• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Moving to Nashville. Is it necessary?

#21
eno50 said:
This is what I should have done...
This was what my mother was trying to tell me back in the late 60's in high school when I picked up my first bass guitar.
Oh well I always been hard headed........
Click to expand...

I was in my late 20s when I figured out that playing music is very rarely a path to prosperity. But getting a professional job, buying a house, and investing will yeild prosperity most of the time.
 
#22
Ric5 said:
Instead of Nashville get a college degree and get a professional job so by the time you reach 65 your home will be paid for and will have $1 million in a 401K. In the mean tme find a good bar band to play in and be a weekend warrior.
Click to expand...

I already have a degree, professional job, 401k (not $1million tho...) and a home. :)

I've done the weekend bar band, and the full time touring tribute gig (www.thedmtb.com for 3+ years)

Time for the (ideally) "original act makes it big" chapter of my life.
 
#23
It's a good place to find musicians--just order a pizza!

I did find it to be a good town to buy used basses and guitars (I'd recommend craigslist, not Gruhn's); scored some great stuff in pawnshops (like my Rick 4080/12) before ebay made them pointless. But I always thought it was a lousy place to be a musician. Too many good ones, and not a vocation held in much esteem by the locals.
 
#24
SteveHeissner said:
How about a compromise? Both you and the wife research the possibility of getting stable day jobs in Nashville. Then play in a band on weekends to meet other musicians and get a feel for opportunities in the professional music scene there.
Click to expand...

That's high on the list, right now. Fortunately I've built a pretty good professional resume as well, so feel fairly confident in my ability to get a day job pretty quickly.

Ironically, my wife, a teacher, may be the one that has trouble finding a job...
 
#25
Wil_Couch said:
@Rich-

Thank you. Some good points.

I should have mentioned, I am, in no means, tied down to a particular genre or style of music. I'm very comfortable with most, and have done everything from classical/orchestral through heavy metal with jazz, folk, indie, jam, alt., rock and others thrown in between. I'm more concerned with finding the right band and right opportunity, vs a particular niche style.

I *can* sing, but it's not my strong suit. Guess I'll brush up on that...
Click to expand...

Learn to sing great before you want to pursue a career as a working bass player. I have heard this personally from a very big name producer that a good chunk of players here would know. Nobody is going to hire a bass player who cannot sing and isn't related/friends with them.
 
#26
You mean you had to ask us this question? Man start making arrangement to move. Take the risk and live your life and fufill your dreams. Your wife is a blessing and an Angel. I mean really, what do you really have to lose vs. what you really have to gain? Or, you could just stay where you are and wondwer what if the rest of your life. I feel that of you want to be a known respected guy in the professional music community you must move to a music hub. Nashville, NYC, LA. Minnesota? Most of the cats from my hometown had to move away before they struck it big. Of course there are exceptions. I would imagine though if you were to audition for a national act, you're travelling to one of those cities to audition.
 
#27
I would love to have the opportunity to gig in Nashville. You are lucky you can move there, i would move and be loving life even if i didn't get large amounts of money. Live on your savings for a while.

If it doesn't work it sounds like you can move somewhere else and get a job pretty quickly!

You will never know until you have tried!
 
#28
Nashville is a great city to live in. I've never understood people who think it's hard to get a gig here, OR that the live scene is so terrible. Yes a lot of amazing players have weird cover gigs that pay $100 or less per 4-hour night... and a lot of those guys are doing that when they aren't on the road, or to fill in between sessions. It isn't the gold mine it used to be (based on the stories I've heard from the older players in town), but it's still workable. There are about 400 bands touring out of Nashville from the lowest money-losing van tour to the biggest of the big (and not just country-Black Keys, Joss Stone's players and a lot of people are moving here, because it's a great place to live).

Further more, Nashville's job market wasn't hit as hard as a lot of other places in the country. There are a lot of day jobs here for you and the wife to check out. I don't know... it's just a nice place, and I really have trouble hearing all the negativity about it. I'm not famous, I'm not making a killing, but I play a lot of music with a LOT of amazing players. I own a little house, I drive an old car, and I have good prospects.
 
#29
DiabolusInMusic said:
Learn to sing great before you want to pursue a career as a working bass player. I have heard this personally from a very big name producer that a good chunk of players here would know. Nobody is going to hire a bass player who cannot sing and isn't related/friends with them.
Click to expand...

Will do.

I can sing. Didn't really have a choice, as a music major... I just wouldn't classify my singing as "great."
 
