Do you create music or do you manufacture it?

This is an important and vital distinction that every artist must make at some point in their career. And the sooner the better.

If You Create Music...

Your music is simply an expression of who you are, what you’ve experienced and how you dream. You communicate through words and melodies.

If You Manufacture Music...

You enjoy music, but you write and perform music for the enjoyment of others more than your own personal need for self expression.

Making A Living

Those who Create Music must find a market for their music in order to make a living.

Those who Manufacture Music must find music for their market in order to make a living.

Know Where You Stand

There is nothing wrong with either camp. One isn’t better or more pure than the other.

However, it is imperitive that you know where you stand. The most frustrated artists are those who have a foot in each without emphasizing one or the other.

Once you know where your priorities lie, you can better handle the opportunities and challenges that come your way as you try to make a living making music. 

I personally think that in a realistic sense you have to think about your audience.  But if someone were able to write their own heart and have the audience relate, that would be the BEST!

Yes, good food for thought.  I also like to think of a healthy middle-ground, in which songwriters consciously serve their audiences (providing what their listeners enjoy and benefit from) while also being true to their personal creative visions.

It’s somewhere in between “writing-for-hire” and “venting”.  Often people who start out just being creatively expressive can move to a more audience-centred approach, which is likely to be deeply rewarding, even if songwriting isn’t their primary source of income.

All the best,

Lynn
http://www.lynnharrison.ca
http://lynnharrison.blogspot.com

Erisa,
Definitely true. I think the key is a balance between the two and knowing where our focus is.

Lynn,
Perhaps, in a sense, once an artist has an audience
they become something of a poet laureate for that community.