How To Make A Living As A Musician

How do you take the leap from making music as a hobby to a sustainable income?

From a young age, I knew I wanted to be a guitar player. I picked up a guitar in my first year of high school and have rarely been seen without one since. I practiced hard every day for those first years; before school, in breaks, after school and on non-school days or summer holidays I'd be practicing from morning until I went to bed that night, missing out on all the stuff normal kids get up to.

I was listening to anything and everything too. Mozart, The Smiths, Bach, Metallica, Beethoven, The Kinks, Chet Atkins, Queen, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Van Halen, The Beatles, Kraftwerk, Gustav Holszt... I had a cheap record player (vinyl was cheap at this time) and a walkman with rewritable cd's. I developed a good ear by learning all the melodies by these bands and composers.

Before I left school I was playing regular small gigs in pubs and clubs and continue to play regularly now almost 15 years later. I've played thousands of pubs, bars, weddings and parties, found regular teaching work and have played on over 170 tracks as a session musician.

Looking back over the years on my personal experiences, I'd like to share some of the key aspects that helped me achieve my goal of making a living as a musician. It wasn't easy but I'm now making a comfortable living doing something I love.

1. Gear

Investing in good gear is essential. Possibly the most crucial part of being a good musician is having a decent setup. Don't show up with a 15w practice amp, and an argos guitar, asking people for a spare guitar lead.

There are plenty of affordable options in regards to guitars and amps in stores these days and you don't need a lottery win. Get a versatile tube amp and a mic, take care of your guitar and keep it in good shape, buy plenty of spare cables, plectrums, straps. Be realistic too, a marshall stack looks great but is it practical for what you're doing? Protect your equipment with flight cases.

2. Transport

Having a car or van is a huge advantage, enabling you to travel to and from gigs. Before I could drive I found I had limited opportunities, I could still gig but with limited freedom and would rely on other people for a lift.

If you have a show that's a bit of a hike, offer to carshare other band-members. You instantly make yourself a more reliable musician. Get hold of a car with enough space to haul your gear.

3. Presentation

I'm lucky enough to have played with some amazing musicians who are not only masters of their craft but remain humble and play down their abilities. When I first started playing gigs I was regrettably guilty of a few bad habits and one of them was refusing to share the stage with other guitarists. How ridiculous!

Maybe I wanted the limelight and yearned to display my abilities, feeling insecure about being upstaged.

Later on I discovered that playing with other guitarists makes you a better player, it forces you to keep on top of your game. Take a step back and give room to the other player, listen and learn on the job.

Having this huge ego or attitude gets you nowhere inevitably, so be nice and polite to everyone you meet and perform with. Be on time and help out as much as you can.

4. Contacts

If you're trying to establish yourself on the gigging scene get out there and let people know what you can do, head down to open mic nights to display your skills. I've met a lot of people at open mics that then lead to regular work.

Sign up to some of the free dep musician agencies on facebook and offer your stand-in services. Let people know you have good gear, transport and are reliable.

YouTube/Instagram videos or SoundCloud audio recordings are a good way of demonstrating your abilities.

5. Know Your Stuff

Having a good repertoire of standard cover songs is essential if you're regularly performing. Over the years I've learnt hundreds of songs and the band I'm in now consists of at least 300 tracks! This way you're always ready for requests. I recommend learning by ear and learning anything and everything.

After learning so many popular hits, patterns start to emerge, chord structures seemingly become predictable and you can visualise a bar ahead. I've developed the knack of blagging my way through songs if I can get the key and I've maybe heard it on the radio a couple of times.

By simply learning a handful of songs each week you're also improving your chord knowledge and understanding of song-writing and how a song is structured.

6. Offer Different Services

As well as gigging and recording in my studio full time, I've given private guitar, bass and keyboard lessons to many students of all ages over the years as a source of extra income. If you have a good idea of music theory and have transport, offer a mobile service, people feel comfortable learning at home or even give lessons from your own place. Share what you know.

Qualifications aren't essential but can make life easier, I took a teaching course and it gave me more of an understanding of individual learning methods and different teaching approaches that hugely benefited me.

Do some discount offers to get started and you can build up some loyal customers in no time.

Now you have a good idea of what it takes to make a living as a musician, I'd love to say jump right in and do it yourself! BUT be sensible about it, I've had numerous setbacks along the way where I've had a ‘normal job’ jumped the gun and ended up quitting the job to become a self-employed musician and it hasn't worked out. Wait until you're absolutely certain you can sustain a living from music. Finding yourself dependant on gigs when you're not getting any, turns what you love into a laborious slog and can get you down.

I finally waited until the time was right and now overall, I'm extremely happy with how my career has shaped up, I get regular work as a session musician, I sometimes teach and the gigs are never-ending.

How do you take the leap from music as a hobby to a sustainable income... It's more like a lengthy run-up over whopping big hurdles through an obstacle course whilst blindfolded than a simple leap. Dealing with the friends and family who suggest ‘getting a real job’ to facing the perils of the fierce competitive dog-eat-dog industry. I wouldn't change a thing.