#32
Suggestion. Take a vacation. To Nashville. Get some names from folks here on TB. When you get there, hook up with some of them. Check out the town. Stay for a week or so if you can. See for yourself... and it's also an opportunity for your wife to see for herself... if Nashville is the kind of place you could comfortably call home. It's way different than Buffalo.
 
#33
Don't let the naysayers discourage you. There is certainly some competition, but if you nail every gig you get and you're fun to be around word travels fast in this town and you will get work. Yes, the money for a player isn't all that good in town, but anyone who has spent any amount of time here knows that there are a ton of people in this town who make a great living playing music... they just know to get out of town to do it. I know I've already said it, but don't let the "there's too many great players in Nashville" line sway you, there's plenty of work to go around.
 
#35
SteveHeissner said:
How about a compromise? Both you and the wife research the possibility of getting stable day jobs in Nashville. Then play in a band on weekends to meet other musicians and get a feel for opportunities in the professional music scene there.
Click to expand...

This. One-hundred times this!

It will be a small fish/big pond situation to begin with, and the stability of your day job will be a good foundation from which to develop your networks and become 'known' around town.

Of course this is only if you decide to make the move.
 
#36
I have played in Nashville many times and loved it. I have a good friend who was on the verge of being signed but was told that he had to move to Nashville so he could work with a certain producer. He refused to move and stayed in Minnesota. That was 10 years ago and he is still playing the same bars that he was playing when he received the offer.

I would rather make the move and try to make it than spend the rest of my life wondering what could have been.
 
#38
IME and IMHO, Nashville is no good for musicians who aren't already well connected with a good gig. I'm from Memphis and I go to school Knoxville, so I've been to Nashville quite a few times with several of my bands over the years. For one, unless you're someone reputable, or unless you have 'the in' with another killer band, you're going to be stuck playing the bad nights of a week. Even then, your band will still be competing with at least a dozen other killer acts playing other venues across the city, so, you're already screwed no matter what. In addition, most original gigs there simply don't pay or they pay very little. Maybe I'm jaded from my own experiences, but even music friends of mine from Nashville tell me to stay away unless you have some serious country chops and happen to know the right people.

So what do I suggest? Consider moving to Knoxville or Chattanooga. Both cities are having a huge music revival in them that wasn't going on even a decade ago. Both have venues that cater towards originals acts and will pay you decently even on an off night. In addition, these cities both have very supportive local audiences who actively seek out bands. To say the least, I often find myself in awe at how well I have it in comparison to other TB members in original bands who are based out of other cities. I get paid well, never have to worry about having a PA, and the crowds are darn near close to being completely built in. Plus their location is close to other major cities (Nashville, Memphis, Atlanta, Asheville, the Tri Cities, Athens, etc...), and the cost of living is relatively cheap. You can't ask for a better setup.
 
#39
There are three cities where I would like to live - Nashville, Toronto, and Virginia Beach. I have been to all three many times and they are all cool places to live and also have vibrant music scenes. However, moving to Toronto is not easy since it's in Canada.

I agree with the statements that you should try it while you have the opportunity so you don't regret not making the attempt.

I worked for the president of a large electric utility company on special projects and he once told our team the following that has stuck with me since. "I would rather you made the attempt and failed than to not make the attempt at all."
 
#40
nuts-n-bolts said:
Don't let the naysayers discourage you. There is certainly some competition, but if you nail every gig you get and you're fun to be around word travels fast in this town and you will get work. Yes, the money for a player isn't all that good in town, but anyone who has spent any amount of time here knows that there are a ton of people in this town who make a great living playing music... they just know to get out of town to do it. I know I've already said it, but don't let the "there's too many great players in Nashville" line sway you, there's plenty of work to go around.
Click to expand...

Yeah..........

I've lived in Nashville for 10 years. Its a great town, and a great place to live. But, there are thousands upon thousands of aspiring musicians here. There are plenty of bassists in this town with the same credentials as the OP....and they spend their time of craigslist trolling for $50 sub gigs. I can't tell you how many times some "professional bassist" has come up to my band mates and tried to steal my old-guy-cover-band gig....with me standing RIGHT THERE. I'm not talking about hacks; but rather guys with music degrees and tons of experience.

Sure, if you can play, you can find a gig. More that likely, it will be a pickup gig in a honky tonk making your even split of $200. You'll play for 4 hours with no break. If you're lucky, the venue won't steal your tip jar at the end of the night......


I'd highly recommend moving to Nashville, but don't be stupid about it. You and your wife should find a job in your fields, THEN move. Do music part time. If you get the big gigs, then quit your day job. If you don't, you'll have something to fall back on.
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back