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Gig Gab - The Working Musician's Podcast

Gig Gab - The Working Musician's Podcast

By: Dave Hamilton & Friends
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 Welcome to Gig Gab—the podcast sanctuary for working musicians and anyone fascinated by the vibrant, often unseen world behind every note played on stage. Whether you’re a musician, a member of the crew, or just someone who loves peeking behind the curtain to discover the secrets of live performances, you’ve found your tribe.BackBeat Media, LLC 2024 Music
Episodes
  • Lindsay Manfredi’s Road to Cold: Music, Micro-Pivots, and Radical Self-Worth

    Lindsay Manfredi’s Road to Cold: Music, Micro-Pivots, and Radical Self-Worth
    Dec 22 2025
    You follow Lindsay Manfredi’s wild, non-linear path from merch table to main stage, and she shows you exactly how saying yes, showing up, and outworking your fear can change your entire trajectory. You hear how she moved to Florida at twenty chasing a rock-star dream, became an instant Cold superfan, and eventually landed the bass gig through a Twitter message that felt too unreal to be real. She talks candidly about law-of-attraction moments, why every Cold song has to matter, and where the line sits between authentic human creativity and formulaic or AI-generated music. Through it all, she reminds you that most fears never materialize and it takes the same effort to believe in yourself as it does to doubt yourself. Always Be Performing. From there, you shift into the discipline behind her artistry: preparing for tours months in advance, running the set nearly every day, and over-preparing so the stage actually feels fun. She shares how making the road feel like home keeps her grounded, and how her book “The Girl Who Cried Love” came from losing her sense of self and rebuilding true self-worth, not just confidence. You explore dropping habits that don’t serve you, reconnecting with what you really value, and even why revisiting Mad Men taught her to only compete with herself. Finally, you wrap with a deep dive into in-ear monitor strategy, why a great mix beats great gear, and the small decisions that make performing sustainable for the long haul. 00:00:00 Gig Gab 513 – Monday, December 22nd, 2025 December 22nd: National Cookie Exchange DayGuest co-host: Linsday ManfrediNAMM coming up! GG Coverage Sponsor: Ultimate Ears Pro! 00:01:30 Twenty years old, moved to Florida to become a rock star Sprung Monkey needed a “merch girl”, Lindsay grabbed the gigSaw Cold, loved the music, loved Scooter’s voice. Instant fan!Unfuckwithable: A Guide to Inspired Badassery 00:04:45 Bringing the Law of attraction into the rock world Lindsay’s Cold tattoo made it into the album insert00:06:00 Getting the Cold gig… on Twitter in 2014Picture Yes was playing at The Vogue in Indianapolis on tour with Saving AbelCheck your Facebook messages: “Will you be in our band?” 00:07:32 Always say “yes!” — Build the plane while you’re flying it. Bought a 5-String 00:09:09 Play music because you love to play music No fluff songs in ColdEvery song matters 00:11:25 Fuck AI to create music Is Formulaic Music from humans just as bad as AI-Created MusicWhen do we hit the point where it’s OK to use AI to create music 00:20:13 If you’re an artist, you’re going to create art. 85% of what we’re afraid of won’t happen.It takes just as much effort to have faith in something as it does to fear something 00:23:46 Transitioning from fan to band member Scooter says: “bring your personality to it!”Capture the original intent and emotionLindsay rewrote the run in “So Long June” and… it was welcomed! 00:27:30 Preparing enough to have fun on stage Months of practice before a tourIn order to have fun on stage… I need to be an over-preparer!Fender P-Bass at home to learn and prepare for tourHeavier strings on the practice bassRun the set every day (almost) 00:33:42 Start rehearsal in December for tour in April It’s more fun to be prepared 00:36:10 Making the road feel like home Making your bunk your ownCold is a familyTouring is my favorite thing to do 00:39:52 The Girl Who Cried Love, a Pivot to Self Worth Lindsay: I lost myself into what became a failed relationshipTrying to prove my worth to someone who didn’t see my worthSo many of us aren’t taught what our true worth isAsking herself: “Lindsay, what do you really want in your life? What is your purpose? What are your values?”The difference between confidence and self-worth. 00:45:33 It’s hard to drop the shit that’s not serving you00:46:37 How can I make the world a little bit better? Being in the audience first makes everything so much clearer 00:47:51 Identifying a bad habit before you can drop it “My goal in life is to wake up laughing every day” 00:49:01 Revisiting Mad Men, of all things Better to compete with yourself 00:51:19 In Ear Monitors Having a great mixMix is more important than gearDissecting in-earsUniversal Fits Dave recommends: Ultimate Ears Universal FitSoundbrenner Wave Huberman Lab episode on hearing health 01:01:52 Gig Gab 513 Outtro Follow Lindsay Manfredi On IG @Lindsay ManfrediColdArmy.com Contact Gig Gab! @GigGabPodcast on Instagramfeedback@giggabpodcast.comSign Up for the Gig Gab Mailing List The post Lindsay Manfredi’s Road to Cold: Music, Micro-Pivots, and Radical Self-Worth — Gig Gab 513 appeared first on Gig Gab.
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    1 hr and 6 mins
  • Booking Smarter, Singing Harder: Demetri Papanicolau on Gig Life

