Singer / Front person wanted for variety band (Upstate, SC)
Hot As A Pepper, a well-established Upstate SC based variety dance band is looking to fill the spot of lead vocalist / front person.
We’re in search of the best and most versatile singer to fill this position.
The band covers upbeat and danceable songs from the 60s to current, across many genres, including Pop, Top 40, Rock, Disco, R&B, Funk, Carolina Beach and more. We also have a forthcoming CD of originals.
Artists we current cover include Prince, Lady Gaga, Michael Jackson, Peter Gabriel, Lizzo, Bruno Mars, Van Morrison, A Taste of Honey, Etta James, The Foundations, Rick James, Justin Timberlake, Maroon 5, Daft Punk, DNCE, Chairmen of the Board, Temptations, Earth Wind & Fire, Kool & The Gang, KC & The Sunshine Band, B52s, etc.
The band plays frequently at bars, clubs, private and corporate events, fundraisers, weddings and festivals, mostly around the Upstate, with a strong desire to focus more on events/festivals in the future.
If you are interested in playing 4 to 10 shows a month, mostly on the weekends in the Upstate, and want to work hard to be the best, with weekly rehearsals, then we want to hear from you!
Please send links of your videos and/or audio, as well as photos and make sure you send a bio or tell us about yourself.
**PLEASE DO NOT CALL – JUST SEND INFO TO HELP US LEARN ABOUT YOU FIRST!**
Auditions will be held at our Simpsonville based studio.
All the cliche and typical requirements, wants and needs apply:
• Professional appearance, attitude and gear.
• Reliable transportation.
• Know how to read a clock and can be on time to rehearsals and shows.
• Have reasonable communication skills and check your email/text.
• No vices that negatively impact your performance or relationships with venues or band members.
If you play an instrument – bonus!
If you are adept at promoting and building relationships – bonus!
If you are interested in collaborating on originals – bonus!
Things to know:
• We are a variety band that performs DANCE ORIENTED music. While we might go outside that box, most music is upbeat, fun and funky.
• We do not use floor monitors – you will be using Sennheiser in-ear monitor system with your own mix.
• You WILL be expected to arrive early and stay late to assist with load-in/out.
Hot As A Pepper Party Band with the Habanero Horns
We are starting to book weddings, festivals and corporate events in 2023. We have only just begun, but it would be a great idea for you to get with us ASAP to lock in any show dates you might want in the Greenville, Anderson, Spartanburg (Upstate) or the surrounding area.
Hot As A Pepper Party Band hopes to focus more on events in 2023 than the previous two years due to the unfortunate events that took place! We’re certainly ready to get back on track and provide fun, upbeat and danceable music for YOUR soiree!
We can bring a more casual show, with as few as four members for a more intimate experience, or we can bring the typical 5 piece for a more powerful performance.
When we couple our 5 piece band with the Habanero Horns, that is when things get exciting!
Whether you want a more classic vibe with old school rock, disco, motown, beach and R&B, or want to mix it up with modern top 40 and pop songs, we’ve got what you want!
We will learn your special first dance songs if we have not already played them for other weddings or events. We can custom fit a performance to meld with your theme too!
Our festival events are family friendly, and filled with great variety!
Let’s party like it’s 1999, or 2023 either one!
Call 864-979-1224 or use our CONTACT FORM for more information!
I received the Upstate Music Awards “864 Award” and dedicate it to YOU, the real supporters of this music scene!
I’m simply stunned that I was nominated, and then selected from a list of worthy individuals and groups who represent and support the Upstate music scene, and even more surprised to have actually won the UMA 864 Award which was presented last night at the Upstate Music Awards at The Peace Center!
While I do whatever I can when I can to help out our music community, I’m no more deserving than any one of awesome nominees such as Jay Spivey who has put in countless hours promoting the music scene in Fete Magazine, or the Upstate Music Mine who has produced dozens and dozens of podcasts that have given exposure to a slew of musicians, or the talented Lecretia Ann who is loved for her contributions, or Vaughn Newman Dance who educates and enlightens through beautiful dance.
The reality is, I’m just a cog in the machine – we all work together to help build us up!
In fact, I would like to dedicate this award to YOU, the real supporters of our scene. The people who get out and see the bands who are performing and buy their music. Please, keep doing that!
I have a challenge for you: Please, when you are considering where to go for lunch or dinner, think about a venue that offers live music. Spend your hard earned money there instead of Corporate Burgers, because, without the venues, the artists who were represented last night will have no place to perform their music, whether it is from the heart originals, or strictly covers, or a rap or hip-hop artist. The venues give us all an outlet!
