Don't read this...

Everything is changing in the music industry so fast. I think the biggest challenge for a musician isn't writing good material. That's tough but it isn't the toughest part. The biggest hurdle, the hardest wave to ride is the constant change that goes on, not in the industry (the industry doesn't change- that's why it's tanking) but in technological advances and economic changes in the lives of the audience we're trying to reach. You have to give people access to your music which means keeping up with the ways everyone is accessing music. The more you can role with that the more relevant you'll be to your listeners. It's something artists try to keep up with in their art but it falls through the cracks in the business area a lot of times. It does with me anyway. I don't even have my website up and running right now. One reason is that I've got so many other cost effective options on the internet but the other is that it's something that I can let slide when it comes to the old way of doing things. I don't show people a website at my live shows or in my songs and those are the two areas I have to be creative the most. So it slips through the cracks. Anyway, I'm working to change all of that but it's slow going. Luckily in the meantime there are lots of options for making music available on the internet for everyone to download either for a price or as I like to set it up, for free:)

It used to be that artistry was cultivated by a label and the goal as an artist was to attract the label and get signed. That wasn't the end of it but it was a good start to getting your name out and working with a group that had experience in promotion and sales and it usually meant at least some kind of recoupable money up front. You would hear guys bragging, "Yeah, my band played with so and so last week. They're signed to a major label, you know." It's crazy to say it but now it's kind of tacky to be signed to a major label. Not only have you sold out and compromised your street cred but you're locked into a contract that from the outside looks pretty restricting when you think about all the avenues for indie artists. There was a time when I all I wanted was a record deal with a major label and now I have a hard time thinking of circumstances where that would be something I would even consider and I'm not even a very successful musician. Not at the moment anyway.

And that's all part of what makes the musician's job so hard right now. Not only is the world we're trying to entertain and speak to in upheaval economically and socially but the industry that was providing the main media for us has fallen apart. It's like trying to keep the plates spinning with the rug being jerked out from underneath you at the same time. I'm not complaining mind you. I feel like the music world is moving in a very positive direction. With the clearchannel beast falling to it's knees so goes all the notions of what a rock star has to be. The field is more open than it's ever been! Which is really exciting:) Music is more diverse than it's ever been and so is the media with which it can be reached. You can be the next Elvis. The only catch is you have to do it your way now. There is no template to follow anymore. Not the way you look or the way you sound, none of it. Actually, that's exactly the way Elvis did it. He didn't have anyone to compare himself to. There was no one doing what he did at the time so there were no labels that knew what to do with him in a tried and true corporate model. He wasn't a 15 year old, blonde, lip-syncing cookie-cutout image that fell into the mold. He was a white guy who sang that scary music only black people listened to and danced they way they danced and had a great time doing it. Not only was it not safe but it was completely unprecedented. I'm rambling now about Elvis because he was incredible but I have a good point. Now it's your turn but you can't be Elvis. That's the catch. You have to be the first of your kind.

The point is that this is the hardest time in the world to be a musician but it's also the best time in years to be a musician and I can't believe this rant gave way to such a sickeningly optimistic conclusion but it's true. MTV is done. Radio is useless for the moment. The internet is the only reliable medium and it's completely uncontrollable. That means you don't have to look good in a video. You don't have to sound like Pearl Jam or Cold Play or a boy band or a pop princess. You don't have to write formulaic songs. You just have to be the brilliant creature you are. The trick with that is as an artist doing your own thing it's hard to push yourself for quality since there really isn't anyone to compare yourself to. Just like Elvis. Luckily, there's always competition so it doesn't feel like you're running the race alone and you can use that to push yourself and not get lazy and work on your craft to make it better and better. But the truth is you are alone. There is no other you and that's what people really want in their music and art. They want something unique and beautiful. And that's a lonely thing to be. But it's the best time in decades to be lonely and misunderstood and artistic and present that to a world that desperately wants it and thanks to the crashing world system and the growing power in the hands of the people you can give it to them. Cheers.