“How much does your band cost?”  That’s the first question we hear over and over.  With some research, you’ll probably find that prices for NYC Wedding Bands can range from $5,500 to about $14,000 for lets say a 8 piece band as an example.  Are the $14,000+ bands really THAT good?  Here’s some perspective from us as an independent band having worked as musicians and musicians that work here now – that at one time worked for various band agencies around NYC.

 

     If you’re working with an agency that has an office and staff working for it, consider this:  Who’s paying for their office?  Who’s paying for their sales people, agents and administrative staff?  Who pays booking fee/sheet music…? Who pays the referral kick from some venues?  Clients who use them do.  On the low end, an agency will be getting at least 25% of the price that they’re charging you to book a band through them, and some 50%.  So in the end, the band is only getting a small piece of what you’re paying.  Being in the industry, we are aware that the musicians/bandleader may get the info for your event in the week of your event!  Ouch

 

     So the band is not better, on the contrary- it has nothing to do at all with quality of service or musicians’ performance.  The high price tag goes to all of the above.

     Working with an independent band has great advantages.  Most individual bands aren’t going to have overhead costs nearly as high as those of an agency, so independent bands’ prices aren’t nearly as high as the prices of an agency band.  And many of those bands are created by the agency. Notice the similar look? Notice cheesy band names?  Interchangeable. Its Volume.

  By being independent and doing all of our own bookings, we are able to charge less for performances (which our clients LOVE), and able to offer more to you for less! Furthermore- we have a sound- a spontaneity – a flexibility to work with you.. and the music that is quite remarkable. One event at a time benefits you! It’s a win-win for everyone – Especially YOU.

This industry has gotten to the point of big profit seeking and its sad to see many be taken advantage of unnecessarily which has compelled me to write this to help you. An independent band may very well have the same, or higher quality musicians than a big agency band, but will come at a much more reasonable price tag, and above all- amazing service with a personal touch.    

 

I never, in years met a client that did not enjoy talking to myself as the bandleader:  to get to know us-establish a connection, and thus developing a true understanding of what our clients are looking for. 

 

 

So What Are The Advantages Of Using An Agency?

The first advantage of using an Agency is that they act as a filter.  If you do a search on Google for a band – say you type in “Live Band for Weddings, New York” – Google will return literally pages of results.  And the majority of those bands that Google returns may be average at best.  Wading through the thousands of results to find the good bands – and the handful of great ones – can be a frustrating, time consuming task.

 

Partially true but its your day-take a little time– If you book 12 to 18 months in advance, there is plenty of time to filter down your options,  a few hours perusing – getting ideas and then narrowing down – saves you thousands – its not that bad.
Be specific in your search- wedding band nyc funky – top 40 (whatever it is you like will bring you better results)
Watch only “live” videos on youtube-  – type in “NYC wedding bands – NJ wedding bands- see the comments and likes , dislikes- Imagine what they may sound like live at your event – Live videos are the truest indicator.  Any one can sound ok lip syncing – from a studio track.

 

They’ve already filtered through the thousands of bands out there and have their own list of bands they recommend to clients.  As with all businesses an Agency likes either repeat clients – or clients who come to them by word of mouth – so its in their own interests to recommend the best bands possible so that the Client  –so you are happy.

 

False– As described above – Thousands??  and…they are not the best as described above and many  of their bands are “self” created to further entice buyers. Zero to do with quality
True  Its universally true that we all wish to have repeat business
See testimonials page on our site from many sources…

 

 

Another advantage of using an Agency is the time they save.  Not only do they save time in coming up with a shortlist of bands, but they save time once you have selected a band.  The Agency draws up the contracts.  The Agency deals with the Invoicing and financial side of the event.  And if you have questions or special requests to pass onto the band they’ll deal with that too.

 

 

The 4th advantage of using an Agency is in the event that something goes wrong.  If for some reason the band you’ve chosen has to pull out of the event, then the Agency should be quickly able to find a replacement band that’s similar in size, quality and price.

 

Expensive doesn’t mean better, so be sure to do your research!