We’re at that weird point on the calendar. The holidays are over, yet not far enough along to where it’s not tempting to still try to hang onto the last little bit of feeling you can from Christmas, New Year’s, and just the season in general.
Heck, today is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, which is a national holiday, plus being Monday morning feeds into a spirit of anything but jumping out of bed and going all out.
I’m not going to get into New Year’s resolutions. The fact is, time waits for no one. Don’t try to throw the latest variant of the virus out there as an excuse why you need to just continue to sit around and wait things out. Consider three amazing success stories that should be more than enough to motivate you to go take on the world.
One of my clients, Tampa Bay area-based singer, songwriter, guitar player Frankie Raye, was not deterred by Delta or Omicron or even a bed that might’ve been calling “come climb back in here.” She had 388 gigs last year. Yes, that’s right, as in 23 more bookings than there were days in 2021. (She was the guest back on Episode 279 of my weekly “Now Hear This Entertainment” podcast and talked extensively about performing live.)
| Look back on last year: |
| Top Ten Most Read Blogs of 2021 |
Another past podcast guest is singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist Grace Askew, who I sat down with in Nashville in the summer of 2019 for what turned out to be Episode 290. At the time she was in the midst of a two-year songwriting challenge, which had started off as a song-a-day for one year. Talk about setting accountability for yourself, huh? Before you say, “Well, this is 2022 and you’re saying 2019, so, that’s old news and obviously something that must’ve taken everything out of her,” I submit you to her success story of 2021. She completed a year-long daily songwriting challenge, live streaming a brand-new song for 365 days straight.
Out in California in January of 2019 I had the pleasure of meeting and interviewing two members of the band Paralandra. (Ya’ know, the band who reported a few days ago that their latest music video [pictured above] – not even out for three months yet – had 886 thousand views just on Facebook alone.) Guitarist Paul Carson posted two weeks ago today on Instagram what an awesome 2021 it was for them, saying, “A huge portion of it was just #workinghard. Never underestimate the opportunities and success you can generate on your own by getting busy.”
And ya’ know what? He’s absolutely right.
I hope you’re seeing a pattern here throughout all three of these 2021 success stories, which, again, took place during a real time of adversity for everyone (not just the music world). The common thread woven throughout the accomplishments of Frankie Raye, Grace Askew, and Paralandra are hard work, perseverance, dedication, consistency – showing up.
I’m sure they could each tell you about a time in 2021 and/or at some point in their music career when they wanted to hit the metaphorical snooze button and give in to the temptation of procrastinating. But then they’d be missing out on all the successes they’re enjoying and someone else would be mentioned in an article like this instead of them.
Don’t look at the clock. Don’t look at the calendar. Today is the first day of the rest of your music life.
What challenges are holding you back? Take advantage of my 18 years of working with independent artists around the country, providing management, promotion, and booking services. Book a private, one-on-one online video consultation with me to discuss your questions, concerns, roadblocks, as well as your goals and objectives and let’s get you moving forward. Share your comments on this blog too in a Facebook post, a tweet, or on LinkedIn. Or simply email that feedback to me instead.