"We're Not Really Paying The Suppliers": Musician Exposes This Influencer Couple Who Asked Him To Play At Their Wedding Without Pay

Even though we live in a society where a person who provides someone with a service or some kind of product gets paid for it, this doesn't always turn out to be the case. Over the years, influencers have shown that they are able to get things done for free, or for “exposure,” and receive free things as “gifts.” However, this glamorously pictured everyday life doesn’t quite work in a reality where people work to earn real money to pay for housing, transportation, food, and other things. There were times when some people thought that being an influencer would be the best job ever, but now it has become an often ridiculed lifestyle.

Professional musician Jamie Mathias (@JamieMathias) decided to share his encounter with an influencer couple who asked the man to write a song and perform it at their wedding. There is nothing weird about this request as Jamie is known to do these kinds of bookings for people who want a personal song written for them for their special day. What irritated the musician was that he was asked to do this in exchange for “promotion.” This isn't the first time that Jamie has encountered people who are unaware that they need to pay someone after they receive a service from a professional. You can find a compilation of these hilarious texts here.

More Info: Twitter

Jamie is a successful musician who writes and performs songs for couples who are getting married and want to have something special created just for them to commemorate their union. The musician seems to be doing very well as he receives a lot of requests and bookings. One of the recent requests he got was from an influencer who wrote Jamie, stating that he and his fiancee are getting married on the 16th of August in Ibiza and would love to have him at their wedding to play for them. The musician was happy for the couple and informed them that he would be free for that date, even saying that he would be able to do a discount for the service. The influencer, whose name was redacted, revealed that they would not be paying the musician with real money, but instead would do “promo posts.”

Jamie answered the influencer by stating that he would rather take the payment, but the man insisted that the promo he would get from other influencers who would attend the wedding is worth so much more. The conversation ended when the musician sarcastically brought up the fact that he’d be doing something for free for people who can actually afford to pay him.

A lot of people online were curious to find out who the couple was, but Jamie remained silent about their identities. Once his tweet containing the screenshots went viral, the man reached out to the influencer, offering the couple a free performance at their wedding as this conversation between them brought him a lot of attention. However, the offer was declined and the man also stated that because of this conversation going viral, the couple now had to change their wedding date.

Bored Panda reached out to Jamie to find out more about the situation. Having in mind that it wasn’t the first time that the musician had drawn people’s attention to a similar problem, the man shared that even though he expected the post to gain attention, “it’s always really exciting seeing them reaching big audiences because it shines a light on a topic that all creative people have experienced on some level or another. It’s also great from a personal perspective because it brings more attention to my business of writing bespoke songs for people, which is obviously a positive!”

After Jamie revealed that some well-known people contacted him with he request, soon people became highly interested in who these people were. The Twitter user shared that he understands why people are so curious about the situation and who were the people behind this were, but what he didn’t think would happen is that people would put so much effort into really finding the names of these people. “I did think it’d maybe create a sense of intrigue, but I didn’t think it would turn the whole internet into a bunch of detectives who were out for blood. That’s why I never blanked out the wedding date because I really didn’t think it would escalate that far. I’m so glad that I didn’t reveal the identities, because regardless of how disappointing the request was, it would make me really unhappy to see someone get trolled by thousands of people as a result of something I had posted.”

Does exposing people like this who think that they are entitled to free services and products change anything? The musician shared that even though this might not have a direct effect on some people asking to do something in exchange for exposure, it surely sheds light on how much work creators have to put in to create their business and still not receive enough recognition. “I think there is a perception that because someone enjoys what they do for a job, they shouldn’t be compensated for that because it’s a hobby. If it’s taking time to complete and it’s something you’re requesting, accept that it costs money and if it’s not in your budget, then that’s okay!” Jamie agrees that sometimes exposure is a good thing, but we shouldn’t see it as a main “currency” you use to pay for an artist.

Influencers live in a world where very often, they receive good deals and payment for what they do. Does this mean that they have a hard time understanding that not everyone needs or wants exposure and actually just needs to get paid? According to Jamie, influencers are used to getting major deals from various brands from which they benefit and there is nothing wrong about it. This is why a lot of people might think that this kind of occupation is great. What the musician wants to remind people is that: “in a lot of cases, the lifestyle these people portray is far from reality and try not to compare yourself. But if you are an influencer, please don’t feel entitled to whatever you want. Some people would rather be paid for their time and treated with respect than be told their hard work is only worth a shout out on your page.”