With the changing environment of the music industry in the past two decades, it has become even more difficult for artists to make a living from their musical endeavors. The renowned drummer Carmine Appice also addressed this issue during a recent appearance on Joe Bonamassa’s interview series, Live From Nerdville, and discussed the importance of reaching success to ensure a significant financial income and gave Foo Fighters as an example.
“It’s very difficult today, but all I can say is keep your eye on the money,” said Carmine Appice, referring to the musicians’ severe financial struggles to make a living. He stressed the importance of financial management and said, “I’ve done other things in my life. I wrote the drum book. That did well. Just stuff that came out that I did. I dabble in real estate. But, knock on wood, I had accountants and people watch over me, and I had a corporation, so I set myself up.”
“But a lot of guys don’t,” added Appice. “I mean, even guys in bands that I played with. And I’ve been lucky I played with all these different bands that made money. Today it’s very difficult to play unless you’re in a huge band like Foo Fighters that go out on the road and make all the money because the record business is really… There is no record business anymore.”
He continued, “I was thinking about that yesterday. I said, ‘How do these record companies make any money?’ Spotify pays nothing. Maybe if you get some people buying music on iTunes, downloads, that still makes a little money.” Speaking about the difficulties of earning a living in the contemporary music scene, the musician pointed out, “There are no CD sales anymore. Maybe some album sales. So how does a record company make any money? That’s why they’re not giving out any money.”
Although one might assume that musicians have more options to earn money in the modern era, this is unfortunately not the case. Music streaming platforms have gained popularity in recent years, but there is little left for artists since record labels usually get a big cut of the profits, which have also decreased. Furthermore, the pandemic dealt an even bigger blow because it prevented musicians from profiting from touring.
You can watch the full interview below.
