Some of my most memorable gigs are house concerts. I’ll never forget this one time I did a house concert in Baltimore, MD. When I first walked into the house, the guests were lounging around and as I walked up to them to say hello, they said we’re your biggest fans. I had never met them before in my life. I knew then that it was going to be a great night. And that it was. I told jokes, stories and played my original songs for them. The entire evening was like we were all family and friends sitting around enjoying each other’s company. By the end of the night, we had gotten so comfortable with each other that we were sharing inside jokes amongst ourselves.
Another time, I was in Augusta, GA doing a house concert. Somehow I had gotten to a point in my set where I was writing a song on the spot. I used topics we had just been talking about as the plot line for the story in the song. Everybody loved it and they were all singing along with me. It was like this one big party where we all knew we were experiencing something incredible.
These types of experiences don’t typically happen at traditional venues. It’s at house concerts where you make those lasting connections. The guests never forget you or your music or that night you absolutely blew them away. House concerts are amazing because you get to form bonds with people by creating personalized, custom experiences that can’t be duplicated. Each house concert is one of a kind.
The other amazing thing about house concerts is that they are much more lucrative than doing shows at traditional venues. With just 20 or 30 attendees you could walk away with anywhere from $300-$800 in your pocket. Not bad for a night of laughs, music, and making long-lasting connections. People at house concerts usually don’t mind paying what you’re worth. They also tend to buy more merchandise and if you play your cards right, you can build momentum where you are booking new house concerts from guests at previous house concerts. The cycle just continues to repeat itself and before you know it, you have a full year of house concerts booked.
I could go on and on about my experiences with house concerts, but if you’re here already, you probably don’t need to be convinced they’re a great way to gig and earn money as an independent musician. You’re here to hear about these 4 platforms you could use to book house concerts of your own.
Home Ditty™
HomeDitty™ is an online platform specifically designed to make hosting house concerts easy and hassle-free. HomeDitty provides an online RSVP system that also allows hosts to collect donations ahead of the show. a system™ that automatically creates a private crowdfund for each host to pool money among friends in advance of the show through an online RSVP process. Artists are paid electronically through the platform with the funds collected. With the exception of app and credit card feeds all contributions go directly to the musicians.
To sign up, artists must apply through their website. Artists are accepted by invitation. However, you can send an email to inviteme@homeditty.com and include 2-3 videos (preferably live and acoustic) or a link to your YouTube channel; links to website and social media channels; and a Bio including any house concert experience.
+Related: How Musicians Can Book House Concerts with HomeDitty
Sofar Sounds
Anonymity and serendipitous experiences abound with Sofar. For guests, the experience is quite different than any traditional gigs, or traditional house concerts for that matter. They can be held anywhere, but the catch is…the guests will not know where the show is held until a day or so before the show nor will they know who is playing until they arrive. Plus, the process of getting a ticket is also shrouded in mystery as you have to apply for a ticket and hope you get in. From start to finish, the Sofar experience for guests provides an incredibly unique evening of fun and entertainment.
Sofar Sounds operates in many cities in the US, New Zealand, Australia, the UK, and Canada. To perform at a Sofar Sounds event, artists must submit an application via their website. The team in the city where you applied will review your application and determine if you’re a good fit. Artists perform a 30-minute set and you’ll be performing in a lineup with 2 other acts. Not every show sells tickets and some Sofar Sounds shows are free. When tickets are sold, artists are guaranteed at least $100. But sometimes, you can actually walk away from a Sofar Sounds show with $0.
Concerts in Your Home
Out of this short list of house concert booking platforms, Concerts In Your Home is the most expensive for artists. Concerts in Your Home offers a network of House Concert hosts that artists within their network can access and reach out to for booking. The process to apply starts off with an evaluation and a fee. If accepted, you’ll then be asked to pay a membership fee. At the time of this writing, their membership fees are $600 per year. If you can get in and afford the fee, this can be a great resource for booking house concerts, touring, and earning money.
+Related: Read This Before Applying to Concerts in Your Home
Side Door
Side Door is a digital booking and ticketing platform whose mission is to support artists by providing tools and resources to facilitate performances virtually and in non-traditional performance spaces across Canada, the U.S.A., Europe, and the UK. Artists can sign up for free and connect to hosts through their online community. Side Door is a marketplace platform matching artists with spaces to create shows anytime, anywhere.
Based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, the vision of Side Door is to promote a closer connection between people and live performance and their communities and to provide Artists with a meaningful revenue stream. Artists can sign up and create profiles for free. Currently, the majority of Side Door Hosts are based in Canada in both urban and rural areas, but more and more Hosts are signing up every day throughout North America and Europe. When you sign up as an artist, you can then connect with hosts in an effort to book a show. Tickets are sold through the platform and Side Door takes 10% of the total net revenue from each Side Door show.
The other thing worth mentioning here is that if you are currently doing live shows, you can always promote house concerts at your current events. I normally announce it from the stage and do a giveaway where they must fill out a postcard to enter. On that postcard, I have a place where I ask them if they are interested in hosting a house concert. They can say yes or no. If they say yes, I call them up the next day after the show. I’ve booked tons of house concerts this way. Check out the postcard I like to use here.
*MEMBERS ONLY CONTENT* Excerpt: Platforms aren’t the only way to book house concerts. In fact, with a little digging, you can uncover a slew of house concert series and develop a system of your own for booking house concerts with very minimal effort. While sites like the ones mentioned in this article provide convenience and access, they are still middlemen. Your best bet is to create a house concert booking system on your own. Here’s how…(This content is for Crafty Silver and Up Members Only. To unlock this content either login below or become a member.)
Get the House Concert Resource List Now
Get a listing of House Concert Hosts and Series across the United States and Canada. Each listing provides a name of the series and a website address to learn more about them. Great for musicians looking to add house concerts to their gigging rotation.
At this time, there are not many house concert platforms with high visibility yet. But I see that changing in the near future. New house concert platforms are popping up each year and before we know it, booking house concerts on marketplace platforms such as the 4 we list here will be a lot more common. In the meantime, these platforms are a great start and can get you a significant amount of exposure in the house concert universe.
Have I missed any? Do you know of any other house concert platforms we should add to this list? Tell us in the comments section below.
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How to Write a Press Release for a Song
How Musicians Can Book House Concerts with HomeDitty
4 Platforms for Musicians to Book House Concerts
Read this Before Applying to Concerts in Your Home
