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How to Make Money as a Wedding Singerby Suzann Kale
page 6 of 6 Start exactly on time, unless told to wait by the wedding planner or bride. Take breaks only as agreed upon in your contract. Never take longer breaks, because you want to get a good reference from this bride and this wedding planner. Stay professional, but act like you're having a great time. And don't eat a lot of the reception food, unless specifically invited to do so. 
During your breaks, stay away from the wedding party. Remember, you are the hired help. At some point, you should ask the bride if she's happy with how the music is going. If she's not, it's best to know so you can make any necessary corrections and still hopefully get a good recommendation. After the WeddingIf you have an agent, call her or him up and let them know how it went. Be sure to tell your agent if there were any specific problems. Better they hear it from you. Write a note to the agent, the wedding planner (if there was one), and the bride and groom, thanking them for the opportunity and letting them know you have a demo in case any of their friends are interested. Always include your website address in any communication, be it paper or email. continued below |
Keep your bookkeeping up to date. Have a money handling system in place. If the agent pays you the lump sum directly, keep special records of how you distribute the money amongst your musicians. You don't want to be taxed for that lump sum of money, only for what you keep after your musicians have been paid. Use specific software if you're computer savvy, hire a bookkeeper if you're too busy, but keep records of everything: mileage, wear-and-tear on your van and equipment, specially purchased clothing, the cost of sheet music. Everything. With dates and receipts. This will avoid an IRS nightmare, and will help if you have to send out 1099s to your musicians. Finally, add this wedding to your ever-growing list of successful gigs. You might put a photo or video of the wedding on your website (with written permissions from the people in the photos). Add any new music you learned for this gig to your streaming audio and / or song list. You Can Do It!It's entirely possible to make a good living as a wedding singer. In this article we have assumed that you are not only the singer, but also the band leader. There may be other instances where you will be hired by another band, whose singer has taken ill, to fill in - or you may become known as a freelance wedding singer, meaning that you have your repertoire totally happening, and you can easily fit in with any wedding band that needs a singer. This is often easier, because you don't have to worry about the bookkeeping. But to make the big bucks, you're better off being in charge. My best wishes go out to you as you prepare for, or advance, your careers. I hope you find wonderful success, personally and financially - and I know you'll be the keys to many memorable weddings. If you need help with singing technique, please check out my book Vocal Vibrance: The Complete Technique for Singing and Speaking, available at Lulu.com, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Powell's. You might also find helpful singing ideas at VocalVibrance.com 
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