On Episode 434 of my weekly “Now Hear This Entertainment” podcast, Nashville-based singer, songwriter, guitar player Blue Foley talked about the conscious decision he made at one point in his career to not go down the path of a recording and touring artist. When he said that he just didn’t have the ego for it, he explained how he meant that.
(Go listen to him get into all that, while I continue here with my own thoughts.) Ego CAN be a big thing in the music business and is almost interchangeable with the word ‘pride’ when it comes to what can get in the way of holding you back from being a successful recording and touring artist.
The fact is, ego, pride, vanity, maybe stubbornness, whatever you want to call it, gets in the way and makes you suppress whatever fears you have or challenges you’re facing. If you’re struggling with something, that devilish force just won’t let you reveal it to a confidant. Ultimately, you’re battling with yourself to tell someone, “This is what I could use some help with.”
| Related posts: |
| Build Your Network with Supporters |
| Mental Health Challenges are Real in the Indie Creator World |
| Growing Trend: Supporting Other Musicians |
Granted, sometimes you don’t know what you don’t know, meaning, there could be something that you’re not doing and aren’t aware that it’s missing until someone points it out to you. But the spirit of all of this has to be one of care (concern) and just flat out wanting to get better so you can succeed.
(As a quick aside, do you actually think you’re alone? Do you think that everybody else out there is enjoying success without any hurdles whatsoever? No? You don’t think that? Okay, you’re welcome.)
In the past I’ve written about (and did a podcast interview with) MusiCares, which comes under the Recording Academy umbrella. It’s extremely powerful, meaning very valuable. It can get you out of a real jam (financial, addictions, the list goes on). But that’s a confidential, one-time only service.
So, what about ongoing? At the end of my blog every week I invite you to schedule a one-on-one online video consultation with me and I state that that too is private. It’s just us, chatting about whatever you’re struggling with that my 18-plus years helping indie artists from around the U.S. can help you with.
And the good news is that there are others out there that want to help too.
For example, Pandion Music Foundation (PMF) is a nonprofit organization that, among other services, will even help indie artists with wellness guidance, managing finances, yes, asking for help. Contacted for this blog they told me:
Very few musicians can earn a living unless signed to a label and have a robust streaming platform. That skews the playing field against many talented creators. In a 2021 article in Rolling Stone, writer Tim Ingham notes: “98.6% of the world’s artists—i.e. 2,957,000 separate performers—are currently operating outside of Spotify’s “top tier…the average non-“top tier” Spotify artist earned just over $36 in the quarter. Or $12 per month.” Forbes writer Oisin Lunny said in a 2019 article, “The majority of the streaming revenue is received/generated by fewer and fewer artists, so something about the current model is failing the next generation of musicians."
On Sept. 28th, PMF partnered with sync coaching agency, 2indie, to hold a worldwide inaugural 24-hour Sync-O-Thon featuring music professionals from around the world providing feedback to artists about their songs.
Here is where I add that PMF’s (three) founders met through an online songwriting course during the pandemic, which means they can completely relate and explains why they put a priority on providing free tools.
Tell your ego to hit the road. Make the connections and find the resources that will help you move forward with your indie career. And then watch your goals become more of a reality.
