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There is a right answer to that question — what you must say if you are to become a Self Sufficient Musician.

The answer: “I am.  I am my biggest fan.”

Well, and just saying it isn’t enough, obviously.  You must believe it.  I once read Steven Tyler of Aerosmith saying “You think you’re my biggest fan?  No, you’re wrong.  I am my biggest fan.”

Now, I am not saying that you have to be a narcissist.  There is a fine line between egomaniac and loving your own work.

And there are at least three reasons why this is required for your success in music business: (continue reading…)

One of the major differences between popular music and jazz/classical is the technical expectations of players. With the latter, the technical proficiency is a requirement, a must.  And the bar is set pretty high — high enough to require years of dedicated and effective practicing.  You can’t become a professional by merely being good.  You must be exceptional just to get your foot in the door.

With popular music, though, it’s a different story.  We all know that virtuosity dosen’t necessarily make good music.  As a guitar player who picked up the guitar in late 80’s myself, I used to think that fast playing was a good playing.  It is so far from truth, and thousands of rock guitar god wannabes are the proof.

The fascinating and interesting thing about popular music is that effectiveness is the requirement, not virtuosity.  Most often, technical proficiency is required to be effective, but not necessarily, not always.

So what makes one an effective musician?

(continue reading…)