Jeanpool Tour
This is a tour I have planned out and executed for Jeanpool. Jeanpool are a Leeds-local based band, consisting of four members. Amakai O’Brien on lead guitar, Iris Reamswood on lead vocals, Millie Latham on bass guitar, and Eli Okitwo on drums. They will be travelling mainly around the north of the UK and then making their final stop in Amsterdam. Their transport will be a 6 seater mini splitter van, which will run on diesel. The layout and dimensions of the van are shown below.
The full mileage of this tour is a total of 738.9 miles. This van has a tank of 60 litres, which comes to roughly between 550 and 700 miles, which can cost £96. If driven efficiently, by accelerating gently, maintaining a steady speed, and using higher gears early. I have accounted for a tank and a half for this tour, which adds up to 1,108.35 miles. This will cost £144, which I have rounded up to £150 for precautionary issues. Storage wise, the band members will each be taking a small suitcase to carry their personal items. Three outfits, one for onstage, one for rehearsals/downtime, and another for running personal errands. These suitcases will also contain toiletries, electronics, and any other miscellaneous items the band member wishes to fit in there. Kit wise, the band will be using their own full drumkit along with a foldable stool. This also includes two electric guitars, one bass guitar, pedals, 5 straps, 8 jack leads, 9v cables, and drumsticks. The reason for bringing such a heavy amount of kit, is because each venue they play has a different backline, and it means being less reliable on each venue to provide what Jeanpool might be lacking. Jeanpool will also bring their own bass amp, and two guitar amps.
First, they will start off in Leeds, where they will play Sela Bar. Sela Bar opened in 2004 and has been a staple in Leeds Grassroots venues. It was important for Jeanpool for kick off their tour here, as this is a venue they have played many times before, and they felt strongly that they should stick to their roots, and they can do that by playing a local venue such as Sela Bar. There would be no need to book any accommodation as everyone in the band already lives in Leeds. The next stop would be Matt’n’Phreds, a bar in Manchester city centre. The drive from Leeds from Manchester is roughly an hour, which gives the band plenty of breathing room to arrive in Manchester and set up for the next show. Again, this is another grassroots venue. For their accommodation, they will stay in Lewis Northern Quarter, which is a 5 minute walk from Matt’n’Phreds. Next in line will be Liverpool, at a venue known as Quarry. The drive from each accommodation (Manchester to Liverpool) is 50 minutes, again giving the band plenty of time to settle into the city. The accommodation in Liverpool is the YHA Liverpool Albert Dock, a 20 minute walk or a 5 minute car journey. Jeanpool will stay in Liverpool for 2 nights, as the drive to the next city, Sheffield, is slightly longer than the previous travel times. The drive to Sheffield from Liverpool is just under two hours, so a chance to have a bit of rest the day before travel will be useful. The venue in Sheffield is Gut Level, another well-known and highly respected grassroots venue. The accommodation in Sheffield is an ibis budget, which is a 20 minute walk, or a 7 minute drive away. Unfortunately, due to a tight budget for accommodation and a strict schedule to follow, the band will only be sleeping in Sheffield for one night. The drive to the next city, Nottingham, is luckily only an hour’s drive. The band will be playing a venue called The Bodega, in Nottingham. This venue has seen the start of many musicians’ careers, such as Arctic Monkeys, Doves, Bloc Party, Paolo Nutini, Fleet Foxes, and the list goes on. This venue has a massive reputation, which Jeanpool want to live up to. In Nottingham, the accommodation for two nights will be at Hyland’s Hotel, a 15 minute drive between the venue and accommodation. The second to last stop of the tour will be in Birmingham, at a venue known as The Sunflower Lounge. Since 2002, they have showcased the best of underground, breaking and local talent in their basement bar. It has been a key part of the Birmingham music scene for over 20 years. The band will be staying in an accommodation a short 10 minute walk or a 4 minute drive away from the venue. Due to the very last stop of the tour, as it is the longest journey the band will have to make, 2 nights felt appropriate to have the band stay, so they can rejuvenate for the 8 ½ hour drive to Amsterdam. The drive from Birmingham to Amsterdam will be the trickiest by far, so I have planned for the band to arrive the day before their gig, instead of arriving on the same day, like I had planned for every other date of the tour. Ideally, this will help the band adjust to the slight time period in Amsterdam, alongside the journey they had to take. The venue is called Bourbon Street, and it has been one of the city’s most treasured yet hidden away venues. Again, this venue has also seen the beginning of many musicians’ careers, blending together genres such as blues, funk, soul, indie rock, alt pop and so on. The vision behind it was aspiring towards the soulful, vibrant, yet calming spirit of New Orleans. The accommodation for Amsterdam is a 2 minute walk from the venue, which makes accessibility so much more straightforward, and therefore less hassle and stress for the band, which would be the last thing they needed. The band will then stay in Amsterdam for 2 nights, and on the day following the gig, they will drive back to Leeds, finishing their tour.
