so nobody on here has had a record deal?

[kayla]

now as for me if i had the chance to leave this area and go big i would in a heart beat i have read most of the post on here about how the music scene in this area is either dying or dead and yet you stay? i understand why and that's why i asked the question, but for me "its dream big and live the life!" if i had the chance.

if i was given the opportunity to move out of the area and play guitar for a living (not so much being a rockstar) i definitely would do it. money is a nice reward for playing music, but honestly the best reward is when you look around the room and see that one person so into it that you see tears welling up in their eyes. thats what music for me about.

- kayla.

[f.sciarrillo]

i want to thank all who gave me their opinion on this and i thank you some were right on point and others not so good but thanks anyways, now as for me if i had the chance to leave this area and go big i would in a heart beat i have read most of the post on here about how the music scene in this area is either dying or dead and yet you stay? i understand why and that's why i asked the question, but for me "its dream big and live the life!" if i had the chance.

How old are you? You talk like I did when I was 17 and playing guitar 12 hours a day in my bedroom. I finally realized that it is nothing more than a pipe dream. Look at how many people go Nashville or LA to be 'STARS', you will find that about 1 out of about a million actually make it (And I can guarantee that probably most of them play better than you or I ever could). Even if you are lucky enough to make it, it still doesn't automatically make you a rock star.

[nabced]

It sounds like you'd rather be rich from playing which in my eyes is the wrong reason to be playing in the first place.

[moxham123]

[sstuckey]

oh Rockpage....how I missed thee! hahahaha

[f.sciarrillo]

oh Rockpage....how I missed thee! hahahaha

Hey, Bud! What is up?

[bassist_25]

From the time I was a teenager until about the time I was 21, music was what I was best at. However, I consider myself of average talent, and I try to compensate with the lack of natural talent by working hard. As I got older, I realized that there were things in life that I was much better at than music...and they could be used in careers that offered far more upward mobility than music.

Somebody asked me a few months ago if I would pick up, drop everything else in life, and do music full-time if the opportunity presented itself. I gave an emphatic "No!" I have a lot invested in my education - including what would have probably been a lifetime career in North Carolina to pursue doctoral study back here in PA - and music's largely become secondary to other aspirations I have. I'm gearing up to start writing a dissertation in a few weeks, and I wouldn't go chase a music dream only to end up ABD. Dexter Holland was already a rich and famous rock star when he never completed his dissertation. I don't have that luxury.

A lot of people are naive about the music business. As was already stated, signing a record deal means that you've effectively just put yourself in debt. Besides, the real money isn't in performing. It's in publishing. Unless, I have published songs that are constantly generating revenue, I'm far from set in life. Lenny Kravitz or Luke Bryan or Tracy Chapman could hire me to play bass for their next tour, but I'm not going to come home to a mansion and a Porsche. A few cats have made great careers out of being sidemen, such as Lee Sklar and Hutch Hutchinson, but they're the exceptions, not the rule.

[sstuckey]

oh Rockpage....how I missed thee! hahahaha

Hey, Bud! What is up?

Doin' well thanks. Got my computer up and running again and figured I'd take a peep at the ole' Rockpage.

[MistValkyrie]

money is a nice reward for playing music, but honestly the best reward is when you look around the room and see that one person so into it that you see tears welling up in their eyes. thats what music for me about.

- kayla.

thats beautiful, Kayla! And its a great sentiment. You are the very definition of a true performer and musician, in my opinion. Money's nice but making music as the sole purpose of playing (in other words, the Nickelback effect) is shallow and commercial...the true musican plays music for the love of music, not for the love of money and fame...or interest from the opposite sex. This is the main reason why I detest most pop music, Kiss and Nickelback.