We’ve all been there: excited to see a band perform our favorite songs only for them to cancel the show or have to drop from the show. Many bands will issue an apology with the promise of a makeup date. That sounds fine and well, but it’s a common issue in any music scene.
With local music scenes, however, dropping a show is a bit bigger of a problem. It can mean many different things for the band and the scene itself.
One of the biggest and most obvious issues that a band has to deal with when a show is cancelled is money. This especially applies to touring bands or bands that are traveling a long distance to play a show. If something happens and a promoter or agency drops or cancels a show, that band doesn't make any money. That is more of a problem for touring bands who use the money they make from playing shows to help them get to the next gig or back home.
No money is problem enough, but let’s go a step further and say that a touring band is attached to a separate agency. Their agency took a chance on a local promoter and did business with them, only for the promoter to drop the show. The likelihood that the agency will want to do business with that promoter again is slim to none. That could mean bad news for fans as well, especially if there aren't other promoters in their area.
In some instances, a promoter or band may decide to cancel a show if it coincides with a current event that they don't agree with. A good example of this has to do with North Carolina's Bathroom Bill issue. Many bands dropped shows at that time because they did not agree with what was going on at the time. In that sense, it was almost like those fans were alienated; like they weren't good enough for the band to play in their state. One band who pulled through and played their show for their fans was Against Me!. The band is fronted by a transgender woman, whom the bill would directly affect. The bands that opted to not play their shows ran the risk of disappointing their fans.
Fans losing interest poses as a problem if a band or promoter drop a show. In local scenes, many fans find new music through going to shows. I consistently find bands that I haven't heard of from shows. I recently found myself at a show in Johnson City, Tennessee watching the bands Downcast and Concealer. It's been a couple of weeks since that show and I cannot seem to get enough of them. If either of those bands or the promoter had cancelled that show, I never would have known about them. In order for any band to thrive there has to be exposure. If shows are being cancelled, there's no exposure, which means no new fans and old fans losing interest.
The primary life source of any music scene is the fans. They pay to see shows and help local bands grow. In order for bands and fans to thrive promoters need to keep the shows they book and bands need to do their best not cancel. It's the only way to keep music alive.
