1 minute in: I'm German. We assume people get payed by their employers. It shouldn't be the customers responsibility. This whole tipping culture thing is weird to me.

I'm not tipping on a $50 black T-shirt. The tip is included in the 400% markup

I have never tipped a band for buying merch. That's insane.

I've visited the US and understand the tipping culture as it relates to restaurants. Honestly NEVER even heard of tipping merch sellers anywhere in the world before this story blew up

In most of the world, if your business can't handle you paying your staff reasonably, you don't have a business. Basing it on customers paying your staff is not a viable business idea.

I'm 46, I've probably been to well over 100 shows. I have bought a shirt at the majority of these shows. I have never once even thought to tip the person selling me a shirt.

US concert-goer here. i’ve always assumed my tips at the merch table went to the people physically selling the merch. it’s generally $5-$10 and i’m happy to do it because i know their job sometimes sucks 😬 i support the band themselves by buying their albums, tickets to their shows, and their merch that they already make some money from. let the awesome folks at the table keep the monies they earned by being awesome.

I’m a merch manager on tour at the moment. Tips definitely aren’t expected from customers (though they’re appreciated when given). I wouldn’t take a gig that was paying me little enough that I would need to rely on tips to pay my bills. The POS systems on my current tour have an option for customers to tip. If the band or management chose not to allow tips I’d remove it. But even the thought of splitting my personal tips with anyone that wasn’t also working the merch booth is ridiculous. If you’re not interacting with fans, you don’t get a cut of the fan tips, unless for some reason agreed upon prior to the start of tour.

I have honestly never seen a tip jar at a merch table. So I would have never been inclined to do so. I just always assumed the band paid them well.

America is the only country where workers rely on tips to top up their wages to a living wage. Pay people a decent living! I give tips in restaurants, if the service warrants it. I wouldn’t dream of tipping someone who sells me a t-shirt. You can get mad all you like, but you really shouldn’t be surprised that people from outside of the USA think your system is fucked up.

Idk if it was the case at all the electric Callboy stops but where I saw them the merch manager was the only person working the merch table she was super professional and super friendly she was working her buns off the whole night and seemed to be having a blast meeting fans and doing her job she deserves the world

I was talking to a member of a small band from East Asia this morning. They are starting a three week tour in Europe next month, supporting a well-known band within their scene, and the only thing in the entire tour that they aren't doing themselves is booking venues. The only time I've seen any kind of merch tipping in Europe though was on their UK tour last year, when news spread that the promoter from their first show had done a runner with the ticket money. Fans were paying double for merch etc. The singer was almost in tears because of the generosity to her and the band.

$2 fucking dollars in minimum wage?! What the actual hell is wrong with the US wage culture?!

as a german we have a different culture in tips only anectotal things 1. a famous band from finland was on tour and the tips from merch was split between the whole crew but not the band 2.my brother has a cafe here in germany and the tips are collected and then split between the service and the kitchen

I am SO grateful for your channel, Tank! Thank you so much for giving us the information we need to support our bands, merch managers, and crews!

A merch attendant is essentially responsible for running a retail outlet in some of the most unruly environments imaginable at times. They deserve all the tips. Kudos to them for getting the bag

I didn't need another reminder that the tipping culture in the US is just out of control, but this is a bad take on the situation in a direction I never expected.

I've only done it a few times, but I know that I'm tipping the merch person if I do it. I wouldn't call it customary in the slightest. I typically did it with merch people who were covering a really large selection and were alone at the table. Watching them be kind to all the weirdos who hemmed and hawed for way too long to just buy the most basic shirt on the wall. It's a "thank you for your service" tip. Buying the merch is my thank you to the band.

Ok, so I'm Polish and at the moment living in Italy... but the tipping culture in Poland and Italy is completely different than in the US. Honestly I thought that the tip is being split between all the crew and the band members. So thank you for the info 😅

Tank, a few years ago, I came to this channel because of your reactions and the roadie insight that you provided. Seeing you lately, providing non-reaction insight into bands, management, touring etc on top of music reactions is a very nice development imo (well, I guess TECHnically you did react to the post in question, but you know what I mean). Keep up the good work, I wish you much success! EDIT: Almost forgot the interviews you do, those are great too!