We need MORE venues, not less, and we have lost at least 6 in 2022.
Make plans to attend the annual Upstate Live Music Meetup 2022 which takes place on April 10th at The Spinning Jenny from 1 to 6pm, with two stages going that musicians of all skill levels and styles are welcome to take part in (backline provided) and lots of opportunities to network with musicians, venue owners and music lovers. There’s a mini-trade show you can display your music related products and services at, or buy/sell/trade music related goods. BE THERE! It’s FREE!
Hire a party band in Greenville, Upstate South Carolina or the surrounding area!
It’s easy, just use our Contact Form or call us and we will discuss your event, your needs and desires!
Hot As A Pepper Party Band has performed over 450 shows since 2012 and we’re ready to play for you!
Whether it’s a wedding, class reunion, corporate event, holiday gathering, grand opening, or just a back yard pool party, we can handle it.
We also do Greek events, festivals and fundraisers!
No matter if you want a more intimate configuration with as few a 3 or 4 musicians or the full band with the Habanero Horns, we can custom tailor the gig to fit your needs.
The Greenville News Best of the Upstate Readers Choice award for BEST MUSICAL ENTERTAINMENT
This is exciting news!
Hot As A Pepper members John M. Hoyt, Chip McDonald and their spouses Pamela Hoyt and Debra Hoyt attended the big gala event at Huguenot Mill behind The Peace Center in Greenville, SC on Tuesday, July 11th after receiving notification the band was one of two finalists for the BEST MUSICAL ENTERTAINMENT category.
Our invitations got us in and a entitled us to a few drinks each and some hour devours, allowing us to mingle and talk with friends.
We were up against stiff competition who has a very large following and is well established, so you can imagine our surprise when they called our name as the winner for Best of the Upstate – Best Musical Entertainment!
We appreciate each of you who supported, nominated and then voted for our band. That means a lot to us! And while an award in and of itself not a direct measurement of who is “best” or who is a success, it is an honor to have the support that we have had from you! THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU a million times over.
We didn’t win this – you did!
Need a band for your wedding reception, corporate event, birthday bash, graduation, retirement or any other purpose? We want to talk to you! Contact us and lets make some booty wiggle!
Did you join our mailing list yet? You can do so HERE and we promise not to bombard you with more than a couple emails per month.
Hot as a pepper has done shows that were based around a theme before, but it’s been a while, so we are itching to get something fun going again. If you are planning a party or event where you believe a theme would be go over well, or you have a theme based event and you need the music, let’s talk!
Here’s some ideas:
Disco – Everyone gets to channel John Travolta in Saturday Night Fever. With tunes from Kool & The Gang, KC & The Sunshine Band, Earth, Wind and Fire, Donna Summer, Bee Gees, Commodores, The Tramps, etc.
Funk – Let’s get funky, nothing but the funk. James Brown, Parlament, Rick James, Gap Band, even some Bruno Mars.
80’s – We’ll get you going with The Fixx, Bon Jovi, Guns & Roses, Rolling Stones, Hall & Oates, Ramones.
70’s – How about a show based around Aerosmith, Doobie Brothers, ZZ Top, Steve Miller Band, Even some Skynyrd?
60’s – We’ve done this show for a large event and it went over super! Temptations, McCoys, GFR, Van Morrison, Steppenwolf, CCR, Stones, Turtles, Beatles, Kinks, Beach Boys, Zombies. From mellow to harder rock.
Beach, lake or shag party – A whole show you can chill to or shag to. By the pool, ocean, lake, or at your venue.
Our specialty is performing Variety Dance & Party Shows, however, with such a large repertoire, Hot As A Pepper can heavily weight any show we do towards a specific decade or genre.
With enough planning, we can create a show that specifically meets your needs. Custom tailored for you.
We can perform an entire album or every hit song from a particular artist. Imagine a night of a Stevie Wonder’s awesome music, or maybe the entire Steve Miller Band’s Greatest Hits!
We’re available for your function, whether it is a festival, wedding, corporate event, birthday, anniversary, graduation, or a block party… Or for your venue such as a bar, club or restaurant.
Just about any occasion or location is enhanced by live music!
Use our contact form or give us a call at 864.979.1224 if you want to plan the most awesome event ever! We’re not tied to Greenville SC or the Upstate with a chain, we can cover your event anywhere in the Southeast, or even the world. If you’ve got the money honey, we’ve got the time!
