We’ve spent many episodes of our Music Life and Times podcast extolling the virtues of playing music, how what is required to learn to play is also the reward for learning, that is the life lessons, like persistence and collaboration, that learning to play and perform teaches. We also spend time debunking the myth that it is difficult to make a living as a musician. As one of the most in-demand products in the world, music offers lots of career opportunities. With the right amount of work and dedication, musicians can make a very good living in many music-related jobs and careers, including playing and performing.
Sometimes, though, life as a musician can be a little erratic, unpredictable. Playing in so many different venues, sometimes in locations around the world, can lead to challenging situations. Kevin tells a story of trying to get to a gig overseas that starts with him about to board a plane at the airport in Atlanta then realizing that his passport would expire before he returned to the U.S. The number of people along the way who went out of their way to get him to that gig, that is, to get him to where he could get a passport that day, and how far they went out of their way, is astounding.
At almost every turn he didn’t think he would make it, then somebody would step up with a totally unorthodox solution to help make it possible. And he got there, just it time to perform, thanks to all that help. So yes, sometimes a career that has you in different venues almost every night, even different countries, can present its challenges, can be unpredictable. But the experiences can result in some of the most memorable and gratifying times of your life.
And what a life lesson you learn, that you can overcome the most seemingly impossible challenges by persisting through the difficulties to do everything you can to live up to your commitments—and that there will be people along the way to help, more than you ever could have expected.