Today's post is a little different. The following is part 1 of a three part short story I wrote recently that combines some of my own experiences with the experience of other musicians I know, with a healthy dose of fiction tossed in. It's a story about pursuing dreams and how our dreams sometimes sharply collide with the realities of day to day life and ultimately, how to reconcile the conflict. I don't want to give away the end, because there are a few more posts to go, but I think a lot of you will be able to relate to my little piece of fiction. I hope you enjoy it.
Here's part 1, of "A Musical Tale":
When Jonny was a teenager he had a dream of making it big
in the music business. He used to spend
hours and hours practicing guitar in his bedroom, while his peers were out
drinking beer and doing what teenagers do.
Not Jonny. He had a vision and
sense of purpose he felt was more important than doing the trivial things other
people his age did. He didn't look down on his peers for spending their time
drinking beer and going to parties. Although
he would sometimes join his friends in these trivial pursuits, for the most
part, he simply wasn't that interested in passing his time that way.
By the time Jonny graduated high school, he was a very
good guitarist. Certainly the best in
the small Midwestern town he was from.
His parents were somewhat supportive of his dream of playing music for a
living, but they were practical people and they were adamant Jonny went to college
to get a degree. Jonny's passion was
music and so they agreed to help Jonny pay for tuition to one of the best music
colleges in the country. Jonny would
take out student loans to pay the difference.
During his time at college, Jonny continued his regimen
of practicing several hours a day. Jonny
was no longer the best in his new environment.
In fact, nowhere near the best. Jonny was surrounded by musicians from
all over the world, many who had started practicing their instruments from a
very early age. Jonny wasn't discouraged
though, instead Jonny was even more motivated to apply himself to get even
better. After taking music classes all
day, Jonny would go back to his dorm room in the evening where jam sessions
would normally ensue and Jonny would play for several hours until late in the
evening.
After college, Jonny wasn't sure exactly what to do. Jonny had improved his skills as a songwriter
and guitarist dramatically, but he wasn't entirely clear what direction to go
in. His dream was to play in a band and
tour and release CDs. Jonny wanted to be a rock star, but when he perused the
help wanted section in his local newspaper he didn't see a lot of "rock star
wanted" classifieds. So Jonny returned
to the Midwest and decided to start a band in his hometown. He found the best local musicians he could
find and formed a four piece rock band.
Jonny moved in with the band's drummer and singer in a small townhouse.
Jonny had bills to pay, and the band wasn't making that
much money, so Jonny got a job at a restaurant working as a waiter during the
day. At night, Jonny would rush home to
practice with his band. He was still
very, very passionate about his dream of making it in the music business. When his band wasn't practicing together, he
would spend hours writing new songs and practicing his guitar. He continued to develop his skills during
this period more and more.
Jonny's band started gaining some local recognition. They got better and better gigs and started
making a little money. Not enough to
live on, but enough to buy better equipment and get themselves into a local
recording studio to record their debut CD.
When they released their debut CD, they started to get a
little local radio play. This led to
getting even better gigs. They started
getting asked to open up for better known bands that came to town. They were getting better and better as
performers and were gradually playing for bigger crowds.
After about three years of playing together, Jonny's band
reached a plateau. They had definitely
improved and grown during their three years together, but they still weren't
earning enough money from their music to live off of. Tension within the band was rising. Three of the four members lived together and
this proved to be challenging. They
would frequently fight about trivial things.
Band practices became unproductive and tedious. Tempers would frequently flare. Most of the animosity was directed towards
the band's lead singer, but in general the band simply wasn't getting along.
One day, the band's lead singer got the band together and
announced he was leaving the band. Just
like that, after three years, the band was over. There was talk about finding another lead
singer, but other than Jonny, the other band members weren't really that
interested in continuing on. For Jonny,
this band was a chance to fulfill his dream and vision, sadly Jonny realized,
for the other band members this was simply a way to get free beer and pass the
time. Just like that, the band was
finished.
Discouraged and forlorn, Jonny reached out to his parents
to see if could move back home for a few months to regroup. His parents agreed and welcomed Jonny back
home. Jonny was 24 years old. Jonny got
a job working at Starbucks to save money.
He continued to practice during his spare time. Jonny was discouraged, but not beaten. Jonny's dream of making it in the music
business would not die. Youth and time
was still on his side and he had a plan.
