In the US, we just celebrated independence day a couple days ago. Today, the Island of Comoros is celebrating their independence. This is interesting to me for a specific reason. Most people have heard of the United States, but not until today have I heard of the island, or the Republic of, Comoros. The only reason I even discovered it is because I was looking at an online resource that shows various holidays around the world.
How does this relate to us as musicians? I think the United States represents the big acts that everybody knows about. These are the musicians that are household names. That’s not most musicians, though. Most musicians are like the Republic of Comoros – little known except to people in their direct sphere of influence. Like the Republic of Comoros, you probably wouldn’t even find out about the lesser known musicians unless you discovered them by accident through an online resource like Spotify, Pandora or YouTube.
This doesn’t mean that it’s unfortunate to be an independent artist, though. Being an independent artist doesn’t mean that you have to suffer little recognition until you get signed on to a major record label. The good news is that you don’t have to be the big kid on the block, the most well known, to make a living as a musician.
The Island of Comoros may not be generating two-thirds of the world’s wealth with their population of 750,000 and change. In fact, they are one of the world’s poorest countries, but you don’t see them rolling over and giving up or begging for some larger nation to take them over so they can enjoy greater wealth.
Here are some benefits I can think of for being an independent artist
- You can do whatever you want to do creatively and musically
- You can do it on your own terms and on your own time table
- You get to enjoy all the royalties
- You get the satisfaction of taking pride in what you’ve accomplished
How about you? Are you an indie musician? If so, are you celebrating your independence?
How do you celebrate independence as an artist? I’m interested in hearing your thoughts.