Mike Bustin - Acoustic Musician

The bottom line is no event is the same. People ask me often what I charge per hour. And there’s no good answer for that because I perform in many different places, on different days of the week, and many different times of the day. So I base my fee on a few different variables: When? Where? What time? What’s the event?

I try to make it as simple and painless as possible. My only concern is what the client's needs are. I'm very honest. If I find that the client's needs are something that I can't fulfill 100%, then I tell them, and try to recommend someone that can. But if I can fulfill those needs, then I try to get as much info as possible. Then based on that info, I come up with a fee that we both can agree on. Then I draw up a very simple contract to be signed by both parties. Once that contract is signed all there is to do is be excited for the event!

One word. Experience. I am a self-taught singer, and a self-taught guitar player. I sang in chorus when I was young, and I had a small bit of formal music training in college. But 99% of what I know about performing live is from doing thousands of gigs. Plain and simple.

I started playing in a sandwich shop once week during lunch. Within about 9 months I realized that playing music was more lucrative than the jobs I was working at the time. My decision became crystal clear.

So many...corporations, restaurants, bars, country clubs, hospitals, event planners, people that want to have a good time.

My projects are each individual performance. I take them very seriously because I take pride in my ability. I want my client(s) to be absolutely thrilled. If they aren’t, I didn’t do my job.

Like most things, you get what you pay for. Everyone has a budget, which is completely understandable. I have a general budget too in life. But I've found time and time again that when I try to get the "best deal possible", it often comes back to haunt me. So if hiring a performer that takes their job very seriously, and wants to make sure that you don't need to worry at all about music for your event is important to you, you're most likely going to pay a little more than hiring a random person from Craigslist. That being said, there is a such thing as paying a fair price. Do your research. Ask 3-5 different musicians what they charge, and you should get a good feel for what a fair price is for what your needs are.

Simple: When (time & date) Where (exact location) Type of event? Are there multiple locations for different times? Point of contact for day-of in case of any issues? Particular song requests? That's it really.