As someone who has promoted shows full time / as a side gig in the UK for the last 6 years, I see where you’re coming from. Though I think a lot of musicians don’t fully think of what’s asked of promoters.

For the sake of typing it out, mid level artist gig I put on recently(approx values):

Venue Rent: £500 Artist fee: £1500 Rider for artists: £100 (venue doesn’t provide this) Travel: £150 Lighting: £200 Hotel: £80-100 Sound engineer for the night: £80 Someone to work the door and handle the money whilst I work the inside: £40

Paid social: £300 Graphic design: try and do myself but around £80 for a small asset pack if not Poster printing (500): £35 Poster Distro: Try do myself (6 hrs work walking round the city, also deal with people ripping down posters)

Support: £50 - £150 dependent on their experience, repertoire, can sell tickets?

Taxis: £40 as well

So over £3000 of my own money. For a general 400 cap show - £8 a ticket to break even. Then ticketing company adds on booking fee: £9 a ticket, and I’m only breaking even with hours of organising and physical work put in to helping keep bands or djs playing in my city. I’d hazard a guess that this amount would pay for a decent list of kit if I were in a band.

Some promoters are taking the piss with the whole exposure thing, but if they’re putting on decent gigs with a good following sometimes getting a bit of exposure on the cheap/free is a good way to cut your teeth because most of the artists I know who have been very successful want to be there, and will do a promoter a favour as they understand the game.

Context is always king and if you feel you are be ripped off you probably are, but I think the uneducated attitudes regarding what goes into an event of some musicians is also killing the scene,

combined with high agency fees, agency politics, council/governmental legislation/drug legislation and real estate developers buying all the venues and turning them into flats (which is the real reason.)

Just my 2 pence...