Our tipping culture in Germany is very different in the US. On big venues we think the tips get to to the person in front of me. But with tiny Bands I would have guessed, that they split it.

Great topic Tank… working musician here, but I also still occasionally run the merch table for a band I won’t name (mostly club act these days, but had major success in early ‘90s); most people who tip me there usually say something like “use that for gas in the van”- which leads me to believe they assume it’s going to the band; in my situation the band pays me very well, so all tips do indeed go to the band (we use Square like everyone, and I turn all the cash in). I know our situation may be unique, but wanted to add this perspective… also my guys typically do come hang at the merch table after the show to sign/ chat with fans- to your point about working it harder- couldn’t agree more…

I did merch for a smaller band for 3 days and it was insanely difficult. Mad respect to people who do that for full tours!

Thanks Tank the Tech, this was a super informative insight on the workings behind a tour. Love your videos.

Really wish the US would take the formula from the rest of the world and just do away with tipping culture. I don't know if the kid behind the counter making me a coffee is getting paid hourly or only in tips like a bartender. I have no problem giving extra $$ is someone goes above and beyond or giving cash to my UPS guy at Christmas and shit like that, but it's gotten out of control.

Who in the world tips the merch table? Why? You're buying a product, they're not providing a service. It's not like they're taking your order out in GA, getting it, and serving it back to you. wtf.

We in Europe don't do the tip thing. We have this other thing you may have heard of called a "salary". 😅

I've always thought tips at the merch tables went to the vendor and as someone who works in the industry I completely agree that vendors deserve them for all the work they do and the BS they go through. Customer service is a pain in the ass and merch is not a position I'd choose willingly. I do tend to go to smaller shows far more than big arena ones so If I'm just there attending and I feel like tipping the band I'll catch them after their set and hand them cash, buy them a round, or whatever. If I'm working as a stagehand, I'm not expecting a tip because my position is not a guest focused one and I'm already being paid to be there. On festival's I've had bands randomly "tip" me, by giving me some merch or catching me later and buying me a beer, but its never an expected thing and actually surprises the hell out of me when it happens

From a German perspective, i have to say that I always thought the Tips are going to everyone who worked on the show. So for Lighting, Techs etc. Because "we" are so used to split the Tips for everybody involved. I work in the hospital and everytime we get tips from patients, the money is shared between everyone on the station. Because you are a team and everyone is working together to make the show happen. I learned that the balance is quite favored towards "Front" people because they are the ones working with customers. Something like tipping the chef in a restaurant etc.

I've taken merch jobs where I would be paid minimum wage because I KNEW I would make up the difference in tips, because I work the ish out of my customer service skills for those tips. And customers were absolutely aware that those tips were coming to me because they would say, here's your tip, you were great, you deserve it.

I've been following your channel since you started... keep up the good work and all that jazz

Being from the UK, and attending concerts across Europe - giving the merch stand people a tip when you buy a shirt or whatever, sounds utterly fucking odd. It is not a thing. So interesting to read an US industry perspective and argumenr for why this is the case.

I think the waters might have been muddied a bit by leading your poll with "no one thinks the tips go to the band do they?". No one wants to look like an idiot. Full disclosure: I fell into the 19 or whatever percent that thought it went to the band. Totally not scientific anecdote, but I was curious and I asked the folks in the music slack channel at my work who they thought the tip went to, and it was almost entirely "the band". Glad to hear your expertise on the subject! Honestly I was so confident it was "the band" that I never even thought about it heh.

Great information and video Tank! I wish more people would remember the HALT rule. Don't do or say anything when you are Hungry, Angry, Lonely, or Tired.

