  *In the (edited) words of Tammy Miller, who hosts a very successful house concert series in Austin, TX, she explains it below.* A house concert is an opportunity to have a musician play in an intimate, relaxed environment (a living room or backyard) with a group of people that are specifically coming to hear the music. There are several important factors in having a successful house concert. Getting the people to come and support the artist is probably the biggest. Don’t be shy about promoting, inviting and even opening it up to your friends friends (we can all use more friends, right?)
Another important part is to respect the musician by creating the “listening” environment. During the performance, conversations should be kept to a minimum and cell phones be turned off. There will be time before, after, and in between sets to socialize and mingle. Think of yourself at the Paramount Theater listening to your favorite artist.
Most house concerts request a donation of $10-$15 per person. Thankfully, most guests respect this request and give gratefully so that the host isn't financially burdened. 100% of the donations go to the artist, this is how they make a living and keep touring and making the music that we love.  *In the (un-edited) words of yours truly, here is how I explain a house concert*
Step 1: You email me and together, we pick a date. (Weekends are the most popular to book, but we can also do weeknights, think outside the box!)Step 2: You tell your friends (and have your friends tell their friends if you have room for extra's). Be sure to tell them of the donation so that it's not awkward when they arrive. Step 3: You clean your house (or not, I don't really care, I live in my car). Buy whatever snacks that you are going to provide and pull out the serving trays you rarely ever use. Step 4: I come set up early, while you are preparing snacks and freaking out that you don't have enough ice. (I don't mind picking up ice, by the way) Step 5: You open the door, greet your guests, have them sign in, collect their donations and guide them inside. Step 6: We all mingle, eat your snacks & use up all of your ice. (I suggest BYOB & you only supply non-alcoholic drinks) Step 7: We all gather in the "concert area" and the lights go down (or not, whatever you prefer, some like the lights on & some like them off, lol). Step 8: The host (you) thank everyone for coming and introduce me, then you take your seat to enjoy the show along with your friends. Step 9: I sing my ass off and tell stories about my songs and answer any questions your guests might want to know. Step 10: We take a 15-20 minute intermission where everyone refill's their drinks, hit the restroom, buy Cd's and other merchandise if they are interested in doing so. Step 11: You guide everyone back to our seats we go where I play a second 45 minute set. Step 12: At the end of the show, we all mingle for a bit before saying goodbye. Then, you get to sit back and think "damn, that was awesome, let's do it again." And I'll say "2, 3, 4!!". You see, house concerts are really fun and are not at all what people would think. They're not expensive, nor are they hard to pull off. You don't have to have a huge house, or a ton of friends. I've played for small groups, in tiny apartments, as well as big back yards and a ton of people. The thing is... I love them all. I get to play my songs for you and your friends and it offers me a little relief from the bar scene. Send me an email if you have any interest in hosting a house concert. Even if I've never played your state, I want to! This will give me a reason to book other stuff in your area and broaden the area of which I play. Let's do this together, come on.... you know you wanna...... email me: houseconcerts@jessilynn.com  The biggest difference is that it's typically very hard to get people (guests) to understand why they have to pay ($10-$15) to attend a "party". The financial burden will then land on the host, who will have a flat fee. There are many hosts who attempt a house concert and then it ends up being a house party, I'm pretty laid back about it all and will roll with the punches either way. In the end, this is my job and there does have to be an agreement on the financials of the commitment. All ya gotta do is keep me in the loop and discuss the options in which is better for you and your guests. I really am game either way. Send me an email and we'll work it out! houseconcert@jessilynn.com Whether it's a house concert, or a house party, people always end up having a great time and talking about it for months, even years. I have had many hosts re-book and have hosted many other artists in the same fashion. You can even host one at a public place, a bar, venue, coffee house, club house, etc. If you are interested, I promise, we can make it work. |
