I’ve been in bands consistently for about four years, and it’s been nothing short of an amazing experience. Currently, I’m a member of the bands Keep for Cheap and Sal Paradise, and I have a solo project that’s under my name.
Being a performing musician has its challenges, but ultimately, it has had such a positive impact on my life. Not only has it benefited my personal life, but it’s helped me out in my academic and professional life as well.
If you’re looking for a sign to start a band, this is it! Here are some things that make it challenging, and some things that make it completely worth it:
Con 1: It is a BIG time commitment.
Between practicing, writing, performing and doing promotion on social media, being in a band can take up a lot of time. Balancing the responsibilities of being in a band with school and work can be a bit much.
Writing and rehearsing songs is the brunt of the commitment. It takes a while to write songs and get them show-ready, and even when they’re done, you have to take the time to keep them fresh.
You also need to set a lot of time aside for shows. Even though they’re not as frequent as practicing and writing, they take up a longer period of time. You have to get equipment to the venue early to set up, and get it home after the show is over, so you usually have to take the whole night off.
On top of that, you have to promote your shows. This doesn’t take too much time, but you do have to put some planning into promotion and content.
Pro 1: It offers real-world benefits.
At first, commitment to a band can be daunting. In the long run, though, it teaches you a lot about diligence and time management. Since joining a serious band, I have gotten much better about keeping my calendar up-to-date, planning out my schedule, and making time for all my responsibilities.
What’s more, putting all that time into practicing and moving gear around is totally worth it when you’re finally able to play your songs for your friends! Running through your songs (in any setting) is also, in my experience, a great emotional release.
Playing out is also a great way to meet people, make connections and find great local music that may be new to you! It’s also kind of fun to curate a social media page for your group because you get to post cool photos and videos of you and your band.
On top of all that, being a performing artist and having to network has made me so much more confident and outgoing. These skills help me to seize opportunities and advocate for myself more in the realms of work and academics.
Con 2: It can be hard to hit your stride.
Things don’t always happen naturally with a band. It’s easy to get discouraged when you don’t make the kind of progress that you want, whether that’s in the details of your writing, finding people to jam with, or the development of your group’s sound.
It took my band Keep for Cheap almost a year to gain all the members it has now, but I wouldn’t have had it any other way. Taking our time in forming the band made it all the more rewarding in the end.
Additionally, it can be hard to get people to take you seriously at first, especially if you’re a femme person. It is easy to see that non-male musicians face bias that often undermines their success. This can be extremely frustrating, but if you let it stop you, you won’t have the chance to prove them wrong, and you might miss out on finding other, kinder community members to support you.
Pro 2: You get to see the results of your persistence.
The more you just power through the creative process, the more you’ll create, and the prouder you’ll be of your art. In order to get comfortable with songwriting, and to get more comfortable with your creative teammates, you just have to write and rehearse relatively often.
If you’re having trouble finding people to create with, just reach out to the people around you. If you have musical friends, they probably know someone interested in being part of a group, or may be interested themselves.
Being in a band with someone is a great way to get to know them. Taking the time to practice with someone and get comfortable on a musical level can lead to a great friendship. I’ve formed some of my closest relationships through music. And, hey, even if it doesn’t work out, at least then you learn a bit about what you’re looking for in a bandmate.
And in regards to the sexism of the music industry (because we all know it’s there) for every person who makes you feel inadequate because of your gender identity or representation, there are countless more who will appreciate and support you and your art. The local music scene is filled with amazing people who want nothing more than to uplift the people around them. Finding this support and supporting others make the struggle against bias easier. The more we encourage each other, the stronger we all become.
Con 3: It can be emotionally taxing.
You will likely have to invest quite a bit of time, energy and money into your band if you’re serious about making it work. In order to settle into your style and share your music with the world, you have to be willing to invest personal resources.
Financial stability is, unfortunately, a big factor in a person’s ability to invest time and energy into a band. Gear, merch, and recording music all cost a lot, and are essential in keeping your band going. These things are not as easily accessible to people with less money or inconsistent income. Worrying about how you’re going to cover the costs of a band, along with other financial responsibilities, can be stressful and draining at times.
There is also the raw emotional stress that can go into creating art. It can be very frustrating to feel like your creations aren’t good enough, especially when you put your heart and soul into them.
Pro 3: You learn to listen to and appreciate yourself.
For a long time, I hardly realized how much effort and care I put into my music, but now that I do, I feel better when I give myself time off from it (and, if I’m being honest, from my other commitments as well). It helped me to realize that I deserve to take the time to care for myself.
Writing and performing music has also opened my eyes to a lot of my own emotions. I have processed so many things through writing songs about them. I also find that, in revisiting songs, I find new meanings in them and I am able to apply them to other situations than the one they were originally about. In this way, they continue to console me even after I’ve written them. Writing is one of my favorite ways to grapple with my more difficult emotions.
Being able to write songs and put the effort in to share them with people has not only taught me more about myself, but it has taught me to value myself and my energy more.
Getting to be in bands has been such a fun and enlightening part of my life, and I’m immensely grateful for the opportunity. I hope I’ve persuaded you to go start your own.