General Music Chat

Those are good reasons to do what I suggested. Works everywhere it's tried IF you have people playing music other people are willing to sit through.

But yea, it would take effort. It's definitely easier to complain there's nothing to do.

Not sure why I try here....



.

Yeah, stop trying, your advice is useless for an area you know nothing about.

I had to unhide you to see what you were talking about. You obviously don't know the Greater Boston area.
Boston area DJs and tv personalities are paid a lot more than many other areas of the country, they don't do anything for 'free'. Unless you're talking about the college radio stations, and those DJs are mostly just students, so you better be in the under-25 crowd to even get their attention.
'MeetUp groups' - hahahaha, there are dozens of music meetup groups in the area - and NO ONE helps pay for them, only the people running them. We have one for our songwriting group - only because they offered a freebie to one of our organizers because he manages a paid one. A friend has had one for her open mic series for a few years, there are a hundred or more 'members' in it. At a typical open mic she runs there are 12-15 people who show up - and out of those 100 'members', fewer than 25 have EVER gone to one of her OMs. Meet-Ups work best in the city centers (higher concentration of people), the drop off as you hit the suburbs or rural area is exponential.

'Record store' - really? Still living in the 20th century? Yeah, there are still a couple of holdouts around, but they're not about to have live music - which requires town/city permits and ASCAP/BMI/SECAN licenses. Same thing for restaurants - if they are not already permitted/licensed for live music, they're not about to start as its not profitable enough - even a small place has to cough up $1-2K/year for the PRO license, assuming that they can even get a town permit. The places that try it with 'original music only'? They usually give up after 1 or 2 events because the BMI lawyers go after them and say 'prove that none of our songs are being used'.

Thinking 'outside the box' is always suggested as a means to make 'making music' more profitable without any practical ways to actually do so. I'm watching (younger) people who have given up their day jobs to hustle 24/7 to make a living doing music - and then coming back to the community asking others what they think about it. "I want to be free to create" is the usual start - only to find that doing all the 'behind the scenes' stuff - hustling gigs, networking, etc etc takes up more time than if they were working a 40 hour a week job - without any of the benefits of that job, like a steady paycheck, insurance and paid vacations, and keeping their vehicle on the road to get to the gigs that pay 'pass the hat' dollars becomes a 'making nothing' venture with the cost to insure and register (and annual excise tax) in Massachusetts. The few who are 'successful' -meaning they can pay rent on time - are doing cover song gigs more than originals, often 2 gigs a day. There are A LOT of talented people out there, and just not enough money to go around for all of them.

Those are good reasons to do what I suggested. Works everywhere it's tried IF you have people playing music other people are willing to sit through.

But yea, it would take effort. It's definitely easier to complain there's nothing to do.

Not sure why I try here....



.

Yeah, stop trying, your advice is useless for an area you know nothing about.
.

All those are obstacles to overcome, yes, but they are also lame excuses to fail, Mike. If there is anyone in this conversation who doesn't know what they're talking about, it ain't the working professional recording artist.

I've been a (paid) professional since 1975 doing 100% original music (or more than half originals in some bands during the 80s) for that entire time . If you check the statistics you'll find that DFW is bigger than Boston, so I know the big city routine quite well. I've played in the Boston area more times than I remember, btw.

In the last decade there have been several success stories from Boston. Yet you make it sound impossible? I did what I suggested you (or anyone else) try in Beaumont TX and again in Dallas. Now building a new network in Spartanburg. SC and. Asheville NC. It works when it's tried.

Since 2001, I've bought 2 houses and put kids through college on original music. It can be done IF YOU HAVE SOMETHING WORTH BUYING and you work it locally, regionally, then nationally.

But excuses and giving up are so much easier.


..





.

...That might work in a location that 'needs a scene'...

Uh, I think California is pretty good for a music scene.

...Those are good reasons to do what I suggested. Works everywhere it's tried IF you have people playing music other people are willing to sit through...

Or better yet bring people to their feet. Definitely need to be good at audience interaction to stand out from the rabble bands.

"In the last decade there have been several success stories from Boston"

Yes, no doubt. 10 years, and a handful of people making it. Out of hundreds and hundreds. For every success, there's more people than you count scrabbling for every penny.
None of your 'suggestions' are **new** ideas. Ignore what I explained, you usually do.
To reiterate:
Meet Ups - tons of them already around
Find a free place to host something - plenty of those already, and new places - LICENSING/PERMITTING
Songwriter group - yep, already have one. Know plenty of songwriters, some quite good. They're still in the 'scrabble for every penny' mode. One just got back from a Nashville songwriter competition. He didn't' even place in it - was it because he's got a 'foreign' name (and looks it) and wasn't in the Nashville clique? Maybe, who knows. he's another local who scrabbles for every gig at any price.