Wow, ty for talking about something I've been wondering about for the past 2-3 years

As someone who tips between 25-75% on literally single show merch purchase, partially because I assumed my tips were split among the entire tour package, this was a very interesting and informative watch. Learned a lot! I won't stop tipping, nor will I give less money than before, but it really sucks that we live in a world where people involved in the arts (in any nom-corporate capacity) struggle so much to make a comfortable living for their households.

I remember one time I took a cab to our hotel in Austin (I'm from Mexico), I payed the driver and moved to our room, only to realize the guy stayed outside for like 10 minutes, I was confused by what was happening. After some months I somehow realized I was expected to tip the guy, it's mindblowing how broken and disrupting tipping culture is in the US, 15% extra for anything that has to do with services... instead of it being added and priced to the final cost, it's an absolute mess as it creates a lot of dumb controversies like this one, employeers should pay better instead of expecting customers to play the weird tipping game, I would gladly pay extra for food and services instead of getting stuck in awckward situations like this one.

I support bands by streaming &/or buying albums, buying tickets, & driving 1-3hrs to see a show. I always tip the merch people.....aint no way in hell I could do that job. They deserve 100% of every cent.

Said it once and ill say it again. I love these videos when you pull back the curtains to educate us on theninner workings of the undustry. They have opened my eyes and i see things differently and have new appreciations when i go to shows. Thanks dude keep up the good work. 🤘👹🤘

I have to say, thank you for the (informed) perspective. I had a very different understanding of the situation when i first saw this post. But that was without the context of there already being an existing sign, them firing their merch manager, and the actual scale of merch sales/potential tips for said band at said level. I think this video does a great job of bringing all sides to the discussion and not letting anything get out of hand.

As salary/ tipping culture is quite different here in Germany and I don't go to shows on a regular basis, I didn't knew one would tip the merch person. When I was at the merch stand of The Dark Side Of the Moon, when they were guests on the Feuerschwanz tour, I noticed the merch lady had a tipping jar on the table and automatically assumed, those tips would go to her. Just like I was sure the tip jar at the cloakroom counter would be for the people at that place. The merch lady had discreetly mentioned that she (speaking of herself in the third person 😄) would appreciate a tip, most likely a good idea, as sales people usually aren't tipped here. And, as she had openly doubted my size when I asked for 2XL, I happily contributed. 😉

See, I don't understand the US tipping culture at all coming from the UK (as in, I know what it is and how it works, but I disagree with tipping as a solution). And whilst I think sharing the tips would be weird when it seems people in the US know it goes to the vendor (I've never seen a tip jar at a gig in all my years of going to them), I do think it is fair to question why merch gets tips but nobody else does. Everyone in there is working intensely hard, but if you're the kind of person to tip, there is no method of tipping other parts of the setup. I'm not even taking about the band, they do get money from the merch, but the crew aren't getting tipped even though without them the show could not run, it does come across to me as a punishment for not doing a front-facing job. And even with that, plenty of front-facing jobs on the planet don't get tipped at all, I worked retail for years and there was never a dream of having tips. Over here in the UK we were at the same minimum wage servers were but tips still exist if you work at a fancier restaurant, it just seems weird to pick and choose. The original point of a tip was that it was a bonus for exceptional service hence why it's in service industries. However now the US just uses it to supplement paying people dogshit wages, and it seems like every time this conversation comes up, people just get angry at anyone that questions the tipping, instead of at the companies not paying enough.

Great video! I subbed like a few months ago and must say your channel is one of my favorite channels right now. I really appreciate your insights! Keep up the great work!

Most fans have no clue where the money for merch goes. I know people who thought the tips were going to the band. I feel like people are freaking out about this because they look for things to be outraged about. Also, the BAND is the reason the merch gets sold at all. Nobody is buying merch from the merch manager. Nobody is buying merch from the crew. EVERYONE is there to see the band.

I wish tip culture just went away entirely, globally. Employers are supposed to pay their employees directly, not the consumer. Consumers pay for a service and/or product. They don’t pay for wages.

Had no idea about the separation between the band and the Merch managers. Thanks!

