Do you support your local music scene?

I used to live in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and was in a band. Seeing other local/regional bands play live was the high point of my weekend. And I'd frequently drive to Chicago (the Lincoln Tap Room, mostly) to hear bands and I concur about the thriving Chicago music scene. It was always great to go to Chicago and see how many locals supported their hometown bands, since people in Grand Rapids only wanted to hear dreadful cover bands. Yet as soon as a local band got signed, they'd all claim they'd been supporting them for years. The only way for a Grand Rapids band to draw a local crowd was to have international success, which is ridiculous.

The Grand Rapids scene was so awful, my band moved to Atlanta, which also had a great live music circuit at the time (15 years ago). For a few years, things were great and we could play as much or as little as we wanted, since there were so many venues. But as time went on, more and more clubs closed or changed owners and stopped having live music. It breaks my heart to drive by a once-great bar and see that it's now a hipster clothing store. And the people in Atlanta now remind me of the ones I ditched in Grand Rapids. They'll line up to hear a local who has a hit song, but they'd have sooner spit on him that go to see him before radio told them it was okay to like him.

About eight or nine years ago, the deadness of the Atlanta live music scene became really, really clear. The local arts paper kept printing articles in which people complained about the sudden absence of live, local music venues and all-ages shows. In response, Amy Ray of Indigo Girls (who has an indie label and is a huge supporter of local music) started renting out a club and paying bands out of her own pocket to play all-ages shows. At the first one, there were no more than ten of us there, and we came mostly because we knew everyone involved in the venture. And the second one drew an even smaller audience. I asked some teenagers outside (smoking cigarettes and trying to look detached) why they didn't come in and hear the bands, since the cover charge was only $2. One of them told me, "I'm not going to pay $2 to hear some bands I've never even heard of." I think there were three shows before Amy decided to cut her losses.

As a musician, I can't thank you enough for supporting local Chicago bands. It would be worse than a shame if your scene went the way of those in most cities.

I don't find a lot of local music that I enjoy in Milwaukee, but I do support the local music venues - Pabst Theater, Riverside Theater, Turner Hall, and Stonefly Brewery mainly...

I particular do. around here (In Baltimore, Maryland) the close by rock radio station (ninety 8 Rock) has a weekly radio coach that makes a speciality of helping the close by bands. Then each and every monday they have a stay coach with the three or 4 close by bands that they showcased on that weeks radio coach. this is particularly quite super on account which you get to comprehend the bands. My previous band replaced into easily showcased by skill of them as quickly as a protracted long term in the past. Me and Rock Addict (i admire Finland..) from here on R&P hear to that coach and we attempt to get greater human beings involved in close by bands. yet our questions shop getting deleted. i'm happy to take heed to that we're not the only ones who sell close by bands. Evolver, Beretta Jane, Coal, seize, Loving The Lie, afruidian slip EDIT: haha... that replaced into humorous ^ i did no longer even see her answer till I published mine, yet we are speaking relating to the comparable element, and seem on the checklist of bands....haha