Planning on starting a band? Music is all about being passionate and having fun. Putting together a band with determination to be successful can be quite hard. Although most people think that having a band is just pure fun, you should know that there is a lot of work involved, and everyone in the band will need to put in an equal amount of work and dedication. All of the band members need to be on the same page and share similar opinions on the band’s music, organization, etc. If you don’t set up your band right, you could be facing all kinds of problems in the future: trying to replace some band member, looking for new players that can play your music, drama between band members… Save yourself from the unnecessary hassle and follow these steps that will lead you towards starting a band in a healthy way.

Step 1: Learn to Play and Instrument or Sing

This is the first and the most important step. If you don’t know how to play anything and you can’t sing, than you better get to learning, because no band will have you if you don’t have the necessary skills. There are a lot of lessons that you can find online if you are not willing to pay for a real teacher.

Step 2: Know What You Need

Before you go searching for other band members, you have to figure out what the band needs. Depending on what kind of music you intend to play and what kind of sound you want to produce, you can have two guitars or one, a keyboard, saxophone, trombone… Don’t invite people to play in your band just because you like them. For example, say you and your friend are in a band, you play a guitar and he plays the keyboards, and after some time you get 3 new members and everyone says that the keyboard is unnecessary. What will you do then? Will you stand on your friend’s side or the band’s? To avoid these kind of situations - KNOW WHAT YOU NEED.

Step 3: Find Musicians

Now that you know what you need in your band, you can start searching for other members. The best way to do this is by using social networks, making posters and putting them in cafes, music shops… Don’t just use one of these things; use all of them because your chances of finding someone that really fits will be better. When choosing the people for your band, it would be nice to find at least one member who is musically educated. Someone has to be the voice of reason when others are not. It is not always important to have the “best” players in your band. A lot of bands fall apart because of some member’s big ego. Generally, choose people with whom you can work and spend a lot of time sharing ideas and growing as musicians.

Step 4: Rules

Everyone starts a band because they want to have fun, but to avoid having arguments with other members, some ground rules must be in order. These rules should involve some basic things such as paying for expenses, where will you play, honoring the time of the band, etc.

Step 5: Find a Place to Practice

If you don’t have your own space for practicing, than you need to find people that rent rehearsal rooms. It is important that it has all the equipment you need and that it is not too far away from all the members. For example, if the drummer is more than 30 minutes away, after some time, he will surely get fed up with carrying his drums.

Step 6: Name

You could use something meaningful or something that sounds cool. The whole band should be involved in making a name in order to avoid having to argue later. The best names are usually short and catchy. Do your research and check if there is already a band that carries the name you've just made up. After you have come up with a name, make a logo for your band because this is something that will make the fans remember you. If you don’t have anyone who can help you with drawing a logo, then I suggest you search online for people who are able help you.

These are the basic things you should bear in mind when making a band. After you have done this, start playing, make your songs, organize gigs and I hope you get popular!