Is 26 too old in this industry????

[djbobm]

Hi Anj!I listened to your songs…very well done. You have a great voice. I don’t think the age thing really matters unless your dream is to be a teen pop star. There are different levels of success and different paths to achieve success…all of them good. As far as making your own way in life and moving out of your parents’ house, that would be a good move, in my opinion. In today’s economy, being able to score a career job like a teaching gig is a wonderful thing. I taught public school music for 30 years and things have worked out well. After three years, I didn’t want to finish college and just wanted to play gigs and be a rock star. My parents insisted, and to this day I am grateful. Teaching was the “something to fall back on career” but it turned out to be a very satisfying profession. It is a great career and like anything else, you get out of it what you put into it. One beauty of teaching music is that you are exposed to many different aspects of music, which in turn makes you grow as a musician and a composer. You can still do your own musical thing while you have your teaching job. I taught, did a couple thousand gigs, composed, raised a family and had lots of fun. My new direction for the last year has been computerized recording…it’s great! If you take the teaching job, go at it full force to learn and be good at it. It is not a job where you show up at 8 and go home at 4. Preparation is the key! The students deserve your best effort. It takes a few years to find your groove but once you do, it is a great profession. You have to decide what is most important to you. You have a lot of talent and I’m sure that which ever direction you go, if you put the effort in, you will be great at.Good luck.Happy New Year everyone!Bob

[girasoledonna]

As far as "success" goes, I never really cared about being a world-known name like Norah Jones or Fionna Apple - what mattered to me was being able to sell out venues I play, sell my music and have a loyal fan base. I actually am thinking more and more that being at the level where you are followed by paparatzi and have no private life wouldn't be as grand as people think. But even getting signed to an indie label that has a lot of power behind it is hard. Since my music isn't teen market stuff, I think I am still OK at 26, but just wasn't sure. I also think there is a stereo-type that women need to be younger then the men. Lots of men seem to break well into their 30's - but women, not so much. Though its more about appearances than anything. As far back as i could remember, I've wanted to do this and have felt I was "meant" to. But at the same time, as i said, that was easier to swallow at 19 or 20 than 26. It's harder when your adult life is being compromised living at home, and it also keeps you from "growing up" and actually entering the next phase of life - I haven't even dreamed of marriage or kids, because I haven't even had a place of my own yet - or a "job". I am taking the teaching job, but actually its a pretty easy job! I'll only teach 4 classes a day, and they will all be the same! That means I'll have 4 periods off! So that's good news. I think what scares me ( though I try not to think about it ) is that time seems to just push on so slyly. I get a little older each time but the progress comes so slow. I worry some nights, am I doing everything I can do? Will I have regrets? but I know the best thing to do is to just push on and not look back or wonder. It's really a waste of time. - Anj

[ciskokidd]

Hey Anj,I think Matto makes and excellent argument regarding the normal star making machine that are the major record labels. And to be fair to there business model, it makes very good sense. At your age many women are starting to think about marriage and kids. That becomes a liability for any record company that will invest on average 2 million dollars to break a new artist.But, the question remains like Matt says, "What do you want?"This is where you have to get specific. This is where you have to set out your path in black and white.It's not enough to say "I want to share my music with the world." That is way too vague to get you anywhere, and you can do that right now. Put your tunes up on a website and there it is for the world to hear. It's much better to clearly and specifically define a path that you can be passionate about. If you are willing to make the sacrifices it takes to get to your goal it can be achieved. Matt knows well of which he speaks as his success is due in great part to the sacrifices he made over the last ten years or so.From listening to your music you don't strike me as wanting to be the next Britney Spears anyway, so go out there and model your path on those great female artists that were your age or older when they broke through. The time to get serious about this is now. I can't tell you how much I wish I had made the choices I'm making now 15 years ago, but hey I am glad I am now dead serious and not 10 years from now when I would have lost even more time.All the best,Cisko

[girasoledonna]

Cisko,Yes I'm certainly not looking to be Britney Spears. But i can't see myself living out of my van either, incessantly touring alone and living off bread and water. When I was younger and knew nothing about the business, I tried to gig and gig and gig. But did not promotion or real marketing, and didn't much of anywhere, despite the fact that people seemed to really like my music. I joined TAXI two years ago, and have had more success with it than anything else. Now my goals have shifted to attempting to go the route that Ingrid Michaelson did - (who is 30). She got her "sound" identified with a TV show ( a difficult task in itself no doubt ) and that launched her career. Before that, she hardly gigged at all - and she didn't quit her day job until a year after she got her first placement on Grey's Anatomy. I would love to tour, but don't see how I could possibly set up the gigs, promote them, travel alone and survive. I could get together a band I suppose, but that has a ton of problems in itself. I also think artists spread themselves too thin too soon - and maybe I should work on getting known in the tri-state area first. Anyway you slice it - I AM serious about it. I flew out to california the past two years alone form Jersey when everyone I knew thought I was crazy and its paid off swimmingly. I've knocked on doors till they literally came down - but much of what i've done, I've done wrong, and it was a learning experience. When I look back, as you do, I dont see the time as wasted, but it is very frustrating to feel that i've more or less bounced off walls and into them trying to find the correct path. I'm not sure I am any more sure of the path now than before.Anj

[adrienne]

I've had those thoughts too Anj. At 33, I know I'm too old to have a pop career. Luckily I'm looking for a career in country which up until recently really had a home for "older" artists. But it seems that even country nowadays is focussing on the young ones more and more. So my plan is to get my music out there as a songwriter, and if the artist route follows, well great. But if I made a career as a songwriter alone, I'd be quite happy with that. I don't think there's any age discrimination in that field I too wish I had this direction 10 years ago and maybe I'd have a better shot. But I also know that I wouldn't have been as good a songwriter because my life experience has really helped shape that. So it is what is. No use trying to figure it out. To every rule there's an exception. I plan to be one of them You seem to be well on your way there so don't give up! Good luck to you!

[michael11]

Dec 28, 2008, 4:31pm, squids wrote:And I believe KT broke in her early 40s possibly late 30s. I think if you can continue to produce very good quality music like you've been, consistently, apply yourself to gettin it out online, etc and jes hang on, you'll find yourself doin well enough. Well enough for you? Hard ta say. If you're as much a perfectionist as you're saying (which could also be jes applied to music alone), then you might not ever be satisfied. But that might be good too...sometimes satisfaction can lead to arrogance and finally incompetence. Personally, I don't want a label interested in me. Having someone else control my schedule would annoy the holy crap outta me. But if it's something you enjoy, start your own label! shop yourself!! Hire on a few really good other musicians and put them in the stable too, what the heck. Quote:And I believe KT broke in her early 40s possibly late 30s.Is that K.T.Oslin??Is she still going?

[jeffgreenleaf]

"I am taking the teaching job, but actually its a pretty easy job! I'll only teach 4 classes a day, and they will all be the same! That means I'll have 4 periods off! So that's good news. " AnjIt sounds like you already have a lot of great things going on with your music. As a teacher (for 12 years), I can assure you that your new teaching job won't be easy. There's a lot to it...so be as prepared as possible. You may have to put in longer hours than you'd imagine, too. But it can be a wonderful career (with lots of vacation time to work on your own material). Good luck!

[mojobone]

I think K. T. Tunstall is the artist referred to.

[wta]

I haven't read the other posts on this thread but just a quick tip... If you can make other people money with your music, you're never too old or too young.

[toddt]

wta: bullseye.