If you have any of these experiences it means you’re part of the club. And among the wide range of artists in this club, there are lots of highly successful, household name artists in this club.
So if you’ve gone through these or are going through these, you aren’t failing, you’re joining.
-you didn’t get paid what you were promised
-the big crowd was totally silent when you walked out on stage (probably because you were the opener)
-you found out after the show that the backup vocal mics weren’t turned up at all
-a truly awful, depressing, life numbing load in and somehow an even worse load out
-the fine print screwed you
-your lawyer lied to you
-you truly believed there were no more good songs that could be written
-the artist you know you’re better than got to do the thing you should have gotten to do
-your record tanked
-you over bought….no you waaaaaay over bought t-shirts
-you’re pretty sure no one cares about your career
-you equate “no one cares about your career” with worthlessness
-your drummer forgot there was a gig
-you have yelling matches over the setlist
-the gig you were really looking forward to got cancelled
-a person who you respect promised you something and then didn’t follow through
I will say…Not all of these are prerequisites (or necessarily merit badges) for being a successful rockstar member of the club. They’re not causal. It’s not “if you go through these things you will be Bruce Springsteen”. It’s just that Bruce Springsteen has gone through a lot of these things.
Aka…you can go through all these things, be in the club, be able to say “me too”, and be 45 years old living in your mothers basement eating black beans every meal. Not ideal.
I will also say…The club is worth joining. Worth it because of what you will learn if you take the time to notice.
And the stories are amazing. But I’d rather be telling the stories from on top of the garbage heap than underneath it.
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I’m always interested in your perspective, whether affirming or dissenting. Continue the conversation anytime: gabethebassplayer@gmail.com