| | I've been meaning to write this Blog for a long time, I just keep forgetting or getting busy or something...
Let me take you back to March 10. It is the night of the Rosefield show at the House of Bricks, their return show. I'm working the door, and as things progress, I see Sami coming in. I've hung out with her a time or two, but I don't know her last name; she was pretty well known in the Myspace world as "Sami Hot Pants." From the little I know of her from the few times we've hung out, she seems pretty rad. And while I don't know much about her, I do know that her and Jeff Krantz have a past of some sort; whether they were dating, are dating, just like to make out with each other... I don't really know, and it's not really important. But since I know she was there for Jeff, and because I know she's pretty rad, I just waved her on to go in without paying. But she insisted on paying. So I took her money, because I'm not going to refuse it. But like I said, I told her she could just go in since I knew she was with Krantz. But she understands how things work, and I assume just wanted to be a good person and paid anyway. That, my friends, is pretty rare.
I was talknig to Sam Summers [First Fleet] not too long ago, and we were bitching about all of the people who come to shows and somehow feel as if they don't need to pay. He and I both have people that we always let in to our shows for free, but they are the people who have been helping us do what we do. But there are people who come to the shows that either of us put on that apparently think they're important enough that they don't need to pay. And that is quite possibly the most annoying thing a person can do.
Regardless of how big or small our shows are, neither Sam or I are getting rich off of it. Bands require money. The money comes from the promoters. And the money the promoters have comes from the people who pay at the door. I'm not sure what it is about some people that makes them think they shouldn't pay to get in to the show. But that's money straight out of the promoter's pocket. If we don't have the money at the door, we don't have the money to pay the bands. That happens enough, we can't help out the scene in any way, and our shows stop.
If you think you don't have to pay because we're friends, then you're not being a very good friend; like I said before, that's money right out of my pocket, and there are very few people to whom I've said they don't need to pay.
If you think you don't have to pay because you're an important person in the "scene," then take a lesson from The Lifestyle: love them or hate them, they're probably the most important scene band in Des Moines right now, and they never try to get into my shows for free. They know that without the scene, they wouldn't have amounted to much of anything, and they support it accordingly. I remember seeing Zach empty his pockets at a show, and Adam was even offered a spot on someone's guest list but denied it and paid his way in.
If you think you don't have to pay because the show isn't worth your money... then stay home or wait outside until your friends are done with the show.
If you think you don't have to pay for any other reason... you're probably wrong.
Thanks, Sami, for not being a douche bag like so many others. |
