Craig Chaquico has been in music since his teens, notably with Jefferson Starship. He has played guitar on all of its albums, a distinction no other member can claim. He can also tout the band’s hits “Jane” and “Find Your Way Back” as his own. When bands like that break up, many musicians find other…

Here’s three quick lessons. First, know who’s in the room when you’re shooting your mouth off. I was at a Beacon Theatre show about a dozen years ago. I was talking to the promoter in the dressing room and said, “You know, you’re one lucky guy to get this Beacon show. Another promoter developed the…

Lessons I Have Learned: Learn how to persuade. Most of what concert promoters do is sales. We tell the agent and manager, “Choose me over the other promoter” to get the show. We tell the potential customer, “Choose this artist’s concert to go see instead of a movie.” When you use knowledge – about the…

One of the biggest challenges a new facility manager faces is placing holds with promoters. I learned early on that a “promoter hold” is different than an “artist hold.” Two promoters might have a hold for the same night but that doesn’t mean they’re holding the date for the same artist. Early in my career,…

When I was first starting out, someone asked me to book a country show. “Yeah, sure, that’s easy,” I said. “No problem.” I look in Billboard and this one guy, Jim Reeves, had four out of the Top 10 songs. That was Beatles-like status! So I got hold of the agency, which I believe was…