Waiting to schedule an easy 'brunch' 2 hour gig, might turn into a once a month thing. Turned down a Christian church guitar paid gig this morning - definitely not my thing!

"In the last decade there have been several success stories from Boston"

Yes, no doubt. 10 years, and a handful of people making it. Out of hundreds and hundreds. For every success, there's more people than you count scrabbling for every penny.
None of your 'suggestions' are **new** ideas. Ignore what I explained, you usually do.
To reiterate:
Meet Ups - tons of them already around
Find a free place to host something - plenty of those already, and new places - LICENSING/PERMITTING
Songwriter group - yep, already have one. Know plenty of songwriters, some quite good. They're still in the 'scrabble for every penny' mode. One just got back from a Nashville songwriter competition. He didn't' even place in it - was it because he's got a 'foreign' name (and looks it) and wasn't in the Nashville clique? Maybe, who knows. he's another local who scrabbles for every gig at any price.

Maybe he didn't place because there are better songwriters who have been working longer and harder? They all started out unknown, like him, long ago and are still climbing the ladder.

Yet he is the better for having done that. If he keeps trying, he will see success. Or, he can choose to be the "victim" that doesn't have a chance. Skin color and a foreign name would be admissable excuses for failing. But the truth is that guy is one step closer to success because he met successful people in the music biz. Now he has to keep building on that foundation.

I haven't ignored what you said...I just don't allow myself (or anyone else) the luxury of excuses. Those are all OPPORTUNITIES in my world.

But you seem to have ignored the main point I've made, which is YOU can determine the quality of YOUR promotions/venues/meetups. If it's better than the others, that will become known and the scene comes to find you. Being an integral player in a city like Boston makes you nationwide before you've left town.





.

Or better yet bring people to their feet. Definitely need to be good at audience interaction to stand out from the rabble bands.

Amen. But they have to be sitting there because they want to be, before that can happen.

In today's glut of music world, finding a different lane is the key to moving ahead of everyone else. You need to stand out by actually being different, authentic, original AND very talented.

Talent can be developed, rehearsed, honed, improved.....so the main ingredients are courage and imagination. So few have that



.

Know plenty of songwriters, some quite good. They're still in the 'scrabble for every penny' mode. One just got back from a Nashville songwriter competition. He didn't' even place in it - was it because he's got a 'foreign' name (and looks it) and wasn't in the Nashville clique? Maybe, who knows. he's another local who scrabbles for every gig at any price.

Here's his latest: https://youtu.be/z_i1RCQOtoQ

Is there some sort of universal folk music revival that is trying to replace the Aerosmiths Stones Rainbows ELPs etc. Music with real substance the essence of the planet? Its like some sort of syrupy disease spreading even to Springville..

Me and Faron are back together and turning heads again..he quit the flooring job..good..flooring jobs destroy knees if you do it long enough..

Or better yet bring people to their feet. Definitely need to be good at audience interaction to stand out from the rabble bands.

Amen. But they have to be sitting there because they want to be, before that can happen.

In today's glut of music world, finding a different lane is the key to moving ahead of everyone else. You need to stand out by actually being different, authentic, original AND very talented.

Talent can be developed, rehearsed, honed, improved.....so the main ingredients are courage and imagination. So few have that



.

Or you can go this route like Bob Dylan did and sell your soul to the chief of the underworld (invisible world) https://youtu.be/2JCrx3LP78I

Is there some sort of universal folk music revival that is trying to replace the Aerosmiths Stones Rainbows ELPs etc. Music with real substance the essence of the planet? Its like some sort of syrupy disease spreading even to Springville..

4 very different types of 'rock' music in your list there. There's still lots of harder rock out there, but its not as big as it once was, and only appeals to certain people in certain places. But ask people under the age of 25 about the 'older' rock stuff and 90% of them will laugh at you as being an 'old fart' listening to graveyard music.

nice songs

Or you can go this route like Bob Dylan did and sell your soul to the chief of the underworld (invisible world) https://youtu.be/2JCrx3LP78I

what a load a fertilizer that is.....


Do you think the earth is flat too?

Bob Dylan converted to Christianity, hardly selling your soul.