I get lots of enquiries from students wanting to ask me questions for a project, term paper, or dissertation they are researching. I don’t mind answering questions at all (I used to teach at college and university as well) but it takes some time to answer all the questions.
So I have compiled a list of the most commonly asked questions here – if you are researching for a college project please read the FAQ below – they will probably give you a good start to your work.
How did you start your career as a tour manager?
I played in bands, and through that learnt sound engineering in a local studio. I would record and mix a lot of demos for local bands. These bands would then ask me to mix audio for their gigs. I enjoyed mixing live audio more than the studio work. I then gained a job with a local sound rental company, working on bigger local gigs and, eventually, touring as a PA systems engineer. Through this, I met several music artists and worked for them as their ‘sound man’. I began touring for a couple of music artists consistently. One of these artists asked me to become their tour manager. I decided I liked the responsibility (and I got paid more than being a sound engineer).
You find that most tour managers took a similar route – either as a friend of a band, doing the tour management for their own act and working for other bands in their spare time or simply being in the right place at the right time.
What, if any, qualifications do you need for the job role?
There are no specific qualifications for concert tour management.
Instead, you HAVE to understand every part of the live music business and concert production industry. You should do as much research as you can – not just about tour management, but how the live music business works. You need to understand the relationship between the artist/band, the artist management, the promoter, and the booking agent. There are several excellent resources on concert tour management and the live music business. I would recommend:
Tourmanager.info – This site, put together by tour manager Billy Reed, is a must read for aspiring tour managers. Oh, and buy him a coffee while you are there!
This Business of Concert Promotion and Touring by Richard D. Barnet, Jake Berry and Ray Waddel.
One for the Road: How to Be a Music Tour Manager by Mark Workman
Tour: Smart and Break the Band by Martin Atkins
The Live Music Business: Management and Production of Concerts by Andy Reynolds
Are there any skills that you think a good tour manager should possess?
Tact, patience, vision, diplomacy and a VERY good understanding of the live music business. To manage a concert tour, you must handle the act on tour and understand the business. The artist manager and booking agent need to trust that all the shows are being performed and that the money is being collected. Adding to their workload with questions and misunderstandings will not go down well.
What are your responsibilities before the tour?
I undertake the preparation of a tour budget (or a list of predicted expenses), arrange transport (very important – you cannot tour without transport!), arrange hotels and other accommodation, and find and hire the technical crew if necessary. I attend rehearsals and meetings with the band, the artist’s management, and all the suppliers for the tour. I may visit venues I’ve not been to before. Once all this is done, I compile all the information into a ‘tour book,’ a printed booklet and online itinerary, and distribute it to the band, crew, suppliers, and associated offices—record companies, for instance—around the world.
What responsibilities do you undertake during the tour?
Billy at TourManager.info has produced this great list, explaining what a tour manager does: Tour Manager Job Description: What Does a Tour Manager Do?
What are your responsibilities as a tour manager after the tour has finished?
I must ensure all tour accounting is complete, pay all suppliers and crew, and ensure the band and manager are satisfied with my work. If they are, then hopefully, they will use me again one day.
Do these roles and responsibilities differ depending on the size of the venues the tour is visiting?
Yes, and no.
The tour still needs transport, hotels, and some crew. The money still has to be collected from the tickets sales and everyone needs to get paid at the end of the tour. You just add more zeros to each cost for bigger bands.
You will work as part of a smaller team in venues <1000-capacity and may have to do more than one job, i.e. overseeing the merch stock and merch accounting, for instance. Larger tours have many more crew members, with each person having their own job and that job only. You will sit around a lot as a tour manager on an arena tour, for instance.
Your responsibilities multiply when undertaking ‘fly dates’ – a one-off in another country that can only be reached by air. Fly dates are complicated for many reasons, regardless of the capacity of the venue. All crew earn their pay on fly dates.
Does the genre make a difference to your responsibilities?
Yes. For instance, ‘pop’ needs more in terms of session musicians, backing singers, dancers, stylists, etc. There are usually lots of rehearsals and I have found that co-ordinating everyone getting to a rehearsal in one place, at the same time, is harder than herding everyone onto a bus and driving from city to city.
What is the difference to you when touring nationally or internationally?
I live in London, England. I only have to book transport and hotels when I’m working with a British band playing UK dates. If the music artist is coming in from abroad, or I am going abroad, there is an enormous difference to my work load – I have to organise visas, work permits, the carnet, currency exchange, ferry crossings – the list goes on.
What are the good and bad points of your job?
The good – working with creative people, knowing you have been part of making something special for the audience, and the camaraderie of the touring party.
The bad – the amount of work that cant be billed. Festivals replacing touring for many artists. Compiling guests lists in major cities – there are only so many seats in a venue!
What are conditions like on a tour?
Conditions – comfort, well-being – depend on the scale of the tour. Is it a van with four guys and a sound person, or is it an arena tour with 3 buses and 7 trucks? In either case, it is the tour manager’s job to ensure everyone can do their job properly. Being tired and hungry will affect that ability. Sometimes it’s a matter of trying to find extra money from the budget to make life a bit more comfortable for everyone.
How much do you get paid?
Again, that depends. There is no set rate, and I did a survey in 2010 to gauge what concert tour managers get paid. On average, tour managers got paid €151-200 per day for a club tour, rising to €251 – 330 per day for venues with capacities over 3000. That figure is in euros for easier translation into dollars, pounds, Australian dollars, etc. I do not expect those daily amounts to have increased. Billy at tourmanager.info has some guidance on tour managers salary here.
What advice would you give to someone looking to become a tour manager?
Get to know talent – local music artists, singers, DJ’s, turntablists. This business is all about networking – these artists are now your network. Get to know every part of the live music business and concert production industry – backwards. Then offer to help people in your network. Offer to help load the van when they play out of town or out of state. Prepare contract riders and input lists for them. Perhaps travel with them and volunteer to take care of picking up the money at the end of the night. Whatever, just make yourself indispensable. You may work for free, but it will pay off. One of these acts will perform more often and in bigger venues – you could be there with them!