Great video, Tank. These conversations are important. 👍👍

i've only done merch for smaller, local bands where I'm based and a local, small, festival twice. i did it for free since the band was either my friends band, or it was an event my friend had a hand in organizing. i never had a tip jar (though a couple customers mentioned I should!) because i was just doing this to help a friend & to see a show for free lol. I had a ton of fun but there's was so much to do. From setting everything up, running the booth on my own, interacting with fans/customers, and at one point battling hail at an outdoor show (that was wild), it was a lot. looking back, i wish i had a tip jar at some of these events because i did put in a lot of work (and had to deal with a lot of people). hoping to do merch at some more shows in the future and i'll definitely implement some sort of tip jar if able. side note- i think my years of being a girl scout really helped with working the merch booth. like, i was doing cookie sales from ages 5-13 for free! let me tell you, getting business men and women to buy your cookies on a cold January day in DC is not an easy task. but those skills came in handy when it came to selling merch at a show on a cold November day 😂

Tipping culture its a cancer in labor society. It's a way to cope with business owners fleeing from fair wages putting on a customer their obligations. While this keeps running the same way, people will never be paid which is due. As customer i don't want to be force to pay something that should be paid by the owner if he wants to deliver a good service and have retention in his business. He should be the one preoccupied with this features of his business. That tipping culture was one of the things that, once i discovered, made me uninterested in fullfilling my childhood dream that was visiting the west coast.

Literally never tipped at a Merch table and I've seen a tip option at maybe 5% of concerts I've ever been to. Tipping culture in North America has gotten fucking ridiculous.

What a great video. No diss to TesseracT, love their music, but this whole merch stuff that you've talked about in the video was highly educational for me. I really learn a lot from your content. Thank you so much brother!

Love everything about this vid. 🔥

As someone from USA, i find US tiping culture really bizzare. Me, being introverted, i don't interract much with waiters, if i had a choice i'd prefer to have tablet menu and robots bringing me food, so, i just don't get why it has to be me who pay some extra for waiters. I'd rather complement cook, if anyone, but then, i'd rather have them all being adequately paid by the restaurant.

I can't imagine buying a $40 t shirt after paying $15 a beer and $50 for parking and then leaving a tip. It's literally never going to happen.

Side note: I love the electric Callboy merch woman. I leave axolotl toys around and she asked if that was for her and I said yes and we ended up talking about how she wanted one. 💕 lovely person

Love your channel, and I appreciate the insights you provide into the business of touring. Anecdotal example: I went to see a show over the weekend for a band with a decent sized but devoted fan base. Venue occupancy was 1k. The person working the merch table was also responsible for the VIP M&G, so definitely with the band, not a local. I bought my usual stack of loot, and the total was about $300. When I paid, the POS system popped up the usual 10/15/20 tip screen. Out of habit I hit 15%. No biggie. In retrospect tho, I just tipped almost 50 bucks to a person that helped me for less than 2 minutes. That line was pretty busy almost the whole night , so I can easily imagine that if people were only tipping 5% on average, he was still pulling in $200+/hr in tips. On a 4-5 hour day x 4-5 shows a week, it's maybe 3500-5000 a week in tips. tl; dr: based on recent experience, I can totally see a touring merch person making bank. I also think it's highly situational.

Paid $60 (cdn, each)for shirts at the recent maiden show in Edmonton. Leaving a tip never even crossed my mind.

As a European, I expected for the tips to go to the entire band. Maybe because tipping sellers isn't really common here. Though if I do tip, it's only small bands who I know don't earn nearly as much as big bands do with their tour. I guess that small, home-grown feel makes them all feel like a family who'd share the money. But I don't mind if sellers at those shows took the tips, cause again, small show = not earning huge amounts.

Was recently at a concert where country singer Hannah Ellis was the first of two opening acts. After he set she said I’ll be at the merch table all night long if anyone wants to hangout. She isn’t the biggest artist out there but has a couple big hits and still is willing to work the merch table. Fans leave happier and you are likely to sell more merch if the artist themselves is selling the merch

IMO, what more times than not makes a good boss over any "subordinate" is someone who has done the job, understands what is involved, and has remained in touch with the reality of the work they do. That can apply to any job. I see it at my work almost daily. It definitely appears to apply here. That is why I believe Tank is a fantastic TM. If I were in need of a TM, he would be on the list to try to get.

