Meet and Greet Etiquette?

[gm5k]

I got my Fender Strat's pickguard signed by the band and my Awake tab book signed by JP 

That was back during the Octavarium tour...Lasted around 20 minutes.  I got to talk with every member of the band.  MP was most talkative and seemingly comfortable with the whole thing.

[mocool13]

Pretty cool stories

I just hope I won't become a starstruck fangirl when I meet them at their signing in a few days

[gm5k]

Pretty cool stories

I just hope I won't become a starstruck fangirl when I meet them at their signing in a few days

I hoped I wouldn't either, but all I could mutter to JP in my nervousness was something real cliche like that he was my biggest influence as a musician     I think he responded by saying "That's awesome" if I remember correctly 

I was less nervous around the other members so the conversations were better. 

[AngelBack]

Hope this goes without saying, but I'm sure the guys would love it if someone did NOT ask any MP questions...

[Madman Shepherd]

I'll be too busy praising them for the album to ask any of those questions.

[ZeppelinDT]

I want to say that he got it signed at a Meanstreak gig, anyone recall?

I don't think Meanstreak have played a gig in like... 20 years.

[CrimsonSunrise]

I've been thinking.....  I need help on some questions to ask.  I remember last time it was very fast thru the line, so... what would YOU ask each member, or what would you comment on?  I was thinking commenting on JM's lyrics, and how glad I was to him write them again...  suggestions??  Thoughts??  Thanx

[Jaffa]

Do not -- I repeat, do not -- try to tickle John Myung.

[kiwiclapton]

For $275, they should be offering YOU oral sex

or a titty fuck.

[Laich21DT]

I want to say that he got it signed at a Meanstreak gig, anyone recall?

I don't think Meanstreak have played a gig in like... 20 years.

  Ok, so I am definitely mistaken, then. It was most likely just a DT show, I seem to remember it being signed by the whole band.

[ZeppelinDT]

I think it was a meet & greet in Australia if memory serves correctly.

[KISS 76]

A quick question guys:

Are we allowed to give them a present? I'm painting James's portrait.....

I've been to two M&G's & I've given Mike P some obscure prog cd's & some Beatles dvd's & he was very appreciative so I'd say the band would appreciate fans presents within reason.... I also had two items signed for me at each session so I would guess two or three signed items before you look like an Ebay hawker...

[ZKX-2099]

Would somebody ask JP about his next solo release?

[Orion1967]

Would somebody ask JP about his next solo release?

I was actually thinking about asking him that very thing as my question to him. 

[Bandit Manatee]

Someone should ask DT about if they are planning on endorsing John Huntsman as Republican nominee for president, since Huntsman declared a Dream Theater day in the state of Utah.

[senecadawg2]

Haha, this is a great thread. Lots of cool stories. I feel bad that I've never even been to a DT concert. Next time they are in the Carolina area!

[indalo]

Would somebody ask JP about his next solo release?

I would like to ask it to JMX (talking about a JMX solo release, not JP's  ). I don't understand why JMX hasn't even made a solo release 

[johncal]

Pretty cool stories

I just hope I won't become a starstruck fangirl when I meet them at their signing in a few days

As long as you're not really a guy, I wouldn't see thast as a problem or a bad thing necessarily.

[Laich21DT]

JP could tell I was star-struck and tried to ease me into a conversation, in which my brain continued to sputter and lock up - when he asked what kind of guitar I had I said, "A black one" 

Reading this, I instantly thought: wow, Petrucci is such a nice guy. But we knew that already.

[Guitalguy]

I might ask JP about his solo record, and maybe something about his practicing methods or something. No idea what to talk to the others about. I guess I'll at least say to Mike that I think his attitude and spirit is great for the band.

Also, included in the MG-package it is already a signed 8x10 picture, does this mean that bringing other stuff in for signing is too much? Would perhaps bring I&W, and ADTOE for signing if it's not so.

[Clancy Wiggum]

Got a few meet and greet questions. I've read through this thread, which is helpful, but since it's from 2011 the format of the meet and greet might have changed a bit since then. If anyone can answer these questions based on their experience from the 2013/2014 tour it would be much appreciated.

1) The package says you get a "personal photograph with the band". Do you bring your own camera or do they take the picture for you?

2) The package also says you get a "signed limited edition tour collectable poster". Does this mean you cannot bring another item of your own to get signed?