Some find themselves experiencing a bit of sticker shock when a band tells them the cost of the event will be $3000, when a DJ quoted them $800.
So why IS it so costly to hire a band or musician for your event? This is a long one, grab a drink.
Equipment Investment:
A band not only has to invest in the same speakers and amps (or larger) that a DJ might use for the audience to hear their show, but they also have to invest into a monitor system which is what the band uses to hear themselves. The band also has to invest into a mixing console with more inputs, instruments and instrument stage amplifiers. This could mean while a DJ has as little as a couple thousand dollars invested, a band might have $50,000 or more on their stage!
Also, a DJ might have some dance floor lights, while a band may have some dance floor lighting and stage lighting to illuminate the members so you can see them.
Personnel:
A DJ has a clear advantage here. Having less equipment means that it could be a one-man-show. He/she could be setup and ready to go in as little as 15 minutes!
A band may have to arrive 2 to 2.5 hours before the show in order to get setup, get a proper sound check, and then get changed and ready to perform. However, that’s not really the start of the labor involved. The band will have to load all that gear into their vehicles, a trailer/van/bus, and drive to the location. Then at the end of the night, they may remain at the venue for up to an hour tearing down and loading out their gear, then driving it to where it is kept.
Let’s examine a typical show. Band meets at 2pm and loads up gear, drives to the venue for a 4pm load-in. They then setup their gear and get a sound check and changed into show clothes for a 7pm performance. The performance lasts from 7pm to 10pm, and the band tears down and leaves by 11pm, and finally unloads at their studio or storage location and heads for home by 1am. That’s an 11 hour day. BUT WAIT! That’s not all, that’s 11 hours times how ever many band members and staff that are involved. In the case of Hot As A Pepper, that would be 6 to 9 people. or up to NINETY-NINE MAN HOURS.
A band usually has sound and lighting techs which make them sound or look their best, so they can concentrate on playing their best. That adds to the number of people involved, and the man hours of labor.
A musician in a band might have an 11 hour day for your 3 hour event!
Add to that a few scenarios such as when the band MUST SET UP by 1pm for a 6pm show because the photos are being taken at the venue, or there is a cocktail reception before the band plays. This could add many hours to the entire band’s investment in time. They cannot setup and leave their gear, nor can they do anything else to make money while their gear is tied up at that venue.
Before your show, it is likely that you requested several special songs, let’s assume 3 songs that the band doesn’t normally play. A musician might learn their part for 3 songs in as little as an hour, while more complicated songs might take several hours. Then the band must come together and rehearse them as one unit. Let’s assume 2 hours to learn them, and 2 hours to rehearse with the band, times 7…. 28 additional hours invested.
Let’s take the numbers from above, where the band invested 99 hours into a show, change the setup time to 2pm so the band can be out of the way by 5pm to allow for a cocktail and dinner hour, which adds 18 more man hours, then add the 28 man hours to learn special songs. If my math is correct, that is 145 man hours.
At the minimum wage that people are pushing for of $15/hr, that would be $2175 in pure labor!
Each musician invests into their gear and clothing, and a huge investment is made in learning their craft, which might take years. The songs they play took hundreds of hours to work up, again, times however many musicians are performing them.
A band has to have rehearsal space, which may cost them monthly.
A band may be losing 20% or more to a booking agency, right off the top.
A band may have to buy additional insurance, and for a whole lot more than a DJ.
There are meals involved during the day, and guitar strings, sax reeds and batteries for various devices.
Some bands are fortunate enough to have a van and a trailer, where all people ride in one vehicle, while others might use their personal vehicles, meaning even more investment in gas and maintenance.
So just how much do the band members make? Yeah, that’s a lot less than you might think!
Taking a $3000 wedding event which was booked through an agency as an example, we immediately lose 20%. Then we take out expenses for fuel or vehicle needs, assuming a trailer rental, and gas of $100 and let’s assume the client pays with a credit card, and we lose 3% additional (90 bucks). That’s 2210 left. If we have a single sound person, we might give them $200, which means only $2010 remains.
For this example, the band will have 7 members, and they each get an equal cut, in addition to the sound system getting an equal cut, so they can maintain it… $2010 divided by 8 is $251.25.
Each member shows invests 12 hours into prep, driving, playing, loading, etc.
That looks like each member gets $21/hr! Not bad. No no, wait…. What about taxes? If they are reporting this income, they might lose 30% in taxes, taking it down to 14.70/hr.
