Lifecycle at a glance
Cancelled and Archived are not the same thing. Cancelling calls a gig off before it happens, and close-out never blocks it. Archiving files away a delivered gig, and when your organization enforces close-out, it has to wait until the checklist is done. See Cancelled vs. Archived below.
States
Draft
A draft gig is still being prepared. Use drafts while details are incomplete, or while you’re reviewing a gig created from a template. You can build the whole thing (crew, fees, schedule, notes, setlists) without anyone being paged, because a draft doesn’t send invitations on its own. Draft is a one-way entry point: a gig publishes forward to Active and never returns to Draft. See Draft and publish.Active
An active gig is live for normal operations. Invitations and notifications can go out, the team can respond, the schedule and finances are in play. A gig becomes active by publishing a draft. Gigs created through the API, MCP or an import can also start as active.An older Unarchived state behaves exactly like Active. A gig that was archived and brought back reads and works as an active gig.
Completed
A gig becomes Completed when an Owner, Admin, or Gig Coordinator explicitly completes it after its effective end: the later of its event date and end date, or its event date if no end date is set. Passing the date alone does not change the saved status. A past gig keeps showing Active until someone completes it. On the web or in the mobile app, choose Completed in the status picker and confirm. See How a gig completes.Settled
Settled is the final state of a healthy gig: the show happened and everyone owed on it has been paid. Settling is a manual step for admins and gig coordinators, and Soundcheck won’t let you close the books early. See what it takes to settle a gig. If you settle a gig too soon, you can un-settle it back to Completed as a correction.Cancelled
Cancelled means the gig was called off. You can cancel a gig only while it’s a Draft or Active. A gig that already happened can’t be cancelled. Before you confirm, Soundcheck shows a summary of what cancelling will affect (invitations, offers, payouts in flight). Cancelling cannot be undone, and the close-out checklist never blocks it.Archived
Archived is a legacy terminal state for filing away a delivered gig. Archived gigs stay viewable in your history. Archiving is not offered on the close-out tab. Managers can archive several gigs at once from the Gigs table’s bulk bar (Status → Archive); a gig whose close-out checklist isn’t finished is skipped. Archived gigs’ chats close.Deleted
Deleting a gig is not a status. A deleted gig is hidden and waits in Recently deleted on the Gigs page for 30 days, then it’s permanently removed. Restore as draft brings it back as a Draft, even if it was Active, so publishing it again sends fresh invitations. Completed and settled gigs, past gigs with accepted invitations, and gigs with payment activity can’t be deleted. See Actions on a gig.Template
A template is a reusable gig structure, saved from an existing gig and used to spin up new Draft gigs. Templates work well for recurring formats, repeat clients, and standard production packages. See Templates and duplication.Transition matrix
What it takes to settle a gig
Settling closes a gig on the books. To mark a gig Settled, all of the following must be true:1
The event has taken place
An authorized manager must explicitly complete the gig after its effective end. Its saved status must be Completed; a date-based status label alone is not enough.
2
Every payout is settled
All crew payouts on the gig must have cleared. If any are still processing, the option reads “Settle all payouts in Finances first.” See payments.
3
The close-out checklist is complete (if your org enforces it)
When your organization turns on close-out enforcement, the settle-blocking checklist steps must be checked off. Until then, the option reads “Complete N close-out step(s) first.”
Cancelled vs. Archived
Both are terminal, but they mean different things and follow different rules:Permissions
Owners, admins, and gig coordinators manage lifecycle actions. Settling, un-settling, and cancelling need management access. The checklist override needs owner/admin. Anyone invited to a gig can view its status.What copies from templates and duplicates
When a gig is duplicated or created from a template, Soundcheck can carry over:- Schedule and timing, rebased to the new date
- Setlists and songs
- Task phases and tasks
- Venue and resource details
- Crew invitation structure
- Notes and payment setup where applicable
Draft and publish
Prepare a gig, then set it Active.
Post-event closeout
The checklist, what it takes to settle, and reviews.
Templates and duplication
Reuse gig structures safely.