With all the lay-offs going on in my neck of the woods. And I've been putting out resumes for the last 6 months with no interviews (High Tech is dying) I DJ'd for 5 years is the late eighties early nineties and I'm thinking of giging with my psr2000 for some extra bucks... Weddings, parties...ect doing 80's music. How much should I charge? What's the going rates?
Thanks DJ

BB,
Welcome to the world of self employment. As most of the guys on this forum will tell you, gig rates vary substantially from one area of the country to another. I know top musicians that work five nights a week in the same place in Baltimore that only pick up $150 a night, while in New Jersey, New York and Boston, that's considered chump change.

The best advice I've ever read was to call a couple agents as if you were a perspective customer and ask what they would charge for a one-man-band guy that plays 80s music and do vocals (assuming that you also sing), then base your fees on that information. The bottom line is you also have to be your own agent. You may have to spend a fair amount of time putting together a quality brochure with an enclosed CD or tape, song list, photos, etc, but this will eventually pay off.

Good Luck,

Gary