Motivation: Why do we do it?

[GlenParks]

Busking is where it lives for me. All the love and medicine I have ever needed is right there.

 

[Bassman Spliff]

word?

Sorry, sarcasm button was turned off.

 

[Charlzm]

I do it because I want to play music I wrote.

 

[Diddywah]

i do it because i hate money

Yeah, money sucks. So 2018....

 

[devnulljp]

 

[Brad Johnson]

I've always been drawn to music. And I didn't go into it with silly expectations like I'll instantly be proficient at playing. That takes time and dedication. Unlike most, I enjoyed the ramp up to where I am now. Every minute. Even now, discovering something new is a joy. Still learning. And I enjoy helping others though quite often some clearly don't want the assist

IMO music and business can be two sides of the same coin. I found that just like in business, some work was more lucrative than others. Misconceptions abound about where the money is. My work has been predominantly local but pays far better than most that I hear about on TB. There wasn't anything magical about it, I made business decisions that capitalized on my abilities and discipline.

I recently had a TBer explain to me that the role of a bassist is boring and predictable and nobody wants to hear me play my coffee table bass. Easily one of the most pathetic things I've read in a sea of depressing statements here. I can't see where the love for music even fits into that mindset. I've been playing for decades and things have never been better for me. So much for defeatists.


Musicians are as flawed as anyone, people do this for all sorts of reasons. I get payed for doing something I love to do, often with people I love to do it with and get fairly compensated for it. There are worse things.

 

[chaosMK]

Mainly just so I can crank my amp. I have an addiction/feed off of br00tal and d00my sounds.

 

[Bunk McNulty]

Do you really have to ask?

 

[wyleeboxer]

I check out when I play which is better then meditating.. and I get paid to do it, although I’d do it for free anyways

 

[Ellery]

I will paraphrase a guitarist friend (who like me works full time and never makes $$$ playing): I know people who spend thousands on golfing or riding ATV's, and don't get paid for it. This is what I love to do.

 

[PaulS]

I play because I love it. I have never made any money playing in the 35 years I have been playing. Have always concentrated on original stuff (none of which has ever gone anywhere) and have never done the cover band thing. Due to physical issues I have barely played in the last 3 years and it kills me. Feel like I am finally getting to a point where I can start jamming again. My drummer for most of my life has been my brother, and the bond from playing together so long is pretty awesome.

 

[Seashore]

I started off wanting to write and record music. Pretty much everything I know has been "picked up along the way" because I needed to be able to either record a part or communicate it to someone else. Even when I first started learning guitar for real at the age of 13, I was recording ideas on a tape deck and programming rudimentary backing tracks into a Casio sampling keyboard rather than learning someone else's material. This left some pretty gaping holes in my skill set as well as my grasp of what ought to be "shared culture", but it is what it is. The solo thing began to feel sterile to me, and I even tried to stop playing for a while because of that, but I'm incomplete and feel like a different person without it. These days I care about my ideas in a different context; I find I'm happier making real noise with real people, and I'm extra happy I get to play with people I respect, who apparently like what I bring to the table.

 

[Element Zero]

Sorry, sarcasm button was turned off.

Nah... I could tell. I just wanted to say word.

 

[biguglyman]

I do it because I love it, both the music and the entertainer parts. I always tell people "I get payed to drag my $3!t out of the basement, set it up, and tear it down. The music I would do for nothing." While I believe my music is worth more than what I'm usually paid, that's definitely not the reason I do it.

 

[Energy]

I play bass in churches. It's what I was put here to do.

And no, I don't get paid, but I do contribute financially. The stages I play on? - I helped fund those.

Same here.

 

[Energy]

Plus, being an introvert, it's a good way for me to interact with people without having to talk much.

 

[micguy]

Plus, being an introvert, it's a good way for me to interact with people without having to talk much.

Same here. I find that playing bass (usually I'm standing in the back of the stage, with not much light on me) is very comfortable. Actually, I'm more comfortable there than being in the audience, if it's a packed place. But move me forward 25 feet (I play on some big stages at times), and have me sing into a mic? Not gonna happen.

 

[Energy]

I find that playing bass (usually I'm standing in the back of the stage, with not much light on me) is very comfortable. Actually, I'm more comfortable there than being in the audience, if it's a packed place.

Exactly.