Of all the things a budding musician has to do to become an outstanding artist, sales would be the most surprising part of the list. Nowadays though, the sooner musicians get acquainted with this the better. Making a living from doing something you like is a dream of many but not all are able to achieve this. A career in music holds obstacles that would surpass those faced in much more difficult considered occupations
The cost of a deviant occupation is the risk of financial instability. This is further enhanced by the culture of worship of only the best in the business. So even though 12 bands perform at Independent rock festival very few people remember all of them.There has been a co-existence of a niche segment that appreciate and support quality bands. Even then many bands have to take the support of day jobs to clear their dues.
Lately support for new artists has been growing, either locally, nationally and even internationally. This has enabled musicians to take music up as a full time job. Bands such as Something Relevant apart from releasing their studio produced album have been on a UK tour. Psytrance producer Flipknot has played at festival across Europe.
At the same time, there exist musicians who have been forced to give up their instruments to make a living or support their loved ones as they are not able to sustain themselves with their music.
Major music company executives are of the opinion that apart from making and selling cds, they (record labels) need to engage more in promotional activity. Lately there has been a trend of cross polination, with musicians from different genres getting together to produce music (Korn & Skrillex, David Guetta & Rhianna).
Festivals and weekly performances in cities are essential for artists/bands and will play a deciding role in their sustenance in future. Some artists have been able to achieve sponsorship from equipment manufacturers to endorse their products. Musicians today have accepted the fact that a proactive approach is required, atleast initially to showcase one’s music. Bands such as Agnee have been able to create opportunities for themselves in the television arena. Though it might not be every musician’s preference, it has provided them to get their music to a larger audience as well as keep themselves going financially.
Creativity, riding the trend wave and ability to react spontaneously to the opportunities coming up are ways that can help musicians to form a place in the mind of the audience. Skrillex, a grammy dubstep producer has gained coverage not only for his music but also his hairstyle, him as a representative of the growing dubstep scene and also as a poser who has limited the scope for dubstep.
