Last night's gig served as a personal crossroad in my musical life. It was likely The Zoo's last gig until those of us who have been in college for the last four years again visit New Orleans for a musical reunion. Who knows how long it will be until that day.
I'll be back. I love this town and am playing music on tour with Frogs Gone Fishin', guys I went to high school with who I am now fortunate enough to record and tour with.
Last night was probably around the tenth time The Zoo has played the Howlin' Wolf, not to mention all the other clubs (Tipitina's, The Maple Leaf) we have played, or sat in at. It wasn't the rowdiest or biggest crowd we've had by a long shot (opening for Talib Kweli was around 4,000 people), but I could feel a respect for the musicians I play with coming from the club and audience that simply wasn't there four years ago when we started.
We managed to bring around two-hundred souls to that club four years ago and you know how they repaid us? Confiscating all our beers and some other personal items backstage. Granted I was yet to be of legal age at the time of that first Zoo gig, but this is New Orleans now people. This was a far cry from the free beer and backstage privacy we received last night.
The music industry is funny like that. There is not an even continuum of advancement, like in other professions. You are shit on until you break the threshold of the musical community (New Orleans has a very small and penetrable scene, thank god). I suppose this blog will attempt to highlight the crazy incongruities and idiosyncrasies in the music business as I move forward into my professional music career.
As I leave the deep south crossroads in New Orleans and head out on tour, I'll keep everyone posted on how I see this crazy business along with stories about some well known musicians, my experiences promoting, marketing, writing, and existing in the world of music.
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