Help & FAQ

It's the online community of the nonprofit Front Porch Music — a much needed space off social media where local musicians, bands, event organizers, venues, house concert hosts, and music lovers can find each other to collaborate, post and attend gigs and events.

We primarily serve adult hobbyist through professional musicians in Contra Costa and Alameda Counties, with musical friends joining us from as far as Marin, San Jose, San Francisco, and Livermore. Our focus is "Mt. Diablo Side" (Lafayette, Moraga, Orinda, Walnut Creek, Pleasant Hill, Martinez) and "Near the Bay" (Berkeley, Oakland, Kensington, El Cerrito, Albany, Richmond). But anyone in the Bay Area can use the site.

Free. But being a nonprofit, your support in donations at our events and through this website is greatly appreciated.

Click the "Add Your Profile" button on the front page to fill out an easy form. We'll approve it shortly — usually within 6–24 hours.

It keeps the site spam-free by verifying everyone. Once your profile is approved, you can do everything else on the site — add bands, post gigs, and so forth.

Yes — this site was custom-built for this community. We wanted to make it easy for people to learn about you, hear your music, hear your band's music, and find you online. When you post a gig, it automatically appears on the venue's page too. Everything connects.

Click "Update Your Listing" at the top right of any CONNECTS page. Enter your email and we'll send you a secure link to edit your profile and anything you've posted. Updates go through a quick review before going live, usually within 24 hours.

When you create your profile, select the existing band from the dropdown. Your bandmate will be notified and the band link will appear on your profile.

When creating or updating your band page, you can add other musicians and they'll be invited to create a profile and connect to your band.

Once your profile is approved, click "+ Submit a Gig or Event" from any page and follow the form.

A gig is a performance by a specific musician or band at a venue. An event is something broader — like an open mic, songwriter session, workshop, or community concert that multiple performers can sign up for or attend together.

That's a Front Porch Music event — hosted by us.

If Front Porch Music knows you or your band from being around the community, we'll add the verification badge to your pages.

Yes — click "Add a Venue" in the right-hand column of any CONNECTS page. If you're a venue owner and want to claim or update an existing listing, click the link just beneath the description on that venue's page. We'll email you to verify.

No. People reach out through a contact form, and you'll receive an email from us forwarding their message and email address. Then it's up to you to respond — or not.

Yes, but you'll be tagged "Outside the Area" rather than in a specific zone. There are many "Friends of Front Porch" listed in the right sidebar of each CONNECTS page that run similar sites in their own areas — you're welcome to post here too, but we try to stay focused on our coverage area.

Lots of musicians have stepped away from social media, and posts there disappear into the feed within hours. CONNECTS is a quieter, more permanent home — and it's not collecting your data or showing you ads.

Andree and Austin Hurst of Front Porch Music, a Lafayette-based nonprofit.