Tag: Live Music

  • Touring Etiquette Every Band Should Know

    Learn the unspoken rules of the road that turn good shows into lasting relationships. From how you treat venue staff to how you support other bands, touring etiquette can make or break your next opportunity.

    Musicians loading gear into a venue

    Why Touring Etiquette Matters More Than You Think

    Your reputation on the road is one of the most powerful tools you have as an independent artist. Great performances will get you noticed, but professionalism and etiquette are what get you invited back. Bookers, venues, and other artists talk and the bands that are easy to work with often find doors opening faster.

    Before the Show: Communicate Like a Pro

    Great touring etiquette starts long before you hit the stage. Respond promptly to booking emails, confirm key details like load in time, set length, and merch policies, and share your stage plot or input list early. Being proactive shows that you respect the promoter’s time and helps avoid last minute stress.

    • Reply quickly to booking communications.
    • Confirm set times, load in, and parking ahead of time.
    • Send tech needs or stage plots in advance.
    • Arrive early 15 to 30 minutes before load in is ideal.

    At the Venue: Respect the Space and the Staff

    From the person scanning tickets to the sound engineer, every staff member is part of your show’s success. Be polite, follow house rules, and clean up your space after you play. Make sure you learn the sound person’s name and treat them like royalty they make sure you sound good. Little gestures go a long way and staff often share feedback with bookers about which artists are worth bringing back.

    • Always introduce yourself to venue staff and thank them after the show.
    • Respect house gear, furniture, and backstage areas.
    • Clean up after your set, leave the stage better than you found it.

    On Stage: Share the Spotlight, Not the Ego

    Etiquette matters just as much under the lights. Stick to your set time, running over can disrupt the entire night’s schedule. Respect shared gear, and never adjust someone else’s equipment without permission. And remember: energy, connection, and gratitude on stage leave just as strong an impression as the music itself.

    • Stick to your set length and avoid running over time.
    • Don’t touch or move gear that isn’t yours without asking.
    • Thank the crowd and the venue from the stage.

    With Other Bands: Collaboration Beats Competition

    Touring isn’t just about playing music, it’s about building community. Show up early to support the other bands on the bill, cross-promote each other online, and avoid hogging the spotlight. Bands that treat their peers with respect often end up with future support slots and valuable connections.

    • Watch the other bands’ sets and support them publicly.
    • Share each other’s posts and tag them on social media.
    • Offer to split gear or backline when possible.

    After the Show: Thank and Follow Up

    The show doesn’t end when the lights go up. Always thank the sound engineer, promoter, and venue staff before you leave. Follow up with a quick message or social post tagging the venue, these small touches show you care about the relationship and can make you a top pick for future bookings.

    • Thank the staff and promoter before you leave.
    • Post and tag the venue, staff, and other artists online.
    • Follow up about future booking opportunities.

    How RoadUNO Helps You Stay Professional

    It’s easy to forget details when you’re on the road. RoadUNO helps you stay organized with show reminders, load in times, and even route planning so you can focus on showing up prepared and professional.

  • Robert Alan Sieben’s Never Ending Australian Tour: A Use Case for RoadUNO.

    Robert Alan Sieben’s Never Ending Australian Tour: A Use Case for RoadUNO.

    For many independent musicians, the dream of a “never ending tour” is just that, a dream. But for one Nashville, Tennessee based artist, it’s a reality. After 14 years cutting his teeth in the hyper competitive Nashville music scene, Sieben made a pivotal decision: “I was gonna just start playing music full time, no matter what.” It wasn’t a vague aspiration, it was a concrete plan fueled by grit.

    Since December 2023, Robert Alan Sieben has been on a self booked journey, first across the United States and now in Australia, with nothing but a guitar, a backpack, and fierce determination. Sieben is the driver, the booking agent, the social media manager, and the talent, all in one. And he’s using a new tool to help navigate the chaos, RoadUNO, an online tour booking assistant. I sat down with him to talk about the realities of life on the road and how he’s building a career one connection at a time.

    Before RoadUNO: The Grind of the Analog Tour

    Robert Alan Sieben performing and touring as an independent musician
    DIY touring means wearing every hat: artist, driver, and agent.

    Before finding his stride, the process of booking a tour was hands on and often frustrating. “The hardest thing for me, hands down, is not having a connection to anyone prior,” Sieben explains. Robert found that cold emails were a waste of time, he could send a thousand and get two replies. For an artist without a dedicated team, this kind of rejection is a major hurdle. Instead, Robert’s new strategy was showing up in person, shaking hands, and building a network from scratch.

    “If you go to 40 bars in a day, you’ll get a gig. If you go shake every hand and meet every person, you’re gonna get a gig,” Sieben said.

    It wasn’t just about booking shows, it was about building a real, tangible community. Every “no” was still a connection made. The proof is in the data, Sieben grew his Instagram following from about 1,200 to nearly 3,000, no bots, no ads, just in person interaction. “Those are all just hands I’ve shaken,” he says proudly.

    His next move was to hit the open mic circuit in a new city, not for one night, but for weeks. “You have to spend two or three weeks going every single week to establish that you’re a real human being and not just a drifter,” he says. Effective, yes, but massively unorganized. He kept handwritten “webs” of connections, venues, and people on a giant whiteboard. “It gets so messy, and next thing you know, you’re about three feet underwater.” A digital solution was clearly needed.

    The RoadUNO Solution: A Digital Co Pilot

    RoadUNO helping map a short run and surface venue names
    RoadUNO speeds up routing and venue discovery.

    When Sieben was introduced to RoadUNO, he saw its potential to streamline the most frustrating parts of touring. He used it to map a three show run in Victoria, Australia, and was immediately impressed by how fast it generated venue names. “Just being able to get names of venues that fast is handy,” he says. RoadUNO’s mission is to remove grunt work so artists can focus on their craft, consolidating handwritten notes and mental checklists into one reliable workspace.

    Robert also flagged a need for EPK tooling. Building an EPK is daunting and easy to put off, often costing gigs. An EPK feature is currently in the works for RoadUNO.

    A Future of Organized Momentum

    Independent artist on the road in Australia
    From whiteboards to a single touring brain, on your phone.

    RoadUNO’s potential goes beyond venue discovery. We discussed how the app could evolve to match his needs:

    • Integrated Venue and Contact Management: An Excel like feature to track venues, contacts, and relationships, replacing the analog whiteboard and keeping the network in your pocket.
    • Targeted Radio Station Listings: Community radio fuels engagement in Australia, a city aware list of artist friendly stations would help new runs.
    • Merch and E commerce: Integrations, for example Printify, so fans can order merch via QR or link even when the van can’t carry boxes.

    For Robert Alan Sieben, every part of the journey, from long drives and open mics to relationships and hard won lessons, is part of a bigger story. RoadUNO has become a helpful co pilot by providing a digital framework that supports his grassroots approach to conquering the world.

    Follow Sieben
    Instagram: instagram.com/siebenofficial · Facebook: facebook.com/josiah.jeffertons.9 · Music and Videos: Viberate · Spotify: Open in Spotify

    Plan Your Next Run in Minutes

    Use RoadUNO’s free Tour Assistant to map routes and pull venue contacts faster, no spreadsheets.

    Try Tour Assistant →