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Adults, teachers and society in general, view a music career as too dreamy, impractical or unstable. They often sigh and advise their youth to choose a more “useful and doable” career path. Then when the youngster shows a stubborn streak, they would relent and offer a different advice, which is, “Attend a music school first. At least you’ll then know what you’re doing.” This is just one of the misconceptions that Tom Hess, guitar expert and former guitarist of HolyHell and Rhapsody of Fire is sick and tired of hearing. The popular online guitar teacher and music career mentor insists that misguided advice certainly abounds, usually coming from well-meaning people. Unfortunately, well-meaning people could do real damage with their bad advice and dismissive attitude towards those hoping for a music career.

“Go To Music School First”

Tom Hess does not consider going to music school as a requirement nor automatic guarantee for career success in music. Tom Hess said, “When people tell you this, it is likely because they have heard somewhere that the music industry is highly risky and it will be nearly impossible to earn a stable income.” He insisted that this is actually backwards advice. “The fact is, the majority of people working as professionals in the music business are neither rock stars nor starving street performers. Actually, the music business consists of a large middle class filled with musicians who earn a stable and secure living. Additionally, the music industry is more stable than other non-music industry in many ways.” He explained, “When you’re working as a professional musician, you have various opportunities to build and sustain music-related income to come in many different sources at once. Some examples include money you make from touring, releasing instructional music products, selling your own music, and doing session work, just to name a few.”

“Only Pop Music Can Earn A Musician A Stable Income”

Tom Hess has heard this claim many times already as well. This misconception comes from the idea that since pop music is the kind of music that comes out on the radio the most, other types of music musicians are not making enough money to survive. He clarified, “Earning money by having your music played on the radio is just one of the countless ways that you can earn a living in the music industry. The key to making good money in a stable and secure manner is to accumulate many sources of passive music-related income. By doing this, you eliminate your reliance on a single income.”

“You Need To Rely On Luck In The Music Business”

As in other career paths, relying on luck is the same as having no plan at all. Tom Hess said the people in the music industry are actually just typical men and women with different types of skills: business, relationships and communication. These skills help in the long run to build trust and secure multiply income streams, so the next time someone is looking for a business partner or an artist, or a band member, you are always ready.