Virtual Shows Via Livestream Apps Keeps The Music Playing (And, In One Case, The Girls Dancing)
By Kevin Wilkerson, PubClub.com Lifestyle Blogger
When local Los Angeles musician Evyn Charles started getting more cancelations than bookings, he knew he was in trouble.
Like many small-scale entertainers who rely on regular gigs to make a living, Charles was left without any income when the bars and restaurants were ordered closed as part of the COVID-19 shutdown.
So he got creative. He posted a plea on Facebook informing his friends he would pay for play using live streaming technology. And you know what? It worked.
He is not alone. Scroll through your Facebook or Instagram accounts and chances are you will see several musicians and entertainers performing in makeshift studios or their living rooms via live streaming apps and programs. They are asking for donations, the COVID-19 version of a tip jar.
“The first show I did was for a married couple who wanted to have a date night after they put their child to bed,” explained Charles, who can be booked via his social channels, including Instagram. “It worked out so well that they did it again and invited in another married couple.
“And that went so well that the next time, they brought in a whole group of friends.”
On a different level of entertainment, Elizabeth Hahn – whose e-mail signature is Bad Girl Liz – has turned her successful bachelor and bachelorette party tours into an on-line business. Instead of booking groups for days on yachts and nights in bars, she is having groups watch her exotic girls perform via the Houseparty app.
“We do drinking games and trivia and the girls do naughty things,” Bad Girl Liz said. “Guys tip using the app.” She does say the girls stop short of doing things that people can find on adult sites.
This, as well as home delivery strippers – “they do a lap dance, from six feet away,” Bad Girl Liz said – is keeping her Bad Girl Productions business in, well, business, and well as providing much-needed work for the girls.
“It’s generating revenue and giving us all some hope,” she said.
So even while people cannot go outside to get their entertainment, they are able to get it at home, thanks to livestream technology. It is also quite possible this will become a trend that will provide a steady stream of income for these and other entertainers well into the future.
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Thanks for a great article on us “little guys!” The date night you mentioned has now turned into a weekly event for that couple, their friends and family. Another friend is booking me for some of her online happy hours, and will help me promote some special events including a lunchtime beach party later this week. A local Yacht Club hired me for this Friday night’s online social, and I played at a similar event for a Wine Club in NorCal/Oregon. I’ve also started teaching online guitar lessons… I may never leave my house again 😉 (just kidding)
Certainly Evyn. You have made the best of a difficult situation and even made a side business of it, so cheers to your creativity! — PubClub.com