Explore showcase festivals and other industry events while identifying ways to generate income through performances, merchandise, and related opportunities.

Outcome. Target the showcase festivals worth applying to, and earn from a show beyond the fee.

International showcase festivals and export offices exist precisely to move artists between markets. They operate on application deadlines months ahead of the dates, which means the decision to apply is made long before the decision to tour.

A showcase is not a paid gig and should not be evaluated as one. It is a room of people who can book you, sign you or license you, and it is worth what you do with those people afterward.

At every show the fee is only part of the income. Merchandise carries high margin and works because scarcity and place are real at a gig in a way they never are online: city specific posters, tour exclusive shirts, and records sold from the stage.

VIP experiences, soundcheck access, a short Q and A, a meet and greet, cost time rather than money, carry very high margin, and create the fan who tells other people.

What you will produce

A showcase application calendar with deadlines, and a per show revenue plan covering fee, merchandise and VIP with expected numbers.