Booking your first gig

- Okay, I know what you're thinking now, alright Ren, I'll go out and I'll gig, but how do I get started? Let's talk about that. For most artists that are just starting out, the ugly reality of booking shows is that someone in the band is going to need to do it, period. Why? Because unless you already have well-connected manager or a label willing to subsidize that building of your live career, you don't mean anything yet in the marketplace. That's what's going to happen in the future. Crying about it now won't get you any dates booked. The reality is that many of the biggest bands around, at some point in their career, were in exactly the same position as you, and they figured it out. Green Day has been a hugely successful recording and live touring band around the world for years now, but when they first started, the band was booking all their shows. I had a chance to speak with their manager, Pat Magnarella, on my webshow this year about how he met the band and what attracted his…