I just took this very interesting survey from Songfacts.com, it's about "working class musicians," and it's interesting so I thought I'd share in its entirety.
This is part of what they said: "Answers will be used to inform the writing of a feature article at Songfacts.com. Your contributions may be quoted and, if so, will be properly credited. Have at it. Thanks again. :)"
How has the economic downturn affected you?
It's affected me a lot! I find people are going out to shows less, so less money for me from shows, less tips in my tip jar. Also, a lot of the events that I normally provide music for are more reluctant to shell out cash. But the main area where it has affected me is giving lessons and selling things. I don't blame people for being more reluctant to spend money when things are so uncertain. But during the boom times of 2005-2007, it seemed like everyone had a bit of extra cash to do the things they've always wanted to do, and voice and piano lessons are often part of that. They're often the first things people cut back on when funds are tight.
What's your typical day like?
It really depends on whether I'm touring or not. I spend a lot of time rehearsing, and I try to go to local shows when I can. Lately I've been super stressed out and sort of in hermit mode. I'm working on making my "typical day" a bit more typical because I've noticed that helps me create.
Would you say the ranks of musicians able to earn a decent living are growing or shrinking?
Honestly, I think it's growing. It's just that more musicians are earning $40-$50k per year instead of having the super-rich rock star existence. Also, I feel like a lot of musicians who make a decent living are not the musicians people are writing about. We all know that Pitchfork doesn't care about the musician who makes a decent living writing theme songs for video game music, nor does the LA times really care about a specific niche musician like a successful kids' artist who produces CDs for their market. It can seem like you're not succeeding if you're not getting press in the right places, but honestly - press in the right places might not get you paid, and if you're getting paid well, you might not end up on the list of the cool kids.
How do you use the internet, and how does the internet affect you as a working musician?
I would say the main thing the internet does for me as a working musician is provide me with information. If there's a song I need to learn for an event, I can either look up the chords and lyrics online, or go to YouTube to learn it myself. That's extremely helpful. The bad effects of the internet are when there's too much at once. Since musicians were the people who made MySpace famous, I feel like we're often the first target market of new services, new sites, new everything. After a while it gets overwhelming! I try to limit new sites, and I'm very wary of new sites until I know that they're actually useful. A perfect example of this is ArtistData. I didn't want to start using it, because updating a calendar is a major challenge of a musician's life. But once I discovered that through ArtistData, I could submit my show listings directly to local media, I was sold! On the other hand, there's a bunch of musician services I've signed up for that haven't been worth it. After a couple hundred times of typing in the same information about your band, where you're from, what your style is like.. it gets overwhelming.
What do you like most about your job?
I like being able to provide entertainment. Whether it's when I'm front and center and people are paying attention to my original music, or whether it's playing jazz standards and instrumentals for people to experience as background music, I enjoy knowing that I am enhancing people's experience. I love when people tell me I'm adding value to their day, or their event. I love when my music is used for a film and people say that the music added something to the film that was missing before. If I had to define my life's purpose, it would be to add value, and music is a very easy way for me to do that.
How do you define success as a musician?
I think success is different for each musician. The original meaning of the word "musician," is actually just someone who enjoys music. So, in a sense, I think we're all musicians, because music is a central part of the human experience. My definition of success is going to be a lot different than Hilary Hahn's or Lady Gaga's. It's different for everyone. For me, I want my music to make it possible for me to pay my band, my bills, and buy my friends a round at the pub. I want people to get my songs stuck in their heads. I want to know that lyrics I poured my heart into, or songs I wrote when I was brokenhearted are making a difference to another human being. I want to know that a creation of mine is helping another fellow human being make it through another day on Earth, just like the music of the musicians I enjoy has done for me. I want my songs to be played at someone's wedding, I want a patron of an art exhibit where I'm providing background music to say, "Wow, that music was really relaxing." I want to make a casual music listener happy, and I want to make a music nerd freak out. Mostly, I want to be creating music until the day I die. I live my entire life, from what I eat to how I take care of my body, with the idea in mind that when I'm 70, 80, 90, I will still be making music. I will still be on stage. I will still be creating until they lay me in the ground. I want to end my time on this earth with a massive body of work that evolved and grew and changed over time, and I want to stay linked to my friends and colleagues as they do the same. That's my definition of success.
