Cool at 54? Make the Work Anyway
Warning: today this is an advice column. If you’re trying to do something artistic.
And I’m trying to do something artistic, I am playing bass, I’m writing songs, playing guitar, being a utility man. I think that one of my unstated goals is just the cool old dude in the back doing cool sh*t, making stuff cooler.
It’s easy to be cool when you’re young. Try doing it when you’re 54.
Anyway, I have a micro blog. I have a SoundCloud. You cannot live and die by the daily numbers. Any growth curve or death curve is a saw tooth — you have your ups and downs. There are days when literally no one reads the blog, and success for me is like 10 people reading a day because generally out of those 10, 2 or 3 people will read a couple posts, and that’s huge. It’s been as high as 100 a week. Around Christmas it was like 20-something, and you just have to find a way to keep going and have faith.
I think making music is the same way. You just have to keep making it. As much as I talk about MPC and OP-1 these days, I’m still messing with Ableton so I don’t lose it because I believe in it, and I’ve kind of lost it before, so I want to keep going. That’s why I play bass and guitar a lot and keys, but also keep up a little bit with my mandolin and make sure a couple times a week it’s in my hands.
And it’s not really faith. You just have to believe that making this art is gonna be better for you, even if it’s just personally therapeutic, right? The whole thing I’m talking about: it's a bonus if somebody listens.
I’ve referenced it before — keeping that Matthew Dicks suggestion of a compliment list — and it’s so important. Or when a couple days ago somebody goes through and likes a bunch of your Instagram posts, or listens to a bunch of your SoundCloud tracks. I’m boo-hoo-ing that the blog had 3 reads, but also SoundCloud had 3000 listens last month, so it’s like what the hell do I have to be mopey about?
And I feel like I’m getting better — or not really getting better — but it’s better to me because it’s a true representation of my artistic vision. Everything’s starting to feel like everything else no matter what I do it on, and that’s something.
So you have to have a collection of things to remember and think about for the days you don’t believe in yourself, because you still want those reps, and to get through those days, and having done the work because it’s all so cumulative and it builds on everything else.
So keep the faith, y’all. I love this, and I’m so happy anyone’s reading it, so thank you. I don’t say it enough.