Coronavirus & Recording Artists

The music industry is currently enduring one of the worst blows in history. As a pop recording artist engaged in the Nashville music scene, I can attest to this firsthand from my experience and from watching how this epidemic has affected my friends. Since the cancellation of every tour and one-off show, artists, band members, and touring crews are sitting at home. Music Row, which is home to many record labels, publishing houses, and recording studios, has gone dark. So has every honky-tonk that makes up Broadway, Nashville's most popular tourist attraction. It's an offbeat time here in Music City.

Thankfully, many of us in the industry can work from home. Writing and producing new songs, as well as recording our instruments in our home studios, is turning out to be an excellent asset. Unfortunately, that will only go so far. The majority of musicians rely on their work-for-hire jobs. At this time, very few of those opportunities still exist. The only source of income that hasn't been severely diminished or completely ripped out from under this community is royalty checks. For most artists in this era of music consumption, these generally come from streaming services, iTunes sales, and other online music providers. However, unless you're a major artist, the small amount of money made from these outlets will do little to smooth over these hard financial times. I recently received a royalty statement for a total of $2.45. If you'd like to learn more about just how much artists make from each stream, I strongly encourage you to do some research. You'll be shocked.

I am so pleased to see how giving artists have become with their time and talents, knowing that we are all tight on money and in need of being cut some slack. It's fantastic to witness such a strong showing of community. But let's not allow this roadblock to completely derail all the hard work we put in before the epidemic struck. Music holds a complicated value, as do all forms of art. More than just time and materials go into its production. Creativity is the most significant contributor. As a result, it can be hard to tack a dollar sign onto it. How do you justly put a price on someone's ideas when they are essentially an extension of their heart and soul? To me, they're priceless. My ideas are worth much more than that $2.45 royalty check. But to survive and even thrive as artists, we must asses the financial worth of our creations.

I wholeheartedly believe that we will rise stronger from this sudden turn of events, though I fear how long that will take. The music industry is shaken to its core and will need time to recover. That is why, now more than ever, the world must continue to engage with music online. Whether it is through tuning into Facebook or Instagram live streams, streaming music, purchasing merchandise, or simply sharing your favorite artists/bands/musicians with your own social media following. These are the best ways you can continue to support your favorite creators. Now, we wait patiently for this storm to pass...