    Booking Smarter, Singing Harder: Demetri Papanicolau on Gig Life
    Dec 15 2025
    You follow Demetri Papanicolau’s winding path from Fidelity financial consultant to full-time booking agent and working musician, discovering how taking risks, saying yes to scary gigs, and learning from every stage moment shaped his career. You hear how singing AC/DC and Zeppelin in high school, drilling Beatles harmonies, and navigating the evolution from originals to covers built the chops he still relies on today. As you ride through stories of surprise band formations, COVID-era pivots, and the birth of Rotten Apple, you’re reminded that you must Always Be Performing, even when the gig you expected turns into something entirely different. You also step inside Demetri’s world at Notso Costley Productions, where booking is equal parts diplomacy, coaching, and reading the room. He breaks down what venues actually want, what musicians consistently get wrong, and how reliability wins more than draw. You learn how he balances the needs of solos, duos, trios, and full bands; why non-verbal communication and a good hang matter; how to build an EPK that gets you on a roster; and what happens when rates rise across the scene. Through it all, Demetri shows how being both booker and performer lets him guide bands and venues toward smoother nights, stronger partnerships, and gigs that keep everyone coming back. 00:00:00 Gig Gab 512 – Monday, December 15th, 2025 December 15th: National Cupcake DayGuest co-host: Demetri Papanicolau from Notso Costley Productions NAMM coming up! GG Coverage Sponsor: Ultimate Ears Pro! 00:02:19 From Fidelity Financial Consultant to Acquiring and running a Booking Agency Josh Logan, local to New Hampshire, did Rock Star Supernova and then The VoiceAnd then…Demetri wins the Black Brimmer’s Rock Star ManchVegasDoors opened! 00:05:33 Singing AC/DC and Zeppelin in high school to vocal lessons00:06:06 Learning harmonies by singing The Beatles00:07:32 Playing in an original band that became a cover band00:10:05 Learning while not playing…big ears! Submitted to America’s Got Talent 00:13:39 Taking new gigs even when they scare the heck out of you A Josh Logan cancelation leads to a band formation to sub! 00:16:02 It’s not about the gigs you take, it’s also about the gigs you don’t take Be selective! 00:17:17 Alice and Chains becomes the thread to the story00:18:51 COVID derails (and delays) some gigs…oh how we remember! October and November, 2020When an acoustic duo gig turns into a full band on stageRotten Apple forms! A tribute to Alice and Chains 00:22:28 Always performing with passion …and perfection!Developing that non-verbal communication 00:28:22 Bonding as harmony singers When you find that magic formula with someone, stick with it! 00:33:41 Putting the time in for continuous growth Maintaining beginner’s mind 00:34:07 Finding those right partners where it’s a good hang When your FOH Jim Roese, FOH with Fuel, Melissa Etheridge, and also Rotten Apple 00:37:44 Running a booking agency Working for both the venue and the performerHaving a roster of musicians: solos, duos, trios, full bandsBeing in the performer’s shoes helps Demetri be a coach to bands AND venues to ensure smooth sailing 00:42:48 Reading the room goes a long00:44:15 Demetri’s advice for making it work (or not work) To get on the roster: Have a good EPK and promo kitOnce you’re on: responsiveness, being available, managing your schedule 00:46:24 Demetri’s biggest juggling act: adapting to last-minute changes The time Casual Gravity cancelled last minute!Reliability is huge 00:54:17 Venue feedback Draw isn’t always the most important thingBe a pro on the mic. Represent the venue.Play the right songs.Keeping the venues happy allows Demetri to book his roster of performers 00:57:43 Raising rates for the performer New rates for 2025$230-$250 for solo (from $170-$200 three years ago)$450-$500 for duo$660-$700 for trio$700-$1,000 for bands (or more for A-List prices)Balancing rates between performers and venues, ensuring everyone is profitable 01:05:03 Carrying on Paul Costley’s legacy and tradition with Nosto Costley Productions Took a voluntary buyout package from Fidelity to make the time to acquire the agency12/31/2021 was the day Demetri took over…and stopped cutting his hair 01:09:20 Gig Gab 512 Outtro Follow Demetri Papanicolau Notso Costley ProductionsOn IG @DemetriPapanicolau Contact Gig Gab! @GigGabPodcast on Instagramfeedback@giggabpodcast.comSign Up for the Gig Gab Mailing List The post Booking Smarter, Singing Harder: Demetri Papanicolau on Gig Life — Gig Gab 512 appeared first on Gig Gab.
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    1 hr and 11 mins
  • From Hiatus to 250K Streams: The Gale Bird Story with Sean Monahan

