I’m always intrigued to hear artists and musicians tell their personal stories. With many of them, there is a common thread within their story–a bit of resistance they feel, especially as they get older, usually from family or significant others. The words may vary slightly, but the sentiment behind the words is pretty much the same:
“When are you gonna grow up?”
“When are you going to get a life?”
“When are you going to get a ‘real’ job?”
In the previous posts in this “Finding Your Niche” series, we’ve asked the question, “Who are you, really?”, and we’ve taken you through some questions to help you discover your true passions. But there is more.
You see, when you think about the phrase “finding your niche”, what is the word “finding”?
Right. It’s a verb. (Or wrong, if you answered “noun” or “adjective”.)
What are verbs? They are action words.
So if you’re going to find something, you’ll have to do more than self-reflection; you’re going to have to take some action. You’re going to have to do something. That’s the next step in finding your niche: exploring your possibilities and taking opportunities–by doing things.
Here’s something to make your brain hurt early on a Saturday morning: when you create music (or any other form of art)…who is the music really for?
Another way of asking this question: are we creating for our audience, or for ourselves? Or…is it art for the masses, or art for art’s sake, or somewhere in between?
This is a question that I think is always under the surface with artists and musicians–phrased in a multitude of ways, yet always there somehow. It’s a question artists have grappled with for centuries, and where they land on the issue determines the kind of art they create.
It’s inevitable; if you’re a songwriter, at some point you’re going to face the dreaded “writer’s block”. You’re going to feel uninspired, you’re going to feel pressured to create something and come up empty-handed. Or would that be “empty-headed?”
Anyhow.
One of my all-time favorite movies is Mr. Holland’s Opus starring Richard Dreyfuss. Please take a few minutes to watch the video clip below. It’s not necessarily the easiest thing to watch, but there’s something Mr. Holland says to the principal that really sums up my personal passion for the arts, why they are important, and why they need to be taught and nurtured.
