Thought I'd share post B.B. King thoughts on music career.

People often ask me if I make my entire living playing music. The situation is usually me at a show at a bar, a festival, a restaurant, whatever, and they come up to say they like the music. Then they start to actually look concerned. “Do you make your living doing this?” I have a standard answer. I say, “I do actually. At least 75% of my living comes from music and then I do odd jobs. Right now I'm (insert odd job i.e. sailing, nanny to my nephew, etc.)” Sometimes it ends there, sometimes though, I get a look following my answer. People are either fascinated or flustered or just plain flabbergasted because they know that you don't make much money at all at the level that you're at in the music biz. They know that you put in an unbelievable amount of time and get very little monetary reward. They often even understand that your guitar is worth more than your car, you may have no health insurance, and that you are willing to live a lifestyle that seems truly uncomfortable and unsafe to them. But, somehow they respect you and sometimes they want to understand why.

I guess I've gone off on a rant here but my point was supposed to simply be, it's worth it. It's more than worth it. It's what I'm supposed to do and it's what that musician you are asking the same question to is supposed to do and it's just too bad that more people aren't willing to explore just how easy sacrifice is when you do what you love.

For instance, Sunday night we opened for B.B. King. An opening slot is not an Aha moment, does not make you famous and is over as quick as you can say good night. But! It does offer some perks. First of all, you realize that some people in some high places really like you and appreciate what you do when they invite you, lobby for you, and book you at a show like that. Then, you get a bunch of press you didn't even have to try to get. That's nice. Then you get an education. You get a glimpse of what it's like for people who have made it, you meet their band, you get front row seats and you simply behold what it is to be a living legend. Now that's not even the tip of the iceberg.

Sunday night, B.B. King's drummer let Carrie play his drums and adjusted his kit for her. John played their bass player's rig and we all got to spread out on their stage comfortably. This is not a common opening act experience. Then, at the end of the night, B.B. King, who had played masterfully, beautifully, and stupendously, said that he wanted to thank the opening act and actually mentioned me personally. When he said the words Becky Chace and people applauded, you can imagine that I had a huge smile on my face. Not many headliners have mentioned us over the years and none of them have had the word “Legend” attached to their name. Then, to top it all off, I got to meet Mr King and hang out with him for a few minutes and he was as nice as he seemed on stage. A true gentleman, a human being like everyone else, but someone who has seen a lot and deserves the praise he gets because he is not only a true showman, a tremendous vocalist, band leader, and guitarist, but he has class, and at 84 he's still looking out for the people around him who don't have what he has and making a point of mentioning their names.

So, to get back to my original point, although we may not be there, we still try, we take the gigs we can get, we have our lives intact, we sacrifice a lot, but man is it worth it! Sunday night is what it's all about. You don't get that unless you keep doing it and stay focused on what you love. It's worth it.