May 12, 2012 editorial: comments

Dear Fellow Audiofanziners!

Today I'd like to discuss the sore subject to all aspiring musicians: the day job.  If only this pesky business of making money to live didn't exists you would have all the time in the world to create and become the great composer that you are... But alas, at some point, you wore out your welcome at mom & dad's and took up your own place, but that means that most of the day you do something that has nothing to do with your artistic aspirations.  Right?  Maybe not so.  

I think, and hope, that today's musicians are wiser and don't just get a day job, but a real position with some prospects for the future that normally is related to what they have studied in college and is in someway enjoyable.  With the state of the music biz today, I believe the old adage of suffering through some demeaning day job and rocking the nights away in the hope of being signed is long outdated.  Don't waste your time on some dead end day job.  Get a career, and if possible something related to the music business.  Get a job where you clear your desk at 5 so you have plenty of time in the evening to rehearse and play.  Even a job that is seemingly unrelated to music, such as graphic design, can help you design merchandise and communication tools for your band.  And sometimes, doing something totally unrelated (say, medicine) can  be a breath of fresh air and will expand your horizons with fuller life experiences.

What I am trying to say, and don't hate me, is that don't just get a day job and waste time temping.  Get a career that pays the bills.  Making music can be part of this career when you can start to make some money from it (teaching, producing etc.).  Time will pass by, and you may find out 5 years down the line that your day job is your job, so it should be engaging and interesting, no?

So now scratch everything I said above and I will argue that every musician at some point (not forever) should get some low paying, thankless, dead end day job.  Some of my fondest memories are from waitressing at Chili's with all the other 'losers'.  The misery generated by such jobs makes for great song inspiration.  And the lack of brain work required allows you to think about your music, your life, and to smell the roses so to say.  And if it is the right dead end job, especially in the food business, there is always free food and lots of interesting people to meet.  My other waitressing buddies actually constituted my first audience and my first fan base, and were always available for a beer after the shift was over.

Chater-La