I assumed the tip was going to the merch guy or girl. However thinking about it . Would be cool to split 50 50 to the band/crew etc.

I've volunteered doing merch in clubs and arenas. Even as a cashier it's a wild and exhausting job. And I did load in and load out for it and for stage crew. Stage crew was always so much easier than merch

This is wild to hear. As someone in a band that hasn't been on tour yet (hopefully next spring 🤞) this isn't something that I've had to deal with. Don't bands make money off the merch? If they have someone working the merch, I would think that person gets the tips. The only time I've tipped at a merch table and thought the band was getting it is when the band members themselves are working the merch table. Otherwise I assume the person that's on the other side of the table from me is getting the tip. Being that my wife is a bartender, I tip heavy. Anywhere from 25% on the low end (because everyone has bad days) to more than 50%. People that work in these fields put up with a lot of shit and I like to show my gratitude.

I'm not a touring guy, I'm just local IATSE so I have to take Tank's word on the pre-tour and off day work but I can say I've noticed that very often Merchandise Managers are usually setting up right along with us on the "in" and tearing down with us on the "out/strike". They put in hellish hours day in and day out and deserve every tip they get.

I sincerrly think that he did not say anything wrong: they need both kind of tips, both to the band or the merch store depending on what everyone thinks. European by the way

I was a merch manager for a local bluegrass band made up of work friends for a couple of years. Even at that level of non-fame, I was running myself ragged hawking their shirts and CDs. I often got paid by being on the band's tab, but I never had the time to have a meal or even a beer while I was working. If I didn't get tips, I was more often than not working for free.

I have always been interested in the economics in the music industry and stumbled upon your channel last week so I have been going through the ones that focus on that and they have been very informative. I think it would be interesting if you went through a band let’s say at a level of EC and say at the end of their tour here in the US after everyone got paid the band gets X. You did that with Disturbed to a certain extent and you probably don’t have or can’t give specifics, but after everyone got paid the band probably walked away with X. I don’t know the band in this clip, but it was good to get perspective from the merch manager and the band member. When anyone starts with a word salad like he did it’s not a good sign. Thanks and keep it going

I typically only go to smaller venues here in Chicago (Talia Hall/Lincoln Hall) and the best part is that the artists will do their own merch or at least some out to meet fans there. The singer Hatchie does her own merch.

Didn't even know tipping merch sales was a thing. Here in the UK, it doesn't happen (at least at the gigs I've been to including american bands). Tip culture here is pretty wishy washy. Most people don't but we also don't have a minimum tipped wage, just a minimum wage. There is no expectation that a server's income is supplemented by tips to get to a liveable wage.

Ill be honest, i thought the tip was going to the band. Just saw Tesseract in Chicago, along with Intervals and Alluvial. I only bought a shirt from the Alluvial merch booth as im a fan of Wes Hauch, and when the gal gave me the card reader to sign, i saw the tip option, and while that was unusual to me as ive never come across that at a concert before, i assumed the tip was going to the entire band and crew, so i put a pretty generous tip on the purchase. Now i dont know if Alluvial gets the tips and splits with their crew, albiet small, but now seeing this, ill be sure to question that from now on.

I remember seeing Dead to Fall and singer was selling shirt jumped on stage for his set and RAN back to booth to continue selling merch!

I've lived in the US my whole life. I'm 45 now and I've been going to concerts since I was 8 years old. This video is the first time that I've EVER heard of the concept of tipping merch sellers. I've never once seen a tip jar at a show or heard someone mention giving tips at the merch table.

