Wanting to be a famous musician is almost cliched. Everyone is desperate to be a rock ‘n’ roll star at one stage of their life.
But only a select number of people get to call themselves professionals. Why does this happen? A lot of it is down to luck. However, some of it is down to the following attributes.
Passion & Commitment
Being successful is tough regardless of your career path, yet trying to break into a competitive industry is twice as bad because people are selective. Receiving “constructive criticism” and suffering knockbacks is a part of life as a musician. Judging by the numbers, the lifestyle is too stressful for the majority of wannabe rockstars.
Look at the US as an example. America is traditionally a place that breeds musicians because it’s the mecca of the sector. Anyone who can break it will be successful. Unfortunately, the number of professional singers and bands is declining rapidly, with around 4% fewer people doing it today than in 2016. The Relative Standard Error of the market, a symbol of its reliability, 3.6% according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
With so few opportunities, the people who secure them aren’t necessarily the most talented. Instead, they’re the most passionate as they are willing to do anything to make it in the entertainment industry, including working multiple jobs, earning very little, and being confident in their ability.
Ability to Take Risks
When musicians do finally find opportunities, they want to hold on to them for dear life because they are as rare as hens’ teeth. But if you analyse what the biggest bands and artists on the planet do, they often take calculated risks, especially when things are going well for them. One Direction, for example, might not be The Beatles, yet the band was a commercial giant at the peak of its powers.
So, when Zayn Malik left, most people wondered why he would look a gift horse in the mouth. The desire to go solo and own the entire limelight is too much to ignore, and it has turned out to be a ruthless decision considering he’s a chart-topping musician with a catalog of solo material. Camila Cabello did the same thing to a similar effect in December 2016 when she left Fifth Harmony.
Without her, the band has struggled to reproduce the hype that surrounded them when they first hit the scene, whereas Cabello has gone from strength to strength. Listing her honours, Billboard reports she has won numerous awards that highlight she’s here to stay for the long haul.
Transcending the Industry
Artists that transcend the industry are not only famous in their era, but throughout history. Dave Grohl, for instance, has secured his legacy by being in two of the greatest rock bands of all time in Nirvana and The Foo Fighters. The Beatles, on the other hand, created songs that were so powerful that they have been depicted in everything from films to books and art.
It’s not always about the music, though. Childish Gambino, real name Donald Glover, is also a stand-up comedian and actor. Why is this important? It’s because Glover has several platforms to raise awareness of his art, particularly his music since it dovetails perfectly with everything from Hollywood to professional sport. Guns N’Roses have done the same thing, but they have gone down a different avenue – gaming.
The Guns N’Roses online slot is regularly named as one of NetEnt’s best mobile touch services, despite the fact the developer launches hundreds of them yearly. As CasinoSmash points out via its website, the release remains one of the top online slots to play in 2022, alongside heavyweights such as Starburst and Narcos, meaning the band will benefit from a massive gaming audience being introduced to their discography.
Some artists transcend their profession through music, others do it via investing in commercial platforms, and some combine them perfectly.
Of course, the biggest takeaway from all of this is the element of fortune. Without a bit of luck, several household names would still be living in obscurity.
