Want To Make Money As A Pro Musician? Here Is One Thing You’ve Got To Understand About The Music Industry
One of the most profound music career insights I had (about one’s ability to make money as a pro musician) is...
Being ‘rich’ & being ‘famous’ in the music business don’t always go together.
This has always been the case in every corner of the music industry.
And it became obvious to me when I started touring the world and met well-known musicians from bands you probably listen to.
Whether it’s through massive debt to the record company... (as was the case for KISS right after their Alive II album went platinum, but nearly all the money went to save their record company that was nearly bankrupt from funding the band’s early albums).
... or through the reckless spending habits of the band’s members... (e.g. a famous band may need a loan to buy merchandise they could sell on tour. Merchandise, which the band – despite their fame – had no cash to buy.)
...or through short-term thinking (e.g. thinking that once you get enough YouTube views on your videos – you can live lavishly off of YouTube’s ad revenue... as I’ve known some musicians to think).
... or a whole host of other reasons...
You’d be stunned to find that many of the people you consider rock stars still work day jobs and live VERY modestly (despite their music career success).
On the flipside, I also know some millionaires in the music industry whose names you’ve probably never heard of... who find it very easy to make money in the music business.
And of course, there are people who are (or eventually become) both.
Sadly, this is a lesson many musicians learn far too late.
Like, when presented with an opportunity to go on tour with a famous band that ‘would’ be good for making you famous...
... but having to turn it down because being offered little/no money to do it. That actually happened to multiple musicians I know... including myself years ago.
Yep.
Back in the 90s, I had a chance to join (and tour with) a pretty big metal band – an opportunity that would’ve been huge for my career... and an opportunity I had to pass on because I was struggling to make money as a pro musician (back then).
I’ve since resolved to NEVER let that happen again and today my life (and financial situation) look quite different... and I make money as a pro musician very easily.
And today, when I mentor musicians, I tell them:
If you’re just doing music to be “famous” – you’d better have other ways to support yourself that don’t depend on your status in the music industry.
Or if you want your music career to be lucrative and you want to easily make money as a pro musician – big tours or a huge social media following won’t ‘necessarily’ lead to that...
... unless you design your music career in a way that leads to both fame AND wealth.
And my main advice to musicians who are wondering about the best way to make money as a pro musician is...
Start a music teaching business. Teaching music (even part-time) can be extremely lucrative and give you the freedom of time and money in the music industry to reach your music career goals faster and easier.
Here are the steps I recommend for getting started teaching music in the music business:
And as you take the steps to make money as a pro musician, be careful of making these common music career mistakes that hold many people back from getting where they want to be in the music industry.
Work together with a successful music career mentor to build your music career success plan.
