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Nick Honerkamp
It may seem like musicians live the high life, playing above a sea of fans and enjoying an endless stream of parties.
Aside from a lucky few, however, most have to work day jobs, since the earnings from performing are almost an afterthought.
“There’s absolutely no money in rock ’n’ roll anymore,” said David Morton, a drummer for local rock band Coral Castles who is employed at ARS Advertising. “Just playing music? No, I couldn’t live off that.
“I’m not living paycheck to paycheck by any means, but I need a steady income.”
According to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics, 35 percent of the 264,000 musician-related jobs in the United States were held by part-timers and 48 percent were self-employment.
Many local musicians said taking the stage full-time was one of their goals but that other demands had placed music lower on their list of priorities.
“I look forward to that opportunity (to play music full-time), but I don’t think it’ll happen,” said Lou Wamp, owner of Louis Wamp Architect & Associates who moonlights as frontman and resonator guitarist for the group Swingshift.
“Music is a tough nut,” he said. “It’s hard to make $70-80,000 a year as a musician, which is what it takes to keep my ship afloat with kids, home and stuff.”
Gig money may not be enough to pay the bills, but performers said music wasn’t something they could give up, even if it put them in conflict with an employer.
Most said they were upfront with their companies about their intent to play music and had made efforts to find businesses willing to work with them to help balance their passion with their job responsibilities.
“You shouldn’t have to live to work; you work to live,” Mr. Morton said. “Music is something I care about, and my job is something that pays the bills — but at the same time, I’m not some slacker musician.”
“So far, I’ve been able to work that relationship so my job hasn’t suffered and neither has the band,” he said.
Singer/songwriter Leticia Wolf has worked at various times as a freelance writer, bartender and cosmetologist. Now, she splits her time between teaching and playing music and working as a hair stylist.
Although her employer never forced her to choose between working or performing, she said she eventually made a decision on her own.
“I came to the point where it was like I could either continue working 50 hours a week and make a lot of money, or I could get back this part of myself I was missing,” she said. “Now, I work two days a week, and the rest of the time, I play music.”
Some musicians split their time between two passions.
This year, Mr. Wamp will celebrate his second decade as a licensed architect, a profession which he said rivals his love of music.
“It can be frustrating with the scheduling, and sometimes I’ll think: ‘What am I doing? I’m spreading myself too thin and not doing any of them justice,’ ” he said.
There have been times when he could pursue music full-time, but Mr. Wamp said he feels out-of-balance when he focuses too much on one of his passions.
“Internally, it’s almost a personality thing for me — one’s the Jeckyll and the other is Hyde,” he said. “When I’m tired and stressing over the architecture, I’ll wish I was playing music, but when I’m up on stage staring the crowd down, there are those times when I’ll wish I was back in my office.”
On a level playing field, however, local performers said they would quit their jobs if an opportunity to play music as a career presented itself without a pay cut.
“Probably right now, I’d let go of the architecture because I’ve been there, got the t-shirt and have 20 years licensed,” Mr. Wamp said. “Even if I never performed again and didn’t have a band, I would still pick up the mandolin every day.”
Nick Honerkamp, 58, has been an archaeology professor at UTC since 1980. He also plays bass for local bands like Lumbar Five and an acoustic cover band.
Even though he described himself as a “professional teacher” not a professional musician, Mr. Honerkamp said he would take early retirement to be a touring musician.
“Who wouldn’t?” he said. “When you’re younger, you hit the fork in the road, and you’ve got to make the commitment to one or the other, and I’ve always, always thought ‘What if?’ ”
Casey Phillips has worked as a features reporter in the Life department for three years. He writes about entertainment, young adults, animals and people of interest. Casey hails from Knoxville and earned a bachelor of science degree in journalism and a bachelor of arts in German. He previously worked as the features editor for Sidelines at Middle Tennessee State University. Casey received the East Tennessee Society of Professional Journalists Award of Excellence for Reviewing/Criticism in ...
