Music Industry Struggles Quotes

Music business is hard. It's very difficult. And it's not for everyone. Even if you can sing or even if you can write a song, it takes a lot of determination, it takes some kind of thick skin.

I think the music business will eventually crush me, but I [smiles]... I'm ready.

People weren't buying as many records. My record company did not want me. I went through three record companies, went on tour at the wrong time. It destroyed me.

Music Row gets dragged through the dirt, but they're just trying to survive.

I'd been knocking on record companies' doors for so long, and I had gone on a lot of auditions. It's weird when you go to those auditions through the Village Voice or something. You never know what to expect. You just press Floor 3 on the elevator and pray that it's not... You know, anyone can place an ad, so it's really freaky.

What is the source of power of musicians who are financially browbeaten, most of whom work for minimum wage or less? Musicians who cannot even afford to buy tickets to operas or concerts in which they themselves perform?

The late '90s were a really bad time for people trying to be rock stars, you know what I mean? It seemed like everyone was a one-hit wonder on the radio. We had friends who had a hit single on the radio and sold 500,000 records, and then they couldn't get arrested a year later. I had this feeling at the time that that was not possible anymore, so the idea of becoming the biggest band in the country—it seemed laughable. I felt that having those sort of ambitions was foolish, because there was no way that was going to be possible. If you saw it that way, you were just deluding yourself.

I did a lot of songs that I sold, but then they never came out and I never got paid for it. You learn real fast that the music industry, in the beginning, you're not going to get paid for a while, and then you start getting the accolades.

There's always a time when you think you've done your last song or you've written your last rap or, you know, people are not checking for you.

You have to change musically. Bubble gum pop was good for the first time you have sex. They didn't want to give the OK on some really good music. It was the frustration of being signed to that label. I was depressed.

I got out of the business because I went from being the biggest artist on my record label to someone they didn't even want to have around.

I toured for 13 years, and it was very lonely, and it was hard work. I'm not afraid of hard work, especially if it's for stuff that I enjoy. But I actually don't think you could name one artist who enjoys promo or touring after the first three to six months of an album cycle.

I can give you my personal opinion: love the music, hate the business. It's a screwball business, and there are a lot of players who will straight-up lie to you.