How to Get Gigs at Local Bars and Restaurants: A Five-Line Pitch

A booking message works when the person running the room can picture the set, the volume, the load-in and the business arrangement without asking you to start over.

Study the room before you offer a set

Visit the bar or restaurant as a customer during a music night. If you are under the drinking age where the venue is, ask up front whether the venue's license lets you perform and where you wait between sets; rules vary by place. Watch whether guests came for a performance or are talking over dinner. Note whether the act is solo, a duo or a full band; where the speakers sit; and how much space is left for service staff. A quiet dining room may want a controlled acoustic set. A late bar set may need a fuller sound and longer repertoire. Do not ask for a date that forces the room to become something it is not.

Look up the venue's music calendar and ask who handles bookings when staff are not in the middle of service. If you have to call, use the quiet hours the venue suggests. Ask about their typical set length, changeover, sound system, load-in door and volume expectations. Write down the name of the person who answers. You are gathering facts for a useful proposal, not asking a server to book you between tables.

Build a small, honest EPK (electronic press kit)

Have one live video that shows what the act sounds like in a room similar to theirs. The camera can be simple, but the vocal or lead instrument should be clear and the clip should represent the lineup you will bring. Put a short description of your sound, repertoire range, setup needs and contact method on your own site or a stable listening page. If you are a cover duo, show the kind of familiar material you can play without saying you know every request. If you play originals, explain how the songs fit the venue's night.

Keep a one-page set list or sample program ready if asked. For a longer restaurant booking, show that you can pace several sets rather than repeat the same songs. Bring references only when they are real and the other venue has agreed to be contacted. The point is to make the booker's decision easy. List your socials and streaming links in your signature, but lead with the live clip.

Send a five-line pitch that answers the room

Use a subject with your act and the type of date you seek. Keep the body to five useful lines, then stop. Replace every bracket before sending. If the venue does not take email pitches, adapt the same information to its preferred contact method. The live clip should be a direct link that opens easily; do not send a large attachment.

Hi [booker], I enjoyed [specific music night] at [venue].

I'm [your name] from [act], a [solo act, duo or band] playing [sound and repertoire].

Here is one live clip from a comparable room: [link]. I will promote the show to my list and can realistically bring [honest number] people.

Available for a [set length] set at [appropriate volume], using [brief setup], on [dates].

Would one of those dates fit your calendar? I can send a sample set list and confirm terms.

After sending, save the date and the version of the pitch. If the room mostly books another style, cross it off rather than trying to persuade it to change identity. For a wider map of rooms and other ways to get heard, see the local exposure guide.

Follow up once with new information

Wait a week or two before checking back. Reply in the original thread with your name, the earlier note and one clear reason to reconsider: availability to cover a last-minute cancellation, a newly filmed set or a date you can fill. Avoid sending the same message across email, social accounts and the venue phone in a single day. If they say the calendar is full, ask when they review future dates and note that month for yourself.

A useful follow-up sounds like this: Hi [name], following up on my note about a [sound] set for [venue]. I have a new live clip from [venue, date]: [link]. If you are filling [date window], could this be a fit? Happy to send a sample program. If there is no answer after a reasonable follow-up, move on. Visit the room again because you enjoy it, not to force a decision. Consistent, respectful contact keeps a future opening possible.

Settle pay and show-day details in writing

Before accepting, ask whether the arrangement is a guarantee, a door split (ask whether the sound person is paid first), a percentage of the bar, a versus deal (a guarantee versus a percentage of the door, whichever pays more), a tip jar if the venue allows one, or some combination. Ask who collects money, when you are paid, what happens if the venue cancels. Do not assume that a meal, promotion or a busy room is payment. Pay-to-play demands and vague promises of exposure are reasons to ask harder questions or decline. Door splits and bar percentages depend on the crowd you bring, so quote a draw you can back up and never inflate it. For dinner music, ask whether the fee is flat. Keep the agreed terms in an email or simple contract.

Confirm arrival time, parking or load-in, power, microphones, break timing and the person who can solve a sound problem. Bring the instruments, cables, stands and backup supplies you promised; bring a concise set list that can flex if the room is quieter than expected. At the end, thank the staff, leave the stage area clean and ask the booker what worked. If the night fit the room, suggest a return date while the details are fresh. The local link list guide shows how to keep a simple, checked list of local pages as a resource for your scene.

Let a MetroMeet page support the audience side

A free MetroMeet artist page gives the listeners you meet at a gig a place to follow you. Make your free artist page through Menu (More on a computer), Artists, then the plus button; only an artist name and page address are required. See the artist page guide.

Your public link, metromeet.app/artist/<page-address>, opens for anyone without an account. The Share button copies or shares the link. Send it to fans or turn the link into a QR code for a flyer. Visitors can tap Follow on MetroMeet, then join or sign in to follow your page (MetroMeet is for adults 18+).

Add a bio, up to three genres and one 30-second preview of your own recording already on Apple Music or iTunes; there is no audio upload. Up to six links cover Spotify, Apple Music, Bandcamp, YouTube and two Official site slots accepting secure links, including SoundCloud. Bandmates can co-manage. Our Scene holds up to eight other artist pages.

When adding a show, enter the venue's ZIP or postal code (US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, the Philippines or Singapore). Followers within their own reach of that venue get one alert. Publish a show as a Plan for RSVPs and a same-day reminder: up to three upcoming Plans, each at most 60 days away.

Published September 24, 2026 · MetroMeet