Music Career Myth #1: You can’t make it if you’re older than a certain age.
Reality: Companies and bands who are successful don’t focus on age. There are tons of professional musicians 30 and older in all aspects of the business. Your age only matters if you make it matter.
The music industry functions just the same as any other business. You can become successful at any age as long as you have a strong work ethic, dedication and a lot of value to offer.
Learn what the music industry seeks in musicians and begin strengthening these skills (more mentioned on this in a moment). This is what attracts people in the industry to you.
Music Career Myth #2: Fans don’t purchase music any more.
Reality: Fans do buy music these days, but old business models for selling it do not work. To sell music to your fans (and make good money), you must:
1. Know how the industry works right now (rather than how it worked decades ago).
2. Think creatively and outside the box. This will help you find new ways to sell your music to fans.
Music Career Myth #3: Before you can build a career, you must become an excellent musician.
Reality: There’s a lot more to becoming a great pro musician than simply having “great musical skills”. A lot of musicians in the music industry are not high level guitarists, singers, etc… and many highly talented musicians never build successful music careers.
What you need to learn here: work on both your musical skills and other aspects of your music career at the same time.
Note: Becoming a pro musician does not require going to university. Going to college for music only helps you build your musical skills. Doing this will not help you grow a career in music. There are tons of people who get music degrees and never make good money in music.
You can also find many other effective ways to become a better musician other than going to university. Taking lessons with a virtuoso guitar teacher will help you master the instrument much faster.
Question: “But Tom Hess, what if I get a degree in music business?”
Answer: Professors who teach music business usually are not successful in the music industry. They are simply educators. They teach you about the music industry, but not how to grow a career in the music industry. For instance, in classes for music business you might learn how contracts are made, how tours get promoted and how royalties work. This information is good to know, but it won’t help you:
*Actually get a record deal of your own.
*Go on a tour that makes money.
*Get deals for publishing your music.
*Join the band you want to be in.
*Earn a huge income through music.
*Sustain success in your music career for a long time.
You accomplish these kinds of results by working together with a music career mentor who has already achieved massive success.
Music Career Myth #4. You need to live in a “music city” to be successful.
Reality: This is a very dated myth that is not true. It’s not the city that matters, it’s YOU.
You can work together with music companies who live very far away from you. Learn the principles that grow successful music careers and live by them in your own career. This leads you to success regardless of your location.
Music Career Myth #5. You need good connections to achieve success.
Reality: Connections often do not lead down the path of music career success. If I introduced you to the lead singer of your favorite band, would this do a lot for you? Not likely… unless:
1. You have tons of value to offer above most other musicians.
2. You’ve developed a reputation in the music business for being someone who is loyal, hard-working, and trustworthy while also having a strong mindset for business. People in the music industry WILL inspect your reputation before they begin working with you in any capacity.
