A 'labour of love' is how the artistic endeavour is oft referred to. It is an apt description, particularly for the artistic progeny of the contemporary musician; the 'album' in the digital age.
There is an immense satisfaction in knowing someone is listening. A validation, however irrelevant, of one's turmoil through long nights pouring over lyric books, computer screens, and finally navigating the murky waters of social media in a bid to have someone listen.
It is an exceptional thing to even break even with one's music in the digital age, especially when one factors the time, money, and skill that producing an album takes. A truly monumental task, not to mention terrifying. Sending your 'musical baby' out into the world to be loved, hated, scrutinised, is akin to sending one's biological child off to backpack some far flung region of the world. After all we are pouring all our love, and bearing our deepest feelings on the page, and then through the speaker, if we hope of to produce anything of value; personal or otherwise, the value of such an endeavour lives in its authenticity.
So I feel two distinct feelings toward music in the 'digital age'. It has never been easier to get our music into the world, and to be heard. This is monumental. There are no gatekeepers of the music industry in the form of record companies, agencies etc etc, who require impressing before you can even have your music recorded. No 'moulding; into a particular form that is expected to sell; music now how a true ability to be authentic. Music has been liberated and this is a beautiful thing.
On the other hand, how are us lowly musicians going to turn around and sell our music at a gig, or online, when that same music can be streamed for next to nothing. And available to be streamed it must be, or else be condemned to obscurity in today's world. We are not making any money. But then again, most of the time in the past artists did not make money either; instead being robbed to an astonishing degree of all their royalties. Maybe we should stop complaining. At least the music flows freely now. And at least now it is easier than ever before to have someone listen.
Yes, a labour of love it is. We do it for the love. And the satisfaction of having someone listen. Please listen.
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