And yet they invested money into lunch, and maybe Waffle House afterwards (maybe dinner if that wasn’t included in the rider for the event), fuel in their personal vehicle, strings/sticks/reeds/batteries. That could run into the 25 dollar range or more.
Pay – taxes – expenses could look more like $12.50 an hour or less. Maybe much less, especially if something goes horribly wrong, like a shirt getting ripped, or a damaged instrument.
The next time you think bands are getting rich and that their rates are outrageous, consider some of the above and you might understand that you are likely getting one heck of a great deal when a music group performs for you.
Try calling in a handful of plumbers, computer techs or HVAC techs to work for you for half the day, and compare that bill with a band!
If you would like a quote for Hot As A Pepper live music entertainment, let us know! We would be happy to play your wedding reception, high school reunion, wedding anniversary party, corporate event, festival or venue! Use our CONTACT FORM and we will get back to you quickly. Or feel free to give us a call at 864.979.1224.
The weekend was a beautiful preview of what spring has in store for us with temps almost touching 70 degrees.
It has some of you thinking about throwing a neighborhood block party or other outdoor event, and what goes perfect with parties? Hot As A Pepper! We’re ready to play for your individual gathering or your multi-neighbor party.
Why book a band for your block party? Because live entertainment builds excitement and energy. It can get people dancing and interacting in ways a boom box can’t!
Bands are fun and dynamic, take requests and help keep the momentum going.
What does a band need from you?
A level place to setup. Hopefully 10×12 ft or larger.
Cover for the band and equipment is always nice in case of rain, or to help prevent sun stroke if in the heat of a summer day.
Reliable power in the form of a 20 Amp outlet nearby, or a couple 15 Amp circuits.
Neighbors who are understanding that sound actually extends past your property line.
Food and beverages – don’t forget to feed your entertainment, they perform better!
Clear communication regarding setup, start and end times.
How much does it cost to hire a band for a block party? That depends on several factors.
How long do you need entertainment for? Are you providing the sound system or is the band? If it is going be at night, are lights going to be desired? Do you want an actual stage?
If you would like to talk about the details, please give us a call at 864.979.1224 or use our CONTACT FORM. We will be happy to give you a quote, and we can also handle every last detail of the entertainment for you, so you don’t even have to think about anything other than what potato salad recipe to use!
We travel within a few hours of the Greenville and Upstate SC area!
While Hot As A Pepper is primarily known as a variety band, covering a wide range of genres such as Rock, Beach, Disco, Funk, R&B, Motown, Soul, Country and more, we are also capable of doing shows that are heavily weighted towards a specific genre.
Thanks to a huge and ever growing repertoire, and a crew of talented professionals who have been playing music most of their lives, this is an easy task for us.
Here are a few themed shows we have done so far:
70s themed Gala – We were booked to play music mostly from the 70s, with a few requests that took us back to the 60s, and early 80s, but kept it mostly in the 70s across several styles, mostly dance. This was an all-out event where many people looked the part by wearing clothing from the 1970s.
Shag / Beach / Dance Fraternity & Sorority Parties – These kids today, like some older music and we are happy to give it to them. While not a “beach band”, we can play 2 hours of shag worthy music and it’s made the people very happy! We have been involved in several of these events for Clemson Greek organizations.
Rock Shows – We have done several events that were mostly rock, from classic rock to southern rock. These have ranged from biker type events to a wedding. They usually request a country song or two at these, and these events are more casual.
Dance Events – These are usually a combination of Disco, Funk, Beach, Pop and Rock, and is what we specialize in. A variety of songs carefully picked to make your booty wiggle. Festivals, Wedding Receptions, Parties, Fundraisers. You name it, we’ve played this type of music for many occasions.
60s show coming up? We have been talking with an organization that wants a 1960s themed show, with ONLY songs from the 60s. After carefully looking at our current song list, it’s easy to see that we have no problem covering two and a half hours of music without adding anything new, however, if you know us, we WILL add several songs for that event.
Yes, Hot As A Pepper really is the “Swiss Army Knife of Bands”, as one person described us. We can do most anything for you, so let us know what you have in mind and we can talk about it! Welll, maybe not Polka, Folk, or Death Metal, however, one of the places we have played a couple times has inquired about us playing a Country themed event.
Looking to do an event that is 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s, rock, disco, funk, dance, shag themed? We would love the opportunity.
Let’s talk about booking Hot As A Pepper for your wedding, reunion, festival, or other special event! We cover Greenville, Spartanburg, Clemson, Seneca, Anderson, Simpsonville and anywhere within a few hours of the Upstate of South Carolina!
