You're band is ready to play some gigs.

Now, you think you're ready to start playing some gigs around the neighborhood and start getting your name out there. Remember, play anywhere and everywhere you can even if your not getting paid. However, negotiate terms with the owner, manager, or whoever is running the show and try to get some money out it because you are performing a service and you are entitled to some kind of money for your service. The times it is acceptable to play for free is if it is a big name place or if it is guaranteed a lot of people will be there to hear you play.

Performing in front of people is stressful and accelerating experience. Your first time playing in front of an audience is the most nerve racking because you don't know what it is like. I really can't put it into words what it feels like whether you play good or bad, but I will give you some tips on how to perform. First off, have at least two extra songs ready to play in your set list in the event that you get an encore or you have to fill time. Second, know your set list, but have a piece of paper taped to your amp as a reference because when you play your adrenaline will be flowing and you might forget. Third, practice transitions between songs. Playing smoothly between songs and preparing for break for audience interaction will make you like a more legit band. Fourth, practice playing the set list all the way through in real time as if you were playing the show for real. Finally, even if you mess up, DONT EVER STOP PLAYING. I can not emphasize this enough. You and your band will look like complete jokes if you stop playing halfway through a song. If you mess up and keep playing like nothing happened, than people listening will probably not notice. One horror story from my first band is when my drummer stopped playing in the middle of the song because he forgot what song we were playing. That was one of the most embarrassing moments of my music career, but I've learned from it and I've moved on.