Biggest Challenges for Musicians During COVID-19 and How to Overcome Them.

When Covid hit in February of 2020, I don't think anyone expected it to crash land and interrupt hundreds of millions of people. Red lights were forced on travel, going to work, school, exercising at the gym, and, for musicians, performing. What an unforeseeable sight for so many. I remember feeling especially devastated as a graduate in May of 2020. To have a massive lockdown, restrictions on travel and all young artist programs on indefinite pause three months shy of graduation was devastating. But alas, here we are almost two years later and life couldn't be more interesting! I've learned a lot about myself in this pandemic and I'd like to share with you three key takeaways on how this pandemic has impacted musicians and what you can do about it.

1. Being a musician is expensive. This is true with or without a pandemic but definitely hit hard during. One of the biggest costs is investing in yourself. Music lessons, coaching, equipment, travel, and your time cost a good chunk of change. Unless you were born into money or won the lottery, a majority of these costs will come from your pocket. My advice: start small from the beginning and create meaningful relationships with mentors. To begin small in the beginning, I suggest finding outlets to share your talents with a small audience whom you can trust will give you an honest opinion about your performance. This feedback is invaluable, and at the end of the day, the listeners' experience will say volumes about your artistry. This feedback is free and as a bonus, you get performing experience. Finally, who you create lasting relationships with can greatly impact your career. Relationships will provide an abundance of wealth money cannot buy. When you go out of your way to establish, grow, and sustain relationships with those who have wisdom and knowledge in the field you'd like to pursue, you create a pathway to close access to their abundance of knowledge. Most people who've grown to appreciate your relationship will offer advice free of charge. More often times than not, this knowledge is not something taught in schools.

2. If Covid has taught us anything it's to think outside the box. The way of life had a major shift and maneuvering around it required some adjusted and open-minded thinking. Performing no longer meant dress rehearsals or singing in front of audiences and taking pictures after the show. Instead, these things came to a pause or proceeded in untraditional ways with virtual rehearsals, singing with masks, and singing to a recorded track instead of a live orchestra. This became the new normal. With this new normal came exploration, interesting opportunities, and vulnerability. Exploration of the arts lead to interesting opportunities which as a result explored a new level of vulnerability. Performing as we know it had changed. We had to place an expressive artistic side in a foreign atmosphere and learn how to prevail. These untraditional ways of performing forced us to embrace our vulnerability. Many of us not only prevailed during this time, but explored a new layer of our creativity. I cannot stress enough how imperative it is to be open-minded during challenging, unfamiliar and vulnerable times. It's not only a moment to learn more about yourself, but an opportunity to be a teacher to a future someone. My advice: welcome vulnerability.

3. One of the most valuable lessons Covid taught me is to take the lead and be my own boss. Performance opportunities were far and few between so I decided to create my own opportunities. In general, I think everyone should adopt this mindset. Relying on others to hand you your career limits your opportunities. It can also delay your career. Instead, take advantage of the resources you have and explore ways you can bring new experiences to your career. You'll be surprised how much knowledge this will give you. For example, one of my personal goals is to master putting together a concert. This includes marketing, finding the venue, putting together the program, organizing rehearsals, organizing the finances, and having a successful show. I've learned so much putting together two shows, but it is a long, continued work-in-progress. However, I've never been more motivated to learn and I hope this is motivation for you to be your own boss.

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