    From Hiatus to 250K Streams: The Gale Bird Story with Sean Monahan
    Dec 8 2025
    Sean Monahan from Gale Bird joins Dave Hamilton to walk you through their path of being successful working musicians in an original band. You follow Gale Bird’s path from college songwriting to a 13-year hiatus and a full-tilt return that finally landed Gale Bird on a label. You hear how the band treats music as both passion and business, blending Sean’s production chops with Joshua’s marketing instincts to create songs that connect. You get reminded that “overnight success” takes decades, and that everyone who hires you is thinking in terms of return. Failure, lineup changes, stalled gigs… they’re not roadblocks, folks, they’re prep for the next shot. That’s where you lean into the mindset: Always Be Performing. You also learn how the label helps identify the songs that will land, how playlist strategy works, and how Gale Bird built a digital identity alongside their live-show firepower. You dig into their content engine, daily-posting experiments, AI reels, and the push to film everything. Collaboration becomes a skill, not an accident, and you see how respecting different strengths keeps the whole machine running. Gear Gab rounds it out with a bit of a wishlist: Kempers, custom Teles, splitter snakes, and the stress test of soundcheck when tech goes sideways. Press play and enjoy! 00:00:00 Gig Gab 511 – Monday, December 8th, 2025 December 8th: Pretend to be a Time Traveler dayGuest co-host: Sean Monahan from Gale Bird 00:01:50 Went to two different schools together Met in college, started writing songs, doing some local touringThen a 13-year break after college while they started familiesAnd then, two years ago, you got the band back together! 00:03:19 Signed to a label00:05:11 A Passion that’s also very much a business Producing art that is digested by as many people as possibleSean’s been a full-time musician since collegeLearned all the right production techniquesMet all the right peopleHiring the right engineer and session musicians for the albumJoshua has been in sales and marketing as his careerAnd also understands aesthetics and marketing… and is Sean’s co-songwriter 00:07:57 The label saw *people* they could invest in, and also liked their sound Holy City MusicOvernight success takes twenty years 00:10:07 This is the entertainment business! Whomever hires you is thinking about dollar signsThey need to see the return, and as a musician you have to understand that 00:13:21 Failure prepares you for what’s next Sometimes a gig ends 00:15:54 250,000 streams in one year!00:16:56 The Label helps Staying in touch with Playlisters and other avenues like radio, too 00:19:38 Getting on Playlists Label says, “write 20 songs, we’ll pick one or two” when we analyze what will perform the best on the streamersOne side of the business: live shows full of rock and feels and merch and all thatThe other side: the digital side. People need to have a representation of the band that’s unique to them.The label is the expert for the digital side, knowing how to identify the songs that will land on the streamersTurns out we land in the “country” genre, so we’ll add a banjo to a song (for example).Roses by Gale Bird is a perfect example 00:24:25 SPONSOR: Rula patients typically pay $15 per session when using insurance. Connect with quality therapists and mental health experts who specialize in you at rula.com/giggab #rulapod00:26:12 Creating a social media system for your band An experiment: post every day for 2 months and see what happensLesson learned: go heavy for a shorter period of timeAlways be thinking about future content. Film, film, filmAI ReelsA/B testing 00:33:31 Creating side businesses to funnel and fuel Gale Bird00:35:00 Learning to collaborate on your own songs “The better a songwriter is at collaboration, the more successful they’ll be” 00:36:48 The Gale Bird formula Can play as a duo or a full band or anything in between. 00:38:39 Respecting skillsets Sean shines in the studio: plays all the instruments except drumsJoshua shines on stage: sings, plays acoustic guitar, and has excellent stage presence 00:44:05 …and managing pride00:44:27 Gear Gab00:44:56 Fender and Guitar Center collaborated on a custom telecaster00:46:32 Sean went to a Kemper rig Wishlist: Kemper StageHipshot B-Bender 00:48:25 Behringer Wing Rack Mackie DL32SPRORECK Splitter Snakes 00:54:12 The stress of tech issues at soundcheck00:57:10 Gig Gab 511 Outtro Follow Gale Bird On IG @GaleBirdMusic Contact Gig Gab! @GigGabPodcast on Instagramfeedback@giggabpodcast.comSign Up for the Gig Gab Mailing List The post From Hiatus to 250K Streams: The Gale Bird Story with Sean Monahan — Gig Gab 511 appeared first on Gig Gab.
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    59 mins
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