Making a living off of your music
For many aspiring musicians, the dream is clear: to create music that resonates with people and make a living doing what they love.
Obviously, who am I to determine or decide your ultimate passion, dream life or ideal source of income. Of course that’s entirely up to you. And there is nothing wrong with wanting to earn an income from your craft, your music.
What I’m saying is, that there are many reasons why this shouldn’t be the ultimate goal, the end-all-be-all thing.
While financial success is a natural aspiration, it should not be the sole end goal in your musical journey. In this blog post, we will explore why focusing exclusively on making money from your music might not be the most fulfilling path and suggest both a more holistic and strategic approach to your artistic endeavors.
How to make money from music?
This is a question I let the experts answer. It is a question I get a lot from clients though.
What I will say is this. As far as I’m concerned, this is not the end goal for a musician. I’ve seen many end up getting disappointment after disappointment because the release didn’t do as well as they thought it would, the next release has to be better, in the meantime bills have to be paid, there is a ton of doubt and confusion about what else they can do in life and do they even qualify for anything else or they wouldn’t know what else to do or it’s too late now/I’m too old. And every single time I see that end up in this: I don’t know what to do with my life, and worst case scenario, suicidal ideation - and more often than you’d think.
This whole thing is such a pressure cooker and I feel like not enough people out there are courageous enough to say it out loud, but no, you don’t have to make a living off of your music.
You can. And there are people who are doing it. But why would you? Really, truly, get honest, why would you only do music?
And are the financial outcomes the rewards you seek to measure your success against?
I had this conversation recently with a client who told me he just wants the recognition for his craft and talent. I have a lot to say about recognition but I’ll keep that for another blog post. However, after probing him more, it turned out that he’s actually measuring success as a producer by looking at how much money can come in. Recognition equals money. More recognition means more people are listening to your music and so you’ll see more money come in as a consequence. Put differently, if no money comes in, then the music is bad?
That right there is a huge pitfall for many and is actually what psychologists identify as a cognitive distortion - in this case more specifically a just-world hypothesis.
Here the danger lies in internalising this cognitive distortion and making it mean something about your skills and ultimately, about yourself as a musician. This is where the inner dialogue turns to “I suck as a producer”.
Actually, you absolutely do not suck. You just have not yet defined your own definition of success and you have not gained clarity on how to measure your progress towards your goals and your overall performance in achieving them. You may have borrowed your definition for success from others. And many people in this world measure their success against the financial gains they’ve experienced in their lives.
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3 reasons why making a living off of your music is an illusion
Pressure on creativity.
The music industry is notoriously challenging, and financial rewards are not always immediate or guaranteed. Relying solely on the promise of money can lead to stress, disappointment, and a sense of unfulfillment. It's important to find intrinsic satisfaction in your music, regardless of external financial outcomes.
The music having to be the be all end all thing to sustain you, puts pressure on creativity.
When your primary focus is making money, there's a risk of compromising your creative integrity. You might be tempted to produce music that you believe will sell well, rather than music that reflects your true artistic vision. This can lead to a loss of authenticity and the soul of your music when creativity has to take a back seat.Diversifying your streams of income is a smart financial strategy.
The music industry is notoriously challenging, and financial rewards are not always immediate or guaranteed. Relying solely on the promise of money can lead to stress, disappointment, and a sense of unfulfillment. It's important to find intrinsic satisfaction in your music, regardless of external financial outcomes.
If the pandemic taught me one thing, it’s that when all is dependent on 1 source, things can turn to shit pretty fast. Why put all eggs in one basket?
I know many musicians who - besides making music, also dabble in other things like mixing and audio engineering, working in marketing, in a bank, as a lawyer, doing graphic design on a freelance basis, working in construction, flipping homes, teaching dj lessons or ableton workshops, you name it, any and all combos are possible.
I’m even venturing out into animal wellness. One of my core beliefs in life so far for the past 10 years has been: every skill in life is transferable. Which brings me to the next point.Being multi-passionate is also a smart strategy for your creativity.
What’s lacking or thriving in one area of life, tends to overflow into another. It’s all interconnected, intertwined. So when you get stuck creatively, experiencing a creative block, other passions or just funsies in your life can inspire your creativity and bring back that spark your music needs. (link to a creative block blog post)
Secondly, this makes you interesting as an artist too. Having other things to talk about, to contribute to, to serve others with. It’s what makes your story unique, and from a branding perspective, a usp for you to create your brand around.
This way, you can ensure your artistic growth doesn’t stagnate. If making money is your primary goal, you may become stuck in a comfort zone, repeatedly producing the same type of music that has brought financial success. This can lead to stagnation in your artistic growth and the absence of innovation in your work.
Besides, who cares how you bring in money?
The other day, I was on a call with someone who is just starting their coaching business. And currently they are working in a strip club. Whilst building and growing their coaching skills and expertise on the side, taking time to grow and bring in clients.
I mean, I’m just saying, as long as it’s legal and doesn’t endanger you, your life or others, who cares how you make your money? Which brings me to my next point.
“If you aren’t willing to receive happiness and abundance, then no matter how much money you have and no matter what high status you attain, you will never feel happy and abundant.”
A balanced approach to music and money
We need to talk about money, in a different way. Not how to make it but how to feel about it and relate to it.
There is a lot to dive into in this conversation about your relationship with money, any limiting beliefs you’ve picked up on or formed along the way and what you expect a resource that was completely invented - it’s literally a piece of paper or a coin, could’ve been coffee beans or sea shells, to do for you.
So the main question here is: Why would you be qualifying money? Where it has to come from and what the source has to be, like one source is better than the other? In the end, it’s just a resource like any other. In fact, it’s a tool that we’ve invented and that we happen to exchange with. Could’ve been coffee beans or sea shells for all I care. It ‘s the meaning we give to it that makes it so emotionally loaded.
Don’t get me wrong, we need money to live in this society. Yes, absolutely. But how we get it, the channels through which it reaches us and the quality of those channels is just a social construct. Conditioning. It’s not because you make money cleaning toilets that this makes you less than a person working as a doctor, car mechanic or audio engineer.
I say, choose the path of least resistance. Create that financial stability, and you’ll feel so much more emotional capacity to deal with life in general, and to have the peace, calm and stability your creativity needs to flow.
Having to sit in your studio with a mind full of financial worries, thinking this next track has to be IT so you can make money is just no way to live.
Another important point to make here is about getting clarity around your definition of success. Shift your perspective on success to encompass more than just financial achievements. Recognize that emotional fulfillment, artistic growth, and connecting with your audience are equally valuable markers of success.
I realise is polarising. In my experience and opinion, there are no cookie cutter ways to make money from music, or just making money for that matter.
When the pursuit of money becomes the primary objective of your music career, it can lead to a range of unintended consequences. We explored several reasons why aiming solely for financial gain can hinder your artistic fulfillment.
Diversify your streams of income and don’t qualify or hierarchise them. Be aware of how you exchange with your passion, your resources in general - meaning, where your time, attention and energy goes into. You’ll see, you’ll feel much happier and content when you do.
Let your music be more than just green notes; let it be the soundtrack of your life's artistic adventure.
How do you create income in the music industry? Comment below!
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