Steve Harris is against the concept of "pay to play"

This is a ridiculous concept where bands literally have to pay money just to play to people. Iron Maiden bassist Steve Harris is strongly against it.

Recent news stated a band called The Raskins is suing Motley Crue because they had to pay $1 million dollars to join Crue's tour. This opening band stated that Motley Crue ran out on stage with monkey masks on and "sprayed water guns filled with urine" at them. This band had opened for Crue in 2014 and are also stating that, in addition to the high fee they had to "pay to play", they had to play short sets in arenas that were mostly empty when managers refused to open the doors. The PA (public address) system was turned off or messed with during their concerts. The band was not allowed to sell their own merchandise or were given dressing rooms. They were even hit with heavy equipment.

This practice is known as "pay-to-play". According to newspaper The Berkeley Beacon, "Pay-to-play is a business strategy that some concert promoters use, claiming it as a foolproof way to get an audience to a show. It can work a couple of ways. When someone books a big name [artist], who will definitely sell out the venue, an unknown band can pay a lot of money upfront to be put on the bill as the opening act. The hope is that by playing for such a large audience, the opener will make up the difference in new fans. The other type of pay-to-play is when the promoter will only let a band onto a bill if they can sell a quota of tickets. In the past, [a company such as the] Keynote Company has required openers to sell up to $300 worth of tickets for a show, cutting them only $50 if they are successful. This can be extremely detrimental for newer artists, who inevitably end up paying for the unsold passes out of pocket. We all know most novice musicians' pockets are pretty empty to start with, so it is a high-risk scenario either way."

One person who is extremely angry and outspoken against this practice is Iron Maiden bassist Steve Harris. He told The Metal Journal in an interview "I hate it when people charge bands to play with them - I hate that. I've never done that and I will never do it. To me, it's just wrong. A band should get at least some expenses to pay a gig, and they shouldn't have to pay to play. I've always been really against that. I've always tried to help people out." When he was asked why Iron Maiden continue to advocate for upcoming musicians, he said "Well, because we can. Anybody who's in a position Maiden is, any band that can potentially take another band on tour, you can help people. It doesn't take much effort to do that." Harris is also of the firm belief that it's one way to repay the music world for his "fantastic life and career. I've worked very hard, but maybe I've had a bit of luck along the way. At the end of the day it's nice to give something back."