to guitarists to bassists to keyboardists to wind instrumentalists to back-up singers to lead vocalists…to band managers and organizers.

Which makes me want to ask this question: Are talented musicians supposed to be asked to play for free or for a fee? Continue reading Music Is Your Talent. Ask For Payment.