Derek Sivers speech to Berklee College of Music

Derek is an amazing guy. He founded CDBaby which has become a great distributor for Indies and has helped me get my music into lots of places. He is a great motivator and has an insight into the music business that is based on reality. In this video he gives a talk to first year students at Berklee College of Music on opening day. His topic is what he wishes he knew when he first attended Berklee.

I never went to music school and am self taught. I had to learn much of what Derek is talking about on my own. I wish I had heard this talk when I first embarked on this journey. The music business is highly competitive. What makes it possible for people like me to succeed is that a great number of musicians just don't have a very good work ethic. Those of us who do have a good work ethic float to the top because we show up in a good condition to give great performances. In addition, many musicians feel like they are selling out if they make money with their 'art'. That's fine with me...I don't mind making money with my art. In fact, I like making money with my art and I like running my own music business. One of my favorite American Indian artists wears a t-shirt that says: "Real Artists Don't Starve!". It has become my personal motto! RR