Myth #4: Artists Have Demons

when “the neon man and me” opened in richmond, there were only four people in the audience. one of those four would eventually lead me to pbs. sometimes, it’s not about the number of seats you fill, but the quality of the crowd that counts.

i’ve performed in front of sold out shows, where the audience was flat and made me question my decision to perform. i’ve performed in front of smaller crowds where the audience laughed at every thing i did and made me feel like a million bucks.  there is a certain energy that artists feel from others, a certain validation, a certain magic, which doesn’t necessarily come from the number of people in the crowd.

Myth #5: You need a day job to support your art

They say that the words our parents use with us are the words that we use against ourselves for the rest of our lives. This means that all of that self talk we hear in our head, like, “You’re not good enough” or “That was such a stupid mistake,” are things we’ve heard someone else say to us at one time or another - more than likely it was our parents. For me, the myth about the day job has been the hardest myth to kick. Although my father has been an artist his entire life, he really believes Myth # 5 to the core and he pushed it into my head with all his might.

So what’s an artist to do surrounded by a world of limiting beliefs that’s as big as Costco, Sam’s Club and BJ’s all rolled into one? Nothing makes me madder than hearing others around me buy into those myths. As someone famous once said, “To suffer in silence is a sin.” I will reprimand you if you’re around me and your slinging such hash. What do you do?

The answer is in your art, my friends, in your heart my friends, not in the outside world or in the opinions of others, for it is in your heart and your art where your dreams are born, grown and manifest.