129 E Hopkins St. San Marcos, TX 78666
A NOTE ON GETTING BOOKED AT THE PORCH :
Updated 6/18/25
We are an independent venue and it is impossible to respond to every band that would like to play here. If you are a right fit for The Porch, we will reach out to you to discuss dates. Usually the room is booked 2-3 months in advance, so it could take some time to circle back to a request.
Please be patient and don't spam the inbox. Keep your follow up emails in the same chain. If you don't hear from us, don't take it personally - you just might not be the right fit for the room.
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The Porch is focused on local artists. That doesn't mean we don't book touring or regional artists, it just means it's not the priority.
We do not book via social media. If you message the bar on IG, FB or whatever other app your heart desires, we will send you the email address.
Thank you for your interest in playing The Porch in San Marcos, TX!
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WEEKEND SHOWS
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We generally book multi-band live music lineups or DJs on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights. Because we're located in a main downtown entertainment/tourism hub, it is not always possible for us to charge a cover. 90% of the time when you perform at The Porch our payout structure is 10% of bar sales.
The other 10% of the time, I will offer a guarantee, but that is usually reserved for local artists with a draw.
Because we rely heavily on foot traffic and TXST students, it is important that we keep shows free and work together to get the word out about your shows. Your pay is directly tied to how well the bar does, so in the immortal words of Jerry Maguire: "help me help you".
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WEEKDAY SHOWS
Sunday, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday are predominately held for residency events/artists.. These events rarely change or alternate, just an FYI.
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GETTING BOOKED
Booking email: theporchonhopkins@gmail.com.
When emailing about a potential show try to include:
1. Your name and/or your band name.
2. Link to your website and/or social media.
3. Link to recorded music.
4. Link to a live performance if possible
5. A brief (2-3 sentences please I beg you) description of your music and or bio.
6. What dates you are looking to book.
7. Your set length(s).
8. You desired guarantee.
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Including this information will save us both a lot of time. It is greatly appreciated if you keep your booking requests in the same email chain so we don't assume you're reaching out for the first time.
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ONCE BOOKED: PROMOTING THE SHOW
Help us make your show a success. It is important to get the word out about your show so we all help foster a strong community of live music supporters.
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Connect with the TXST's college radio station KTSW and ask them to play your music or to perform a live set in the days leading up to your show. *NOTE: the station is not required to play music of The Porch performing artists simply because we're an underwriter*
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Reach out to our local San Marcos independent radio station, KZSM, and see about getting on one of their local programs like Revolving Door, We The People, etc. Almost all of the show hosts and DJs are local and love to support live music programming.
​Make a Facebook event and add The Porch as a host. Invite your friends. Invite your parents, bosses, dogs, etc. Because there is so much programming on a weekly basis, I cannot create individual Facebook events for every show.
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Share your event with San Marcos local Facebook groups, especially San Marcos, TX: EVENTS.
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Create a show poster and bring it to the bar to hang up (10 copies MAX).
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Share your show details with local / regional press outlets. I send out weekly email blasts and monthly newsletters to all of my industry contacts, but you should, too!
Here is a good starting point for calendar listings and press:
101X, community@krox.com
AMFM Magazine, christine@amfmstudios.com
Austin Chronicle, clubs@austinchronicle.com
Austin360 Music Source, musicsource@statesman.com
do512, cm@do512.com
Downtown San Marcos Association, info@downtownsanmarcos.org
KTSW 89.9, ktswpromotions@txstate.edu
KUTX, music@kut.org
KXAN, desk@kxan.com
KZSM, kzsmsanmarcos@gmail.com
San Marcos Daily Record Music Listings, agonzales@sanmarcosrecord.com
Spectrum/Time Warner News, txnewsdesk@charter.com
Texas State University Star, universitystar@txstate.edu
Visit San Marcos, cvb@sanmarcostx.gov
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San Marcos responds really well to handbills and posters around town. Hit up coffee shops, vintage stores, the library, etc. Community listings of supportive businesses coming soon!
Talk about your show on social media and tag us @theporchsmtx. We will retweet, like, post to stories, etc. The more active you are the better.
Email poster graphics or shoot them to us on Instagram so we can help you promote through our platforms.
ADVANCING SHOWS / PRODUCTION SPECS
An email will be sent to you in the days leading up to your performance at the Porch (usually 1-2 days prior) that will include all production questions, loop in your engineer, loop in bar manager, details for payment, hospitality, load & load out, parking, etc.
For Friday and Saturday shows and some weekday events, we do provide an in-house engineer. As long as your event is open to the public, we pay for all production costs. If you are running a private event or pre-sale ticketed event, then production costs are a separate fee/discussion.
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We provide the following backline / equipment for your use. If you need additional equipment you must connect with me or your engineer (who will be cc'd in your advance, if an engineer is provided). BEFORE YOUR SHOW.​