When you start pursuing music as a profession, sooner or later you are confronted with reconciling the need to maintain a sense of artistic integrity with the need to pay your bills and make money. This can be tricky, because on one hand I think most musicians are drawn to writing songs and playing music because of the sense of inspiration and purity that comes with writing music. There’s something very pure and genuine about tapping into that part of yourself where music comes from. It feels great and I think most people who write songs want to share that feeling with as many people as possible. I think it’s safe to say that this is a big part of what motivates us as musicians, regardless of what style of music we create or where we are in our careers.

But on the other hand, anyone who has been a part of the music business for more than like 60 seconds, knows that the music business is about much more than… well… music. For better or worse, everyone involved in the music business side of the music industry needs to make money in order to make the whole thing sustainable. This reality doesn’t really make me cynical anymore (it used to) because I understand it for what it is. When you book a show at a club, the club owner needs to make money to stay in business. No matter how great your band or act is, if no one shows up, it’s hard to stay in business. The same principle is true for every aspect of the music business. If you get signed to a record label, they need to make a profit from your music in order to pay their rent, staff, electricity and all the other expenses that go along with running a business.