3) How many other fans will also be there/have bought M&G tickets? (I'm aware this may vary between gigs).

4) What is the format? Is it a line where you file past the guys at a table or are you in a room mingling with them for a short while?

[BlobVanDam]

edit: nevermind, I just realized you wanted info for the current tour.

[rumborak]

What's in the collection that freaked him out?

The item was the 1985 high school yearbook of JP, JM and KM.  I got it like 7-8 years ago, because the school is 5 mins from me and I thought it would be a unique item to own being a huge DT fan.

That ... freaks me out as well.

[keys76]

Ok, since I ran into a couple of M&G's this tour, here's my take:
1.  Pictures will be taken by the ppl who arrange the m&g. You'll get a url with password so you can download your pic.
2. You can bring one item of your own AND you can get them to sign the poster as well.
3. Varies indeed. Could be 15, could be 50 or even more
4. You will be cueing up, first to take the picture, then to let them sign your stuff.

The band really enjoys doing this, the ppl who arrange this may look very strict, but I call it professional. The way they do it, they'll make sure everyone gets their moment with the band.

Hope this is of any help.

Jeroen

[Sycsa]

Some really entertaining posts here (Charlie selling his recording contract ), it was a bliss reading through them after all those tedious polls we've had recently.

[MarkFitDT]

thank you for resurrecting this thread - missed it first time and there are some great stories!

[Tis BOOLsheet]

Ok, so I just shelled out $550 for my son and I for VIP tickets for the show on Oct 19th at the Tabernacle and since I have NEVER done a meet and greet for ANY band ever, I was hoping to reign in some of the experience of the fine folks here.  Do you have a few minutes to actually talk to the individual band members? is it proper to ask them individual questions?  I am not talking about a 15 minute interview mind you but three are things I'd like to ask of different members but I don't want to come across like a star-struck 13 year old girl at a Taylor Swift concert.  Also the individual photo op, is that something that you bring your OWN camera to typically or do the promoters usually take a picture for you then get it to you somehow?  I have seen Jordan's video's of the diff meet and greets and all I ever see is the long lines of people that seem to file by the guys and get stuff signed I guess, is it proper to bring my personal copy of ADTOE and ask the guys to each sign it?  Also I was thinking about buying a second copy of the Album for my other son off at college in Florida, would it be proper to ask the guys to sign both MY CD/DVD AND a second one to my other son that will not be at the concert?

So many questions I know but like I said I dont want to break protocol (lol).

I guess the etiquette depends a bit upon the group management hires to run the thing, but I think they're probably very similar at the end of the day. I did a meet-and-greet recently for Joe Satriani, which was comparable in price to what you just paid. I'll give you my experience(s) and maybe it'll help you get more comfortable with yours.

I think you should feel absolutely no reservations whatsoever about asking the band to sign two album covers or whatever thing you were asking about. I met the guys for a meet-and-greet after ADToE came out and they gladly signed not only my CD booklet, but a poster too. When I did the JS thing, he signed two CD booklets for me and a poster. I haven't done this DT event, but I would think you can ask them a question at the very least. When I met DT, I talked a bit to the guys, and the friend I was with asked MM about his single stroke technique. You don't get a lot of time, but you can ask a question or tell them how you feel about the new album etc.

At the end of the day, having done a couple of these things, I can tell you that you should feel totally comfortable asking them to sign two items and asking them a question or two. As long as you use common courtesy and follow the e-mail thing they send out the day prior, you should be fine. This is YOUR event; you shelled out almost 600 big ones to do this.

Unfortunately, I think sometimes the people they hire to run these events could give a **** less about the fan experience. When I met Joe Satriani, I was sorta surprised at the person running the event. It was some young guy who seemed like his lowest priority in the world was whether fans felt satisfied after paying $325 for a VIP package-- like the whole thing was to get you in and out of there. I hope that it's not the same with DT, but I get the feeling that a lot of these things are similar.

[rumborak]

I know it's everyone's money and they can do whatever they want with it, but to me the $550 price tag is borderline unethical.

[Laughingplace56]

I did the M&G last Friday in Riverside. There was something like 60 other people.