Oh, I didn't know you are supposed to tip the person(s) at the Merch table. I would see them as a kind of Shop Assistant in a Retail Store, and you don't tip them do you? I apologise if I offend someone with this, my excuse is that I'm 68 and I have never been to a Concert so I have never encountered a Merch table. Cheers / Mr_B_Dublin

Not a big concert goer so I'm not saying one way or antother is correct, could someone explain why merch sales people should get tips? Tips are normally for service jobs and not for retail jobs. A merch rep isn't doing anything like a food server, a valet, a delivery driver, or anything else service oriented. I don't tip the cashier or shelf stockers at Walmart, so why tip the merch counter at a show? It has always been my understanding that only service industry positions should be tipped. If I'm totally off base please let me know but honestly with my current understanding I wouldn't ever tip a merch table.

Earlier this year I was at a show of the Haken/BTBAM tour and their opener was Cryptodira. Their frontman was also working the merch table after the show and we had a short chat and I thought that was really cool. Never seen a member of a band do that before. Got even more respect for him now after hearing how stressful that job can be.

I love it when band members work at their own merch stand. It gives us fans a chance to meet them and perhaps get a selfie and or autographs. But when it comes to tipping, my purchase at the merch stand is my tip to the band. I always ask the person running the stand if the tips in the jar go to them and when they say yes, I tip in cash.

I've never ever seen something like that around here (nordics), so I honestly don't even know how I would react in the moment, although I do have opinions on this practice as a whole. I think the post etc was a little bit ill advised tho. This case aside, I think tipping culture is the larger problem and is incredibly toxic; it should be abolished anywhere it exists. In a dream world, tips only exist as a sign of gratitude/good service, but this is obviously not gonna be allowed to remain organic in a human society. We see the evidence as wages begin to be designed around them, ending up in a vicious guilt and peer pressure system. Also it's very hard to quantify the impact within the same country since you have so little to compare with. I simply don't think tipping can exist in our commerce system, it only works small scale outside of the larger body.

Growing up in the 80's & 90's, I've always been a big proponent of buying merch to support the bands because that's where I was always told they make the majority of their money (percentage wise) but not until just recently when I went to see Blue October (10/10) that I was handed the tablet to add a tip before signing my name. I did tip, although I had no real reason to as the girl behind the table was less than enthusiastic regarding her job but I kinda felt pressured to do so anyways. That was my first encounter, in over 40 years of seeing concerts and ALWAYS buying merch have I been asked to tip. In these trying economic times, I was less than thrilled to have to tip yet another person for doing their job.

I’ve lived on tips, I’ve been in the U.S. my whole life, I’ve thought about tip culture since I was a little kid, and I’m not familiar with tip culture in the us. Things got crazy and I don’t know what way is up anymore.

I'm a server in Toronto, Canada & the mininum wage in this country is $16.55 per hour plus tips. But tipping is mandatory. Tipping culture is different in every city & country. Never heard of tipping the band before I thought that was what buying tickets, merch, tickets, etc a percentage going towards the band.

I've never seen the option to tip at a merch table, this is news to me

Touring Sound Engineer here. I whole heartedly agree with everything you’ve said in this video

I want to know more !!! GREAT Insite to the behind the curtain :)

A lot of the time, our merch guys would cover the rest of the crews drinks and food pretty regularly on days off or after show. We helped them get their merch in the trailer, sometimes stairs with no hands. Don't know what our merch people we're paid, but I know it was considerably lower than mine. They upsell, they make the band more money if they are good. Period.

You can get away with paying a minimum wage of $2.13 per hour in the US? That's the disgusting take away from this video for me.

I was just at the Heilung show in my town. The venue deployed its own people with POS systems to sell you their merch. It asks for a tip first prompt

$2.13 - oh my god! As a Brit I cant wrap my head around that. Always tip when I visit the US but I’ve seen some places in the UK adding in “service charge” automatically to bills despite staff being salaried

I didn't even realize tipping someone who sells you a T-Shirt or some other stuff is a thing. I know US tipping culture is quite out of hand but if you tip a merch sales person at a show, do you tip the cashier at a clothing or grocery store? If not: Where's the difference?

