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I used to be a performing pianist in the limited gigging world. I got paid to play cocktail hours, charity events, contra dances, and folk festivals. These were

I used to be a performing pianist in the limited gigging world. I got paid to play cocktail hours, charity events, contra dances, and folk festivals. These were once in a while gigs, netting me usually 100-150 on average. I took home 3k total over years of doing this. To record would've been a whole new world. Either shell out a years' plus worth of performance wages to get an album made, or use my coding gig to prop it up. I decided I am only good, not great, and meager streaming revenue and occasional $20 buys couldn't be worth it. In summary, play music for fun. If you see anyone making a decent wage off music, great for them, but unless you're prodigious or attractive or well connected, it's a 1% craps-shoot.

sosuke 6y ago
I recently saw some numbers from who I thought was a very popular author. Content creation is a labor of love. Thanks for playing the music.
542458 6y ago
Yeah, Devin Townsend (who I would consider a successful musician) recently discussed how much he makes in an average year - and it was something like (going from memory) 70K per year before you factor in all the expenses associated with being a musician and creating records (which are quite large!). Touring is where much of his income comes from and he had recently “invested” in creating a new album and setting up a tour, but COVID wiped that all out putting him in a less-than-ideal financial situation. I think that much like working at McDonalds or dealing drugs most people don’t make much - the financial rewards are fairly concentrated to a few individuals.
- Emphere 6y ago
  Would be interested in seeing a source for this if possible
  - 542458 6y ago
    I could have sworn there was a relatively recent FB post on it, but I wasn't able to locate it. That said, there's a 2015 interview where he said $60K per year - not sure if that's in CAD or USD. https://metalinjection.net/shocking-revelations/harsh-reality-devin-townsends-reveals-his-monthly-salary-and-its-not-a-lot https://metalinjection.net/shocking-revelations/harsh-realit...

sosuke 6y ago

I recently saw some numbers from who I thought was a very popular author. Content creation is a labor of love. Thanks for playing the music.

542458 6y ago

Yeah, Devin Townsend (who I would consider a successful musician) recently discussed how much he makes in an average year - and it was something like (going from memory) 70K per year before you factor in all the expenses associated with being a musician and creating records (which are quite large!). Touring is where much of his income comes from and he had recently “invested” in creating a new album and setting up a tour, but COVID wiped that all out putting him in a less-than-ideal financial situation. I think that much like working at McDonalds or dealing drugs most people don’t make much - the financial rewards are fairly concentrated to a few individuals.

Emphere 6y ago
Would be interested in seeing a source for this if possible
- 542458 6y ago
  I could have sworn there was a relatively recent FB post on it, but I wasn't able to locate it. That said, there's a 2015 interview where he said $60K per year - not sure if that's in CAD or USD. https://metalinjection.net/shocking-revelations/harsh-reality-devin-townsends-reveals-his-monthly-salary-and-its-not-a-lot https://metalinjection.net/shocking-revelations/harsh-realit...