Establishing Yourself as an Expert Drummer

Create an event and make it happen. As much as we would like to sit around and wait for the phone to ring, it is time to take control and make something happen. I mean get off your ass! Get creative and get the wheel rolling like your life depends on it! I mean host an open mike in the very near future. Book a show for your band in the next two weeks. Demonstrate your exotic percussion collection at a local school! Offer a workshop on drum technology at a music store next week. Host a free, beginner’s seminar for children and their parents a week from Saturday. Whatever your specific talent and interest, take action and DO SOMETHING FOR GOD’S SAKE! Put aside the study, practice, critique and analysis for the time being. Now is the time to get things moving.

Do not let doubt and excuses slow you down. Remember that it is not so much the type of action you take, but the fact that you are establishing yourself as an expert, building a network for the future, and letting the community know you are open for business. Some may find this step extremely difficult. For others, this step is an ongoing cycle of success. Which describes you? There is no debating the power of this step. Try it and see for yourself. The only question is whether or not you are ready to use it as a tool for your success. When I find myself unwilling to use this step, I have to be reminded that I know what will happen if I do absolutely nothing. Nothing!

Shout it out! Now that you have taken some action by creating an event, go ahead and publicize it. Publicity works on many levels, from casual conversations and email reminders, to formal press releases. Whatever the case, you have to let others know what you are doing. The key is to underscore the uniqueness of your event. Does your jazz quartet have two drummers and no bass player? Is your band reforming for your twentieth high school reunion? Playing Madison Square Garden for the first time? Perhaps your band is featuring reggae renditions of Beach Boys songs. Relax! You’re not turning your life’s work into a novelty act or circus sideshow. You are simply giving the community and the press a reason to pay attention to your gig, when they have many other options to choose from. Yes. An audience will come to listen to music or attend a workshop simply because it is good. However, highlighting features and benefits provides a necessary edge and may help your event stand out in a crowded field.