How to "Make it" in the music business
It seems that everywhere I travel with the band I meet aspiring musicians that are longing to "make it" in the music business. I hear them tell me about their desire to play music for a living. We usually get a few cds a week from people that want our opinion of their music. Some of the music is good and some of it is not so good. Regardless of the music quality, the dreams are all the same. Passion is interesting to say the least. For me to write a detailed list of all of the things to do in order to “make it” in the music business would be pointless. There is no formula! I don’t believe in luck so we can throw that out, but I do believe in divine intervention. There is a problem that could be debated for years, but for now I will only touch on it. That problem is this: Why are there so many “bad” musicians that have made it and why are there so many “good” musicians that haven’t made it? If I knew the answer to that, all of the “bad” musicians would have a warrant out for my arrest. So for now I will tell you what you can do in the interim on your way to the top.
Ask yourself the following question: Am I waiting on something to happen or am I making something happen? I believe that God gives all of us gifts and talents. Jesus talks about what we are to do with what we have been given in the parable of the talents in Matthew 25:14-30. When I talk about how our band got our start I always talk about the fact that all five of us were active in our worship band at church. We were faithful in the “smaller” things. We weren’t doing it for fame or fortune but because we knew that God had called us to be a part of the local church body and use our gifts and talents in that way. While we were busy doing that the phone began to ring with other opportunities. The point that I want to make is that we were not sitting around waiting on things to happen; we were busy doing what we could to use the talents that had been given to us. It's ironic today that many of the conversations that I have with traveling musicians tell of how they long for the time when they were active on their worship teams at church. The "grass is greener" syndrome is alive and well in the music business.
Keep in mind that we all make up the body of Christ. If everyone is the same part of the body, then the body will be off balance. There is an appeal to being a "professional" musician that tours around the country and has music on the radio. Many people associate this as glamorous, or high profile in nature. There is some truth to that, but most people are not willing to make the sacrafices that it takes to live this type of life. Most people don't know what is involved in the daily life of a "professional" musician. Life on a bus can be interesting. Sometimes we are gone for exended periods of time from our families. Having small children and spending long periods of time on the road can be very difficult. You have to really count the cost that is involved in being a "professional" musician.
Does this fit into the life that you want? What about your spouse? Do they support you? Are your children going to remember you for the time that you were away and not the time that you were there? I have to be very careful with the time that I have at home. It has to count in every way. When you are on the road, there is a tendency to feel as though reality is on hold until you get back home. Your spouse and children are going to work, school, dance class, ball games, etc... while you are playing concerts all across the country. I might be gone for 10 days at a time. During that time I might travel through 12 states, sleeping through the night in my bunk on a 45 foot bus. We usually eat breakfast on the bus, lunch in the green room, a quick shower at the hotel, dinner in the green room, play the concert, and then back to the bus to go to the next location. Again, I ask the question, Is this the life that you want? If it is,then hold on. If it is not, then there are many other ways for you to fullfill the calling that you have on your life.
Jeff
