What Does it Take to Make a Living as a Full-Time Musician in a Band?

Do you dream of being a popular musician one day? And want to play your music in front of your fans? Going on world tours and traveling to new places to get musical inspiration from them, also discovering traditional music from different cultures. It sounds awesome, right?

After that, you make music with your creativity and that thing will make you lots of money. Your fans will pay for your music, But wait being a full-time musician in a band is not about glamour and being famous only and it’s not so easy.

This guide will show you what it takes to make money by playing music for your band. In this article, we are going to reveal What it Takes to Make a Living as a Full-Time Musician in a Band. It’s like turning your hobby into a real job!

This Skills You Must Have To Be A Full-Time Musician in a Band

To be a great musician you need these skills, if you want to become popular you must have these skills.

Musical Skills: No matter what instrument you play, practice hard to become good. This can take time, but it’s the most important part!
Making Your Music: Writing something new and cool, catchy songs with your bandmates helps you stand out and get fans who love your sound.
Music Business Stuff: Being a musician isn’t just about playing music all day. you will also need to learn how to promote your band. This is the most important thing in a musician’s life because you are doing this to make money also right?

Finding the Perfect Team For Your Band

Your bandmates are very important for success in your musical journey! Make an amazing team music with people who share your passion and ideas about music and their experience. That makes your team bond strong.

How To Search For Good Bandmates?

There are offline and online ways you can find your best bandmates, on websites and local music events are the best places to find other musicians. Look for people who are good at their instrument but have similar Mindsets, goals, and dreams like you.

How To Make a Team With Bandmates?

After finding the bandmates, it’s important to be honest with each other and respect each other, creating a friendly environment so no one is superior and no one is lower. This can make a good relationship between bandmates.

How to Make Money as a Musician from Your Music

Playing Shows

Playing live is the best part of being in a band! But to get those things done and make money with it, you need to work hard

Finding Shows and Fans

You have to start things from small, look for local places and websites that have events and shows for bands. Don’t hesitate to work on small shows or events in the beginning, you want to get experience and build trust with your bandmates so that they can achieve big things in the future. From these small events, you also get some fans.

Making Money Beyond Shows

Playing shows gets you money, but there are other ways too! Sell band shirts or CDs. You can make money from social media like YouTube or Facebook there you can monetize your video as well as you also get sponsorships, and the internet is a big thing today, with social media, you can reach a worldwide audience from your home.

How To Make Money As Full-Time Musician

Being a music creator today is much better than doing a boring job. The craze of social media is rising day by day so it’s a golden opportunity to make money with music.

There are so many ways for full-time musicians to make money:

Streaming Services: Get your music on big platforms like Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube to earn money.
Music Licensing: License your songs to get paid.
Sponsors: Partner with brands and companies to sponsor (promote) their products
Teaching: Share your skills by offering private music lessons or online video courses
Crowdfunding: Build a community that’ll support your music through monthly funds on sites like Patreon

Frequently Asked Questions

How much can a full-time musician realistically earn in a band?

It’s not a fixed salary-like job, but you can earn better from $20,000 to $100,000 or more per year.

What are the best ways to promote my band?

The best thing to promote today is the INTERNET, you can reach a worldwide audience with this, so avoiding local promotions going online is always better.

How can I balance a music career with other life goals?

Set boundaries, prioritize self-care, and make time for non-music-related things and relationships.

More Useful Resources help you to become a musician

For those who are serious about being a professional full-time musician, here are some extra resources to check out:

Musician’s Institute (www.musician.edu)
Musicians’ Union (www.musiciansunion.org.uk)
“All You Need to Know About the Music Business” by Donald S. Passman – best guide for the music industry
“How to Make It in the New Music Business” by Ari Herstand

Final Words

Being a full-time musician in a band is not so easy, but if you LOVE music more than anything, it can be amazing! Just remember, it takes more than just being good at music. You have to be focused, work hard, and never give up.