04/08/2025
Does talent still matter in the music industry? I answered this question today on Reddit.
Drive matters more. A music career is fundamentally a business, and in a digital world where the barriers to entry have gotten so low, business savvy, focus, and discipline are the key differentiators between people who "make it" and those who don't.
Take two artists:
Alex has mastered 2-3 instruments and gotten really good at recording and production. He practices, records, and produces almost daily -- it's his hobby, and he's damn good at it. But, he loves it a little bit too much. He agonizes over the tracks and never publishes -- or, when he does publish, it's rare. He knows he's talented, and he -- reasonably, you might think -- believes that his talent and effort will shine through his tracks and he'll pick up momentum organically as people listen, follow, and share. He thinks self-promotion means selling out, he doesn't have a website, he doesn't make merch, he puts out one song per year, and he doesn't perform live. He thinks that his talent and effort should be enough for him to eventually earn a living from streaming royalties.
Sandra is a good singer and a decent guitarist. She has written 12 songs that are pretty good, but not exactly hit material. She has learned 2 hours of covers, she bought a few thousand dollars worth of live performance equipment and taught herself how to use it, and she hits her local open mic circuit religiously, supporting other artists and helping the hosts set up and clean up. She doesn't know much about recording or production. She's dabbled with Garageband a few times but it overwhelmed her. She put together a Linktree that leads to her YouTube which features several phone-recorded videos of her playing live to engaged audiences. She has built a reputation for herself in her local scene, she gets invited to open other people's shows, and recently, she landed a deal to host an open mic once a week for $100. She's also starting to line up paid solo gigs 1-2x per month for an average of $150 guarantee, and whenever she plays her own shows, she averages an extra $85 in tips and merch sales. She makes her merch shirts herself with a cheap heat press she got on Amazon, so costs stay low. Recently, one of her well-connected local fans introduced her to a booking agent, and one of the friends she made from her local music scene also is starting up a home studio and wants to practice by recording some of Sandra's originals.
Who is the more talented musician?
Alex.
Who is putting in more targeted effort to built a career in the music industry?
Sandra.
Who is likely to make more money, faster, then get an opportunity to invest that momentum into even faster career growth in the next 12-36 months?
Sandra.
Does this mean Alex doesn't deserve success? No of course not. It just means he needs to change his approach and build a strategy to capture revenue from the music industry in a way that suits his talents and disposition.
- He's a great producer, so he could record and produce tracks for other people for $50+ per hour
- He's great at multiple instruments, so he could pick up remote work as a session player for $80+ per hour
- He can teach music, production, and recording for $60+ per hour
- He can seek opportunities to compose or produce for other media, like video games and indie animation channels, for $500+ and even $1000s per project
Music drives some of the highest prices in the world, depending on the context. Popular acts command insane prices for tickets, labels charge crazy money for licensing deals, and top producers / session players can clear 6 figures while mostly working from home on a flexible schedule.
Focus and discipline act as force multipliers in a way that raw talent simply can't keep up with if it's inconsistently or inefficiently applied.
Stay on the path, friends.
— Chris