They are a UK band, tipping in the UK is always on top of minimum wage, never a replacement for it in employment. Things like restaurant pricing must list the amount the meal will cost at the end before even ordering. Wages must come out of those profits. Tips are entirely an extra on top of that, usually for the person we are officially dealing with, you could say share it with the chef, it would be up to them to split it evenly then. Same goes for merch sales at a concert venue, though tips wouldn't even be considered a required thing here, so while I wouldn't expect it to go to the band, I do not expect it to be necessary in the first place. I do think he miscommunicated what he meant in the first message, leading to the weirdness. It is a mess also where in the US does Jay live, there is states in the US that have outlawed making up to minimum wage with tips.

The only time i saw a tip jar at the merch booth, it was a small bamd who were running their own merch table, and it was a gas can that said "please help us get to the next show" in sharpie.

I always tip the people working their asses off for us at merch especially since covid! I appreciate the hell out of everyone who work hard to bring us live music. Covid wreaked havoc on our lives especially on the music industry.

On a different note after being following them since their 1st album , War of being is not just an album but an experience (AOTY for me). Also got to see them finally for the 1st time a week ago in NYC. VIP meet and great and the show were awesome. Can’t wait to see them again! 😎

Ugh, as soon as I saw this, I 100% knew Tank would be all over it soon. TesseracT is my favorite band, I'm seeing them on Monday 10/23, and I just really wish Jay had kept this one to himself.

In germany it is customary that tips are shared equally between every employee. So I absolutely would have expected that when I tip while buying Band merch that my tip would in part also reach the band

I haven't gone to a show in awhile, so this tipping thing is news to me. I've gone to a lot of small shows and I've never seen a tip jar mostly cause a band member was the person selling merch.

Great video! I thought that it seemed disingenuous of the band to post this. No one thinks their tip to a bartender goes to the bar manager or the restaurant owner, and you can't pretend otherwise. And as for other crew members' unfair takes on what the merch person's job is, that's the danger of thinking that you're speaking from a position of knowledge when you don't realize that you have no idea what someone else's job involves.

US based fan here Tank. I never really thought about where my tips at the merch table are going, and now that I've watched this, I'm probably more inclined to tip the merch people because I know how hard they work. I'm in a local band that can only dream of touching the level of a Tesseract, and I handle all aspects of our merch, including not only inventory, ordering, and working the merch table, but also running our online store, designing our merch, and in some cases actually producing the merch myself. I don't really mind working our merch table per say, but if we were selling merch at the volume I'd imagine they are, I'd absolutely want someone else handling merch stuff, and since they're the ones doing the work, the tips should go to them. Hell, I tipped a guy the other day who was working the concession stand at a hockey game because I appreciated how hard he tried to upsell me when I ordered just a bottle of Coke Zero.

I have been stage tech for audio, backline tech, monitor engineer, lighting tech, and FOH on local shows for over 15 years. I only worked a merch table on two occasions and it was enough for me to know it was not the job for me. Last time was for a tour that has been around for years and usually has several bands and a couple speakers on the lineup. I was asked to work the merch table for one of the speakers so the merch was mostly books. When the night was over I had worked 12 hours with no break. I could not wait to get out of the venue when load out was done. I never have done that again. I will fly the arrays, stack subs, load in amps and drums, build risers, all in 100 degree weather but will not work merch ever again. Merch managers and staff are really special and patient people who have nothing but respect from me!

I haven't been to a ton of shows, and also haven't been since pre-Covid. I had no idea tipping was a thing at merch tables! I've never noticed a tip jar or option on the receipt, and never would have even thought about it. I just would have assumed they were normally paid employees of the venue or crew with the band.

In a way, I think I understand where Jay's sentiment is coming from. Tipping isn't a thing in much of Europe, it is one of those social norms that exists heavily in the US. I'm not saying his opinion is right. Just that I think I see why he has that opinion. Edit: You covered that in the video and I hadn't made it that far in yet. Leaving the comment for brevity in case someone else makes the same mistake.