Is having a band leader necessary?

[j_m_s]

you dont need a leader if every member knows what to do and has discipline.

Ahh, thats where you are abit off mate. The leader will be the one confirming the times and booking the jam studio. IN that sense i mean that all the members cant book the same studio at the same time right?

Thus a leader is needed to contact the members and arrange the timings and stuff and then book the studio.

 

[magicfiona]

Band leader

Yes a band leader is definitely essential...

The band leader may not need to call himself one... but he needs to be the person who sets the direction... the goals... the visions... and do the PR-ing for the band...

If not... the band is gonna be very messed up... I know of some bands who make it really big together... but when the vision and direction is lost... suddenly they jus disappear into oblivion.

So yup.. a band leader is necessary...

 

[kerplunk182]

j_m_s patriotic ah!

 

[j_m_s]

roflmaol!

nah. its just that i sit infront of my class, so what my ss cher teaches goes straight in.

 

[kerplunk182]

thank you j_m_s for saving my face/ass hahaha.

 

[zax]

roflmaol!

nah. its just that i sit infront of my class, so what my ss cher teaches goes straight in.

i'm guilty of that too haha

 

[hanafi1402]

Necessary

Is everybody in the world made equal?? Some are leaders and some are followers...

So as long as you've the right leader leading you... then u'll be up for success... so a band leader is necessary... BUT of cos... he/she must be competent enoughz larhz hahaha...

 

[Raistmar]

I feel like a band does not need a leader as long as the band has directions. If you're talking about booking a studio and stuff like that, perhaps a band needs a 'secretary' (apparently thats what I'm good at so thats what I do for my band). As for song writing usually we'll come up with riffs and stuff like that and we'll jam it out, to get the feel of the song and our vocalist adds the lyrics and the melody (so far so good). When it comes to conflicts, I think most of us here are matured and responsible enough to talk things out and to a certain extent agree to disagree.

 

[VAEVICTUS]

If you're gonna serious, a band leader is really important. You need some to push the band forward, like a dictator sorta role. The more succesful bands have one. maybe u can go research or smth.

Democracy doesnt really work for me. A band works like a country. Its like the leader's the president, ruler and well in my case, i'd like to be called the supreme/ultimate dictator. You can have the other band members to like vote for stuff, but the leader needs to make the final decisions.

It's like i believe the world can only have one creator. If u've got more then 1.......... one creator wants the grass purple, the other green and the other gold or whatever. and if the grass is purple or silver or whatever thatll make the world look like crap. A band works like that too. Some one who finalises everything and makes all the stuff fall in to place. and if doesnt work maybe u just dont have what it takes to lead. You should go for leadership course or smth. But to me leaders arent always made, theyre born.

Thats my opinion cos i've been through quite a number of bands. And dictatorship works awesomely well

Thrash and Destroy!!!

 

[visa]

you'll always need someone with initiative to start the ball rolling.

that said, a complete dictatorship wastes the potential of the input from the other band members.

 

[Ized]

if there are like-minded individuals you know in the first place, there'll be less conflict to begin with, e.g goals, musical direction etc.

Leadership isnt necessary for a band to function as a unit, but good leadership can push a band beyond greater heights.

 

[Razorzedge]

yea totally agree.. i donno la to me having a band leader can be benificial... its almost like being in the class and a teacher asks if anyone has a question and although majority of the class has a question maybe no one dares to stand up and ask it? Yea i know some of you might say of cus i would definatly go up and stand there and ask the question that might make me dumb but words are just words against actions.... in that point of view; a band leader can help and will help the band ans interview questions hahaha so the rest of the band can sit back and look sexy whahahaha.... to me id rather hook up with the gals and or the doughnuts then to ans interview questions whahaha

 

[someone]

It helps to have some kind of structure/ understand regarding who does what.

When you start to talk about playing shows there really needs to be one person who admins the band email account and responds to booking enquiries otherwise things can get really messy.
That person should be the most business savy and have the authority to make calls of which shows you will go for, check everyones schedules and make the call as to whether the piece of string, two buttons and some belly button fluff is enough of an artist fee for you to get out of bed...

Trust me the bands that don't have this person identified can be really hard to work with from an organizers point of view

Note that this doesn't have to extend to musical direction. That one must follow what works for the creative types in your band. Some like to jam out ideas, others like to present a whole song and say here it is guys! whatever works for you

 

[Razorzedge]

yup... cannot think small cus the world is bigger then just your jamming studio and community stage =) GO ROCK THE WORLD!!!

 

[balloons]

bottom line, just find the right bandmates and select the rightful leader. No one can see reality with glasses of self ego on. They need to think ahead. Most people dont.

 

[theunknown]

a leader is definitely needed to facilitate. too many ideas come in. no idea comes in. leader gets the ball rolling. to consolidate ideas and carry out steps to ensure the result is to everyone/most's interest. ah yes, dictatorship is rather essential in this situation.

and no, dont call urself a leader just because u book the jamming room. the leader is supposed to decide and give out tasks.

some jobs: become calling IC.
decide date of jamming to everyone's interest.
facilitate discussions.
resolve arguments.

 

[dir]

OMGGGGG! SOCIAL STUDIES! Hahaha.

social studies.. what's that?

Everything that I know I've learn from reading the back of milk boxes and from conversing with traveling salesmen.

and being band leader is overrated. I'd rather be the star of the show, the one who always comes late and pays lesser than everyone, but shreds all the solos and has the girls drooling!

 

[fgl]

Band leader is a must!

The band leader must know when to be the boss and when to be a friend.

I have been band leader in a few bands. In my bands, we work decmocratically off stage and in the studio but on stage, someone has to call the shots to keep things smooth - otherwise it would all be a big mess. Argue or debate or discuss all you want off stage but on stage the leader calls the shots, especially when you are doing long sets and you call out tunes to suit the occassion / venue. A leader must know how to "read" the crowd.

Being a leader does not necessarily mean being a dictator. I delegate other band duties (e.g downloading songs, burning cds, equipt details, transportation logistics etc) to other members while I handle trade enquiries, quotation, our blogsite etc. However, we do have a vote system in my band where we vote on all issues. Majority wins.

The band leader must also be the back bone of the group - e.g in band competitions or gigs - to inspire confidence to his band mates, to drive them to greater heights.

My 2 cents on band leadership.

 

[Jugman]

nope. not necessarily.

but whenever there is a need, someone must take the initiative to do something

 

[snuffleupagus]

FGL has got it spot on.