I don't know if it's a different format for the picture taking/signing at each venue but for me it was like this:

We lined up behind the "Dream Theater" backdrop and waited for the band to come out. They came out and each person/group went over to take their pic and get back in line for when they did the signing. After everyone got a pic they moved a table and chairs in front of the backdrop and the staff handed everyone the poster they'd sign. Then they'd send one person down the line and the next person after the first person was passed the first band member (In my case it was JMX). It took me about a minute total to go down the line and get my things signed. And unfortunately I can share my experience of freezing up in front of JP  I told him he was one of my favorite guitarists in the world and I think he could tell I was nervous and said "Thanks that's great who else do you like?" And I just completely blanked out and stood there for a couple seconds unable to say...words  I eventually said Alex from Rush and to have a great show and left lol. I did get to say a few things to Mangini. I said happy birthday (Since it was coincidentally his birthday) and congrats on being a part of the band and that he's great and to have a great show. The other guys it was basically just a "hi how are you" kind of thing.

And I had 3 things signed in total. The poster and a drum head by all 5 guys and Mangini signed a pair of his signature sticks I brought. I would say it was definitely worth it to meet the guys even though it did feel a bit rushed. The format of just mingling around a room for 45 minutes mentioned above sounds glorious.

[RodrigoAltaf]

 I said this before in the thread about the show in Pamplona earlier this year where I did the m&g thing: to me it was far from what i expected. I had already done the M&G in Perth in ´09 in the BCSL Tour, and it was great, although you could really tell how tired the band was. MP in particular seemed really burn out, but was really nice to talk to - I spoke with him about a possible South American Tour whih eventually happened, and saw him talking to another fan about how much he liked King Crimson.

This year in Pamplona was a bit weird though - they had problems the night before in Madrid, so everyone seemed really tense and worried about getting things right. But they were somewhat dismissive when I said "I hope everything goes well tonight and that all the technical issues are fixed". I brought two CDs of bands from friends of mine as gifts to JP and MM, and they both left them at the signing table  . Also, another guy brought MM drumstivks which he picked up when MM threw them from the stage when playing with Steve Vai at the same venue some 10 years ago, and MM seemed less than impressed. I was pumped to do the M&G in Rio if/when they come around for the DT12 Tour, but after this experience, I don´t think I´m up for it again.

[Sycsa]

It seems a bit unreasonable to expect them to care about the CD of some random amateur band, but seeing how expensive the whole charade is (a VIP ticket for Paul Gilbert entitles you to a CD, DVD, a t-shirt and a personal, one hour guitar lesson for ~ $200), I say it's their obligation - within reasonable boundaries, of course- to make sure everyone has a good time. Looking interested, saying a few kind words, smiling, it's not that hard. It's rather surprising that sometimes this comes hard to MM, seeing that he's the new guy with a bag of enthusiasm.

[RodrigoAltaf]

 I would never expect them to care about the bands, but come on, leaving the CDs at the table while the fans were still hanging out in the area seems a bit too arrogant for my taste.

[rumborak]

I'll prefix my following statement with that I am sure DT are happy to connect with their fans directly and such ... but I think realistically, that M&G is often quite a chore to do before a gig. No offense to some posters on here, but at a price tag of $550, you also don't get the chill type of fan, but instead the die-hard, super-intense ones who  write poems and buy highschool yearbooks. I gotta be honest, some of the stuff I've read on this forum about what people did positively creeped me out. Imagine doing this 60 times.
Not that they're gonna stop it anytime soon, because at a price tag of $550, with say 60 fans, that's over $30k right there, or the equivalent of over 600 regular concert tickets.

[Tis BOOLsheet]

I know it's everyone's money and they can do whatever they want with it, but to me the $550 price tag is borderline unethical.

Agree pretty much. I would think differently about it if people really worked to make our experience at the M&G special. But the attitude of the people who work these events and sometimes the band is like you said-- a chore to do. It's almost like "hey, you get to meet DT; that should be enough." They don't seem to know/give a damn how much money it really for taking a picture and signing a couple things.

I only disagree in the second post that you "don't get the chill type of fan." When I met Joe Satriani, we all paid $325 (includes concert ticket in first 5-10 rows) and I didn't observe anyone who was aggressive or intense. Most of the people were guys in their 40s, dads who took their kids and/or wives, or seemingly normal people who didn't overwhelm Joe, and who were respectful.

[XB0BX]

If you accepted $600 for merely sitting in a chair and talking, you better fake being the happiest person in the world. There's no excuse for being arrogant or "burnt out" and if they are, they're not doing their job. I would personally ask as many MP questions as possible.