Plan B
After a few months of living at home, Jonny had saved up
enough money to move out and get his own place. He found a small studio
apartment in a suburb of Milwaukee, WI, about an hour away from where his
parents lived. Jonny moved to this area
to work for an internet entrepreneur that he met through a mutual friend. However, his dream of playing music still
fueled him and it was all he thought about when he wasn't working.
Jonny started meeting new musicians in the new city where
he was living. Within about three months, Jonny had a new band formed. They started playing locally in Milwaukee and
the surrounding area. The gigs they played were small local gigs for the most
part, but Jonny was just happy to be playing music again. He still felt upset about his previous band
breaking up after having invested so much effort and money into the band over
the previous several years. But... Jonny
was not one to give up or let setbacks get him down for long.
After about six months together, Jonny's new band started
getting some momentum going. They were
asked to open up for a pretty well known regional band that was playing at an
outdoor festival in Milwaukee. It was
the biggest gig they had been offered yet, and Jonny was thrilled for the
opportunity. There wasn't that much money in the festival's budget for opening
acts, but it would be great exposure for the new band, and Jonny wasn't in a
position to complain or turn the offer down.
The day of the music festival, the whole band decided to
go several hours early to check out some of the other acts playing. It was a
beautiful summer day and when the band arrived, there were several hundred
people watching the band that was on stage, a local folk rock band that had a
considerable following. During the
performance, Jonny spotted two cute college age girls sitting on a blanket
directly behind where Jonny and his band were standing. Jonny turned around and asked, in his most
deadpan manner, if they could keep it down. The girls looked at him confused,
not sure if he was joking or being serious, and Jonny's serious expression
slowly turned to a grin. They all
started laughing and a playful conversation ensued.
One of the girls, Marian, seemed particularly receptive
to Jonny, and they talked for the next hour or so, as the band onstage finished
their performance. When Marian learned
that Jonny's band would be playing that afternoon she was intrigued and decided
to stick around catch their set. She
loved music, and Jonny would soon find out, she had a thing for guys who are
musicians. When Jonny left to start
getting ready for his set, they exchanged numbers and Marian insisted he call
her.
Jonny's show went great.
There were probably about 500 people in attendance. After the show, the band sold about 20 CDs
and collected about 50 email addresses for their email list. It was their biggest show yet and there was a
sense of palpable excitement after the performance. The whole band hung out together until late
in the night, talking about their goals and aspirations, joking around and
basking in the afterglow of the day's performance. Jonny went home a little drunk at about 2 am,
but was happy, knowing his dream was back on track.
The next day Jonny woke up later than usual, slightly hungover
from the night before. Jonny smiled when
he reached into his pocket and found Marian's number from the day before. Not one to play games or adhere to
unnecessary dating rituals or rules, Jonny called her right away to say
hello. Marian answered the phone after
three rings and sounded pleased to hear from him. They made plans to see each later that day.
Jonny met Marian at a coffee-shop in his neighborhood
that afternoon. Marian was waiting when
Jonny arrived, several minutes late. She
smiled warmly as Jonny approached.
Marian said she loved Jonny's show from the day before and let Jonny
know, in no uncertain terms, just how impressed she was. Marian was studying to be a nurse and had a
very warm, unpretensious way about her.
Unlike a lot of girls Jonny had been meeting recently, he felt like
there were no games with Marian. She
liked him for who he was and made no effort to hide it.
Jonny and Marian started dating right away and within
several weeks they were dating exclusively.
They started spending a lot of time together. When Jonny wasn't working or at band
practice, he was with Marian. Marian was
extremely supportive of Jonny's musical aspirations. She went to all of his shows. She listened and critiqued all of his
songs. She was his biggest fan and his
biggest supporter. Jonny didn't make that much money and he lived a very modest
lifestyle, but it didn't seem to matter to Marian.
The months that followed were very happy times. Jonny was head over heels in love like he
never had been before. His new band was
making a lot of progress. Jonny didn't
have a lot of money, but he had a stable job that provided him with enough
money to meet his expenses. After a
rough few months, things were looking up and Jonny was content with the direction
of his life. Things were about to change
though...
To be continued....
Comment here:
http://www.howtolicenseyourmusic.com/blog/a-musical-tale
Here are a few resources to help you license your music in tv and films:
The 2014 TV And Film Music Licensing Directory -
http://www.howtolicenseyourmusic.com/2014-music-licensing-directory.php
The A To Z Of Music Licensing -
http://www.howtolicenseyourmusic.com/the-a-to-z-of-music-licensing.php
The Music Licensing Toolbox -
http://www.howtolicenseyourmusic.com/combosale13.php