In order to promote this tour, Jeanpool will announce it two months before the first tour date. This will give them plenty of time to sell early bird tickets to a handful of shows, especially in cities/venues they have played before. Consistent updates on social media, with information on what fans can expect from each show, clips from band rehearsals, colour themes for each gig, alongside interviews or vlogs from each city. A way for them to promote themselves whilst they are on the road, would be putting a handful of stickers on their tour van. Grabbing passersby’s attention could be a way of reaching out to people they wouldn’t usually reach on social media. This widens the age range from young adults on social media, to an older age group. Meeting fans before and after the show is also an important way for the band to connect with their audience. Not only will this encourage more listeners to come to each show, but it is encouraging and rewarding to the band, as they get to meet people who listen to their music, and enjoy it enough to pay money to see them live. Also, an informational video, explaining how they organised their tour, and how they paid for the tour out of their own pocket. This will appease a large group of people, as they will appreciate the fact that Jeanpool worked hard and personally for the chance to go on tour and play their music live.
The direction that Jeanpool wanted to go in with the merchandising, was along the lines of local artists, commissioning them to create merchandise for the band to sell on tour. Jeanpool already had their logo from when they started the band, so licensing that was not an issue that came up. Getting in touch with local artists was also straightforward, as 3 members of the band, Amakai, Iris and Millie, all currently study at Leeds Arts University. The band decided to have a merch stand at each gig, where after each show, someone from the band would stand alongside a worker from the venue and help sell the merchandise. This would include CDs, t shirts, hats, badges, and stickers. Having a band member stand at the merch table also encourages the audience to buy an item from the merch table, as they would have a chance to speak to whichever band member and congratulate them on the show. The badges and stickers would be easy for the band to create themselves, as they can use facilities from their university, but for the t shirts and hats, they would have to commission an artist to create those items for them. The band wanted to maintain sustainability, as their morals disagree with fast fashion. Visiting charity shops and finding plain t shirts and hats on which the chosen artist could add Jeanpool’s logo.
The number of potential pitfalls the band could come across will be significant, as this is an independent tour that no one is sponsoring them for. They will have to have absolute resilience and trust within each other that they can finish this tour. The main concern regarding this tour, is maintaining each band members mental health. Not having a personal driver for their travel will be exhausting, as they will have to do it all themselves. Two members of the band can drive, Amakai and Millie, so Eli and Iris will have to step up towards other responsibilities, such as cooking, or handling check-ins at each accommodation, making sure everyone else in the band is up and ready for the day ahead. The tour dates have been carefully organised in a way that gives the band enough time to recover from each night, with also considering the cost of each night away from home. The longer they stay in each city, the more expensive the cost will be, but it will also be too overwhelming to play in a different city every night consistently for a week and a half. Another issue that could come up would be the transportation. There is every chance that the van could break down, or worst case, there could be an accident on the road. To have the best chance of preventing the van breaking down, it will go for an MOT test before being collected, and the tire pressure and tank will constantly be monitored the entire time the band is travelling. Alongside that, the fluid levels will also be checked; oil, coolant and brake fluid. In terms of preventing a car accident, there is nothing that can be changed about who else is on the road at the same time as the band, but the driver’s alertness will be on top form as long as they are well rested, eat plenty of food, and are decently hydrated. The band will be encouraged on keeping a healthy lifestyle whilst on the road, which means no fast food, no drugs, and little to no alcohol. Another issue that could potentially come up could be the accommodation. Bookings could be cancelled, so it is important that the band have a backup accommodation they could also stay at. This is essential to have organised before arriving in that specific city, by potentially calling the accommodation the band have booked to stay in, and double checking that their booking is still confirmed. If it were a case of a cancellation, the band would have to have enough money saved to book accommodation for that same night. The last issue that could be detrimental to the tour, was if equipment was either stolen, or accidentally left behind. To prevent this from being an issue, it is important that the band have equipment to spare. This could mean a spare set of drumsticks if the original gets broken or stolen, spare jack cables if one is faulty, strings for a guitar or bass if they snap, and so on.
