Surprisingly, lots of people into this. Blows my mind but it's true. Also, gender double standards still apply. Generally women musicians have to be prettier than men to be taken equally seriously which is unfortunate as many talented women do not necessarily have mass appeal looks.
I’ve heard people say that anything is possible if you just try hard enough. If the music business doesn’t pan out, you could always be a professional athlete or an actor.
Don't worry, if there's one thing I'm good at (aside from coming up with stupid questions) it's coming up with wild ideas and new dreams. Achieving dreams... well, that's another story. lol I don't honestly know her interest level in playing music. I was hoping that I could nudge her in that direction, but I'm probably kidding myself to think I'm capable of influencing anyone, especially a teenage girl in today's world. If she was consumed by thoughts of creating and performing that might be a different story. But having heard your thoughts on the business side of things... I'm not so sure I want to be the guy encouraging her, either. As for me, I'm going to keep tinkering... keep playing around. I will check out some forums too. Thank you again for your time! I'll let you know if anything comes of all this.
Excellent post. As someone who's been playing in a hobby band for years and even just played a gig at a bar Saturday night I agree with a lot of this. I know a few musicians who quit their day jobs to make a living playing music and it is pretty much be willing to play anywhere you can get to, even if it's BFE Iowa on a Tuesday night. Also during the pandemic they were playing constantly on FB live and pushing their Venmo accounts. Music, like writing or dancing needs to be about the passion and not the money. There are many many many ways of making money and if it's about making a living and living comfortably music isn't the way to do it unless you are very lucky.
One other suggestion. Meetup.com has a lot of singing, guitar and jamming meetups. Those are great places to practice and learn how to play music. They are also good networking opportunities to meet other musicians.
i thought the 17 year old was interested in pursuing music, but it sounds like thats not actually the case. with that in mind, you would be doing her a great disservice to try and talk her into going after a career in music. it sounds like youre looking at it like you would pursing any career or job..."why dont you try to be a realtor, an architect or a marine biologist or a musician". like i said earlier, if its about making money then pursuing a career as a musician is a horrible idea. the other thing...its a 17 year old kid...what 17 year old knows what the f*** theyre going to do with their life. i wouldnt stress about her at this point in terms of trying to find a career direction for her. my thoughts on the music business are limited b/c ive never been a pro so take what i say with a grain of salt. maybe someone who is actually a pro can chime in. but i doubt they would tell you different than what me or fellow hobbyist musician rocketsjudoka are telling you.
Truthfully, I don't know what she's truly passionate about at this point in her life. Could be nothing, for all I know. My wife and I used to see her regularly, but we've hardly seen her these last couple years -- at least compared to years past. I'll spare you her backstory, except to say it's been less than ideal. She has no interest in college, wants to drop out of H.S., and shows up to family functions stoned off her ass. I'm not suggesting she's doomed or anything. I smoked my share of pot when I was young and went through a period myself when I couldn't have cared less about school. It's just the thought of this aimless girl going out into a hyper-competitive world soon... I was hoping music might spark something in her the way it has for me lately. But I fear now that I overestimated the opportunities out there. And if she's not committed... I think we know how that's going to go. So I feel ya. I am gonna keep pushing her to practice her guitar, though, and see if I can't inspire her to stick with music, at least as a hobby. Thanks again, man. And thank you all for your support and comments.
so in other words, she is like most american teenagers! you obviously have more insight into her life than i do, but i wouldnt worry about her just yet. if she doesnt find something to be passionate about, get a job or get motivated in a couple years then i might be concerned, but seriously based on what you are saying she doesnt sound that different than me at 17. once she is out of high school maybe she will find a direction. at the very least, hopefully she gets a job. and if you want to keep her off drugs then you definitely should not suggest she pursue a career in music!
Ah, throw dirt on me and grow a wildflower But it's "**** the world", get a child out her Yeah, my life a b****, but you know nothing about her Been to hell and back, I can show you vouchers I'm rolling sweets, I'm smoking sour Married to the game but she broke her vows That's why my bars are full of broken bottles And my night stands are full of open Bibles uh I think about more than I forget But I don't go around fire expecting not to sweat And these *****s know I lay them down, make them beg b****es try to kick me while I'm down, I'll break your leg Money outweighing problems on a triple beam I'm sticking to the script, you *****s skipping scenes, uh Be good or be good at it ****ing right I've got my gun, semi-Cartermatic Yeah, put a dick in their mouth, so I guess it's **** what they say I'm high as a b**** up, up and away, man, I come down in a couple of days OK, you want me up in a cage, then I'll come out in beast mode I got this world stuck in the safe, combination is the G-code It's Weezy mother****er, blood gang and I'm in bleed mode All about my dough but I don't even check the peephole So you can keep knocking but won't knock me down No love lost, No love found
My two cents, not related to music, exactly. If you hustle, put in more time and effort, you will be successful. There are music stars who are really terrible musically, so there are more factors than just talent that go into it. Marketing, looks, etc. Look at MC Hammer. This guy worked 100+ hours a week to get to the top. Obviously he blew it all at the top, but he made it.
I've got a friend who's fairly well known in gospel music - we talked one day about how streaming has affected working musicians and he said that he could spend 70-80K and make an album, sell 100k CD's and make a decent living. But with streaming he'd have to have tens of millions of streams to make the same amount of money. It's extremely more difficult to make a living in music than it was just 20 years ago. As much as I hated on Lars for his anti-downloading sentiments way back in the Napster days..he was absolutely right. I know tons of touring groups that used to do well but are now struggling because of streaming. Now they have to rely solely on merchandise table sales and ticket sales which means they are away from their families way more than they used to be. It's very hard for touring groups to make it. Many are turning to session jobs and production jobs because they can make it easier. Was talking to a guy just last week that was the touring guitarist for Carrie Underwood and he's now much happier and making more money doing session work - of course he's almost 40 so that may be a factor as well. Don't want to discourage any dreams, but just giving some stories of todays musicians. If you want to make money you'll either have to tour extensively and non-stop until you make it big, or you can go into session work - but that means moving to Nashville where even a lot of the California music business is moving.
Yeah, I fell into a lot of the same traps when I was a kid (And had a blast along the way.) Of course, I've not shared that with her, lol. The good thing is, despite all the crazy, backwards stuff that's gone on in her life, she's still a pretty sweet, lovable kid. Like all young and old women, she can be a drama queen, but she's also fun to be around and generally upbeat and positive. I'm fairly certain she's going to be content no matter what she achieves. Which is great considering the alternative. As for drugs, well, pot at least, I guess you take the good with the bad. If she's on a good path in life, doing well with her thing (music or whatever) -- and is safe -- that's the main thing, AFAIC.
Jesus.... Mr. Hammer needs to get that enormous hairy mole where his nipple should be looked at.... looks like it is already rotting off.
The only friend I have personally making money off music plays piano for weddings. He's talented and found that was the easiest money for him to make playing his piano.
Yeah, I've felt for a while now that these tech giants are building empires on the backs of other people's content and hard work. Sure, your favorite song is just a click away, but you'll have to mortgage your house if you want to hear it live. Just sucks all around.
