Yay!!!! A gig at last!!!!!

Sang at Zak and Kirsty's wedding today - my first official gig of 2010 (shameful). My voice sounded great - but I messed up my words! Shocking. A real pro wouldn't do that. I was underprepared.

But at least I had a paying gig - I hope they were mostly happy.

So, gigs to go this year: 99. Not sure if I'll make it... But now I don't have to! When did music stop being fun? That's not right...

Day 68: The End...

Okay, so I've been thinking...

Blogging has been fun, and I will continue on, but the daily blog has become a slog, and I guess you need to know not when to quit, but when to change strategy.

I probably won't make my goal of 100 gigs this year, or 1000 CDs sold, or even 5 albums (I might manage to do 3, which still ain't bad).

But I just decided that I want to blog when I need to blog, not every day because I am under pressure to meet this silly deadline (kudos to Julia for blogging AND cooking for a year, every day).

So, in the end, I will still blog, but I am changing and revising my goals so that I don't go insane! I'm sure I'll be a much happier person for it.

Days to go: 0.

Day 67: I'm not owed anything

You know what? I don't care if nobody feels my music dream with me. I was reading a bit of Rudy again the other day, and he says that people who are really passionate follow their dream anyway.

If I had to get a day job today in a totally different city, I'd still find a producer to hook up with and I'd still keep making music.

You see, nobody promised me an easy ride, or accolades and awards and endless riches. But that doesn't mean I can't follow my dream. I can. I am. I will.

I am making music. I am in the music industry. These are decisions and actions I can control. As for the rest, well...

I appreciate my academic co-supervisor at university, who is helping me with my D Litt et Phil degree. She's a genius, the most amazing woman on the planet. When I did my Masters, she always told me how much she admired my dogged tenacious determination to get it finished - because it was such a struggle for me. She said that I'd earned her respect and admiration for that.

Well, that same bulldog terrier-like determination is being applied to my music career. I don't care how long it takes, or how much struggle and sacrifice it takes. I will not quit music until the day I die. If that's tomorrow, I die a happy man. I have lived my dream.

Days to go: 298

Day 66: Fans!

Been reading up on Bob Baker's great suggestions on how to better connect with fans. See, even though I'm supposedly this marketing expert, I sometimes feel so out of touch with grassroots marketing - the fancy stuff I know from text books makes me fancy - it just doesn't seem to make me relevant! Not that I'm complaining about my education. Hell, I'm so grateful that I'm still able to study at university - what a privilege.

But anyway - Bob says with fans it's the same as with all marketing: give them what they want. Well, that begs two questions:

1. Who ARE my fans?

2. What DO they want?

Life's mystery is part of what makes it such fun.

Days to go: 299.

Day 65: Insomniac Night Owl

I have developed the weirdest sleeping patterns. I usually fall asleep on the bed with the dogs in front of the TV at around 9pm, wake up at 1 and then come work on my laptop. Like now. It's 4:38am and I'm typing on my blog. Weird.

Music keeps me up nights.

Days to go: 300.

Day 64: Facebook

I'm trying to re-connect with all my friends on Facebook. I find it fascinating that I have a Masters degree in marketing communications, yet I sometimes feel incapable of effective micro-marketing! It's that whole cobbler's bare-foot children and physician heal thyself thing again...

Well, Derek Sivers cautions against becoming an expert. So should I quit music and just do marketing?

Never. Slash my wrists first.

Days to go: 301.

Day 63: Not bad for 4 years

You know, sometimes we are so hard on ourselves. I like to think that I wasted 20 years not pursuing my music career, but the truth is, 20 years ago I wasn't even sure I wanted to do music. I've always been a late bloomer, so it should come as no surprise to me that as little as 5 years ago I wasn't sure what kind of music I wanted to do.

After doing some musical theatre in 2005, and after singing opera for a few years, I realised that I'm just more suited to the pop/commercial world. So, it wasn't until 2006 that I started looking at those elements of my music career, and I think I have done really well for 4 years:

1. I've educated myself on the music business, so much so that I now teach music business to young music students.

2. I won the Top Billing Music Award in 2006, with Tzipora.

3. I've released 2 albums to date, with another 3 on the way this year.

I'm not rich or famous (yet), no Grammy Awards (yet), but am I enjoying the journey? So, so much. I am grateful for all that has transpired in my life, and I'm grateful that I've finally found my dream and am living it. You should try it - it's a liberating feeling...

Days to go: 302.