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doing it for a living...

j-raj

j-raj

Bassist: Educator/Soloist/Performer
Supporting Member
Jan 14, 2003
9,843
384
St. Johns, FL
www.jairaj.net
#1
OK, so it has been about a month since I have been active on TB... Some changes in my life have prompted me to focus on taking the leap into playing for a living.

See, I hated my job, actually most day-jobs and I recently asked myself :

"what is more important, working a financial day-job that pulls the chee$e in and be unhappy or play bass for a living (less chee$e) and be happy"
Click to expand...

I'm interested to :


  • Hear from other TB'ers that are playing for living.
  • Find out where the 'hired-guns' pool the bulk of their networking contacts from.
  • Hear about tips on getting the traveling/cruise-ship/corporate gigs.
  • Encourage others to take the leap, educated and ready.
 
#2
So that explains it. Haven't seen many posts from you lately.

I've always regretted not taking the plunge into a full time playing career. 10 years ago it would have been a viable option for me. I just never could seem to pull the trigger.

I applaud your decision, sir. Best of luck to you. Keep us updated on your adventures from the road.
 
#3
I don't know this from experience, but I've *HEARD* that the playing on cruises really sucks. It's cool that you're playing music for a living, it's cool you're basking in the tropics, it's not cool that you're forbidden any social access to the passengers.

Personally, I wouldn't want to play for a living. "Work is work, fun is fun, people who have fun at work are called prostitutes." No, I don't remember what movie that's from.
 
#4
So you're playing for a living now? Congratulations. Tell us about your gig(s).
I have a friend who manages to play guitar for a living. He pays the bills by playing in about 5 gigging bands. He says that the only way that he can make it work is to always use the same booking agent for all of his groups. I have no actual experience to draw from, so that is the only bit of info I can pass along on the subject.
 
#5
As far as networking contacts...well, I get it from playing gigs. The more I play, the more people I meet and the more phone calls I get.

You can only build up contacts by working steadily, taking every gig you can when offered, etc. Then of course you have to impress your gig-mates so they will keep you in mind for future work.

I don't think there is any other way.
 
#7
brianrost said:
As far as networking contacts...well, I get it from playing gigs. The more I play, the more people I meet and the more phone calls I get.

You can only build up contacts by working steadily, taking every gig you can when offered, etc. Then of course you have to impress your gig-mates so they will keep you in mind for future work.

I don't think there is any other way.
Click to expand...

True, while many jobs you can get through nepotism/networking, the bottom line with music is, can you play?

There was a recent thread discussing things to do while surviving in the music business. (It's probaly near the bottom of this page, actually)

And don't let anybody tell you that there's no money in music. There's money if you are savvy about the business, and if you're in the right scene. Yes, it's a hard life, but just about every type of work is unsecure nowadays. You could also look into teaching (if you are good at it). I've seen guys make obscene amounts of money, just from teaching.

You probaly won't get rich from playing, but you have to ask yourself about your priorities. It looks like you've already did that. Money's a necessity, but having loads of it doesn't always = happiness.

Happy jammin' :)
 
#13
.matthew e wengerd. said:
Can I revive a dead thread here? I know J has a day gig again and there seem to be several people in this thread encouraging him to think carefully about it (read: discouraging).

What are your experiences playing for bread? Who is doing it full time? What are you playing?
Click to expand...

Sure revive away my friend! :p



Yeah I found that due to a serious burglary and 2 health-related issues that happened towards the end of last year... I found it necessary to go back to having health insurance and a day gig. I actually like my day gig now, it's better than the financial industry (licensing and compliance) I was working in for the 5 years previous to '04.

While I found it possible to play for a living and survive (I'm a networking and social junky!), my health was suffering (those who know me, know I have respiratory issues), smokey clubs and no health plan was really skating on a bit of thin ice.


I'm also interested in hearing from others as well.
 
#14
j-raj said:
Sure revive away my friend! :p



Yeah I found that due to a serious burglary and 2 health-related issues that happened towards the end of last year... I found it necessary to go back to having health insurance and a day gig. I actually like my day gig now, it's better than the financial industry (licensing and compliance) I was working in for the 5 years previous to '04.

While I found it possible to play for a living and survive (I'm a networking and social junky!), my health was suffering (those who know me, know I have respiratory issues), smokey clubs and no health plan was really skating on a bit of thin ice.


I'm also interested in hearing from others as well.
Click to expand...

In FL, health tends not to be an issue as there are very few venues who meet the strict requirements to allow indoor smoking. I, however, wouldn't trade your current situation (City, House, Job, etc) for full-time gigging in FL at all.

It really seems like you do enjoy your gig. That's wonderful! My enjoyment comes in spurts :hmm:
 

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