Musicians: Do not read

[Steffan Andrews]

It's why I skipped the whole 'artist expression' or 'singer/songwriter' path and dove head first into music for film/tv/videogames. It's music with the explicit end goal of money. And I am extremely satisfied with the choice and I really don't think I've had to sacrifice or compromise much in the way of having music as an artistic outlet. It's as much a hobby as it is a profession for me, and I enjoy it immensely.

[Prodigal Moon]

I can totally believe the article in the OP. I recently saw Au Revoir Simone play to maybe 50 - 75 people (about 25 by the end) in a showroom about the size of my parents' living room - and this is a band that's on Napster and has been reviewed in Rolling Stone. I can't imagine they got paid more than a few hundred dollars, tops. The internet and digital recording have obviously led to a serious glut of pro or near-pro sounding music out there. It seems like it'd be almost impossible for a band to distinguish themselves right now.

[OverCoat]

speaking of the music industry in decline, looks like even last.fm is [trying to be, for now] taking advantage of this:

http://nowformaband.last.fm

[derako]

Yeah unfortunatly when you're dealing with getting paid for your music you have deadlines which are good if it's realistic. In that case I can see what you mean.

[Uberwulf X]

haha, depressing.

[Xelebes]

I never did put much faith into a music career. Some of the biggest names one knows around still have to have primary jobs elsewhere.