Troy Cartwright – TOUR TIPS

In this Tour Tips segment, the country artist, Troy Cartwright, gives you his tips for being on tour. You can check out the feature, after the break.

1. Stick to Three Main Food Groups
Life on the road is adventurous enough. When it comes to eating, stick to the three main food groups: Starbuck’s, Chipotle, and Beer. A lot of people will tell you different and to focus on eating healthy etc… but take it from someone who does this 150+ days a year, when you’re on the road in the middle-of-nowhere-mid-west-united-states you do not want to eat the “salad” at the local fast food joint. And thanks to the steady and never ending rise of capitalism there is now a Starbucks and Chipotle in almost every town in America.

2. Bring Books
What most people won’t tell you is that 97% of being a touring musician is either driving around or killing time after sound check but before you go on. Without books, you’ll end up digesting the internet whole which is not only unpleasant but also is guaranteed to drop your IQ 3 to 5 points (just read the facebook comments on any trending news article to see what I mean).

3. Drink Less
When you first start playing shows, it’s pretty exciting. People buy you shots, the beer is free… don’t fall into that trap. It’s okay to tie one on every now and then, but for the most part you’ve got to take it easy. There’s nothing worse than being hung over and having to drive to the next city six hours away. You’re liver and professionalism will thank you later.

4. Travel with People You Like
Who is in your band and in van is pretty important. You’ll be spending a lot of time with them so make sure y’all get along. If you have a weird feeling about someone, just imagine how upset you’ll be when you were right but you have to spend the next 3 weeks in a van with them.

5. Be Consistent
You don’t have to be the kindest person in the world, but being consistent helps. Long weeks on the road can bring out everybody’s rough edges, and those can be a lot easier to navigate when you know where everyone’s are. Treat everyone with respect and you’ll get along just fine.

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