What: TheBash, formerly GigMasters, connects entertainers — comedians, speakers, bands, etc — and service providers, such as event planners and photographers,  with customers

Expected pay: you set it

Husl$core: $

Commissions and fees: $99 – $149 annually, + 5% on bookings

Where: Nationwide

Requirements: A valid credit card

Review:

TheBash, formerly known as GigMasters, purports to advertise your entertainment-related service — band, DJ, comedy act, photography services, etc. — to people who need it. To register, however, you must pay for a subscription for a minimum of three months. If you book a gig through the site, it will hit you with an additional 5% booking fee.

Copious artists who have signed up with the site maintain you won’t have to worry about that booking fee, though. Gigs appear to be rare. Charges are not.

TheBash will auto-charge your credit card year after year, unless you remember to cancel prior to the automatic renewal date. One day late, and you’re charged for the duration. There are no refunds. Even the site’s 30-day money-back trial appears to be misleading, according to artists who have complained about the site. 

GigSalad appears to be a better choice, but only marginally. If you are a musician, you may have better luck earning money teaching music at LessonFace than booking gigs on either site. 

What their users say (from Pissed Consumer):

I joined Gigmasters in November 27th 2016, but realized that it was a mistake to sign up and deactivated account. I called and tried to reach someone, which did not work then went online and deactivated account. 11/27/2017 – got a charge again from Gigmasters for renewal. I called and sent email asking to cancel my account and refund my money. They did not cancel my account and now I received another charge. It’s not easy to get rid off a blood sucker like Gigmasters. I was charged more than $1100 and not a single benefit or call.

My DUO was on there for a year and NOTHING. 15 years together and we have opened for National Acts like The Drifters, The Duprees, The Skyliners, Danny & The Juniors, Bobby Rydell and NOTHING! I probably answered 50 gigs asap with a REASONABLE price and NOT ONE GIG! Like gigsalad, I believe that some of these gigs are PHONY, MADE UP to make you think there’s something on the other end.

Account freeze

We signed up with Gigmasters for transportation leads (i.e. party buses and shuttle buses). Customer is supposed to pay a deposit upon booking. However, customers click on booking in the Gigmasters website and never pay the deposit. Gigmasters requires a 5% booking fee for the lead (on top of the $300 yearly fee ). The big problem is that Gigmasters immediately freezes our account for non-payment of the booking fee for a booking that was never confirmed. For weeks, our account is on hold. We cannot reply to leads until this issue resolved. We dealt with this problem at least 5 times. This is a horrible site to advertise on. We never received any bookings from their site due to customers that press book and never followup paying a deposit.

I signed up for Gigmasters last year with hopes of getting bookings. Came close a few times but nothing panned out. I am in LA so the clients get inundated with bands wanting the gig. With 92 referrals and not one booking just makes me believe this isn’t a good match for me. I had no idea they were auto renewing me. When it came up on my bill they refused to give me a refund. It is like they hold you hostage. You are much better off getting your own gigs. They make it virtually impossible to cancel.

 

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