HI - thought I'd chime in; I have posted a good amount around the forums, mostly along the technical and music topics, but have not done as much writing about my music-playing gigs themselves. I can relate to much of what I've read here ...

Some background ... I'm 55 now, and have been doing the RH/NH type circuit for a couple of decades (along with ~1/3 of my gigs being in non-RH places). I was fortunate that my organ teacher (when I was a kid) introduced me to not just the current music of the time (late 1960s and then 1970s), but to a LOT of older music too - so I loved playing music from 1920s-1940s eras as much as the '60s and '70s (plus classical from a few centuries ago! :-)

Music-playing has always been a "side business" for me, as I have always had a typical "8-5" job. But I have a genuine love of playing, so have not minded "putting in the time/work" to do the marketing, learn plenty of good material that people want to hear, and doing what I can to "put on a good show".

One difference for me is that I'm not a singer. I play instrumentally. That hasn't stopped me from getting call-backs though, people seem to enjoy what I do just the same. I have been getting call-backs from many places for 15+ years now. (I'm in the central NC/USA area). People seem to enjoy the instrumentals; audience members tend to want to position themselves so they can SEE me play, and they often come up after asking about the keyboards/equipment, how I get all those sounds, and they enjoy the visual aspect (Watching my hands play the keyboards and hitting all the buttons and pedals etc.) I always try to put on a dynamic, variety, interesting program and not just play "meekly" or play "background-music". (I play a Tyros5 with an additional small keyboard). I throw in some "high-energy production number" type pieces, along with some gentler music, all from the eras they seem to enjoy.

Since I only do this part time, I often have to say "no" to ADs who call me - I only do 2-3 bookings a week (my choice). Even though I say "no", they just hire me for a future month etc., and they seem to keep trying to get (book) me even though I don't have as much availability as full-time musicians.

Anyway, like others mentioned, over the last ~5 or so years, I have seen a gradual decline ... one place used to have a 2-hour ballroom dance every month, and I played it for many years. Now they do it 4 times a year. Another place used to have me play a "happy hour" type thing every month, not I do that 4 times a year as well. So they have had cutbacks. What happens now though, is since some of my "regulars" have reduced their schedules, I now can fit in more "YES" responses to AD calls from places I used to not play at as often ... so it's balanced out OK. I haven't had any clients want to reduce my rate, thankfully.

Anyway, that's how things appear to me in central NC, USA. I do notice that there are more and more new RH/Assisted Care (etc.) places opening, so I think I'll never run out of opportunities ... but I agree with others, that it is a constant marketing thing to keep it all going year after year! :-)

Thanks all for the various comments/discussions, interesting to hear about what others are doing and experiencing!

-Jim

On the other hand, reading through more posts here, I'll never forget what that fellow said to me 20 years ago. I was "tired" at the time and commenting on it. He replied "Would you rather be making your living driving a taxi cab in New York City?"

I think about that to this day and maybe I should think about it even more now.

My own particular saying goes like this: "The WORST of this job is still better than the BEST of any other!"

MARK

I've played out in public for $$$ for probably 45 years or more...mostly with weekend and hobby bands.

There are times in my life when I thought about going full time but that steady paycheck of my job kept me back. So, instead, I worked 40+ years on the job...not as much fun as playing though. Nice though to have a couple of retirement checks coming in each month so I don't have to depend on this income.

The upside was that I was able to sock away a pretty good chunk of $$$ for a boat, or whatever. I ended up spending it on music equipment...fine with me. The other thing is that I actually have a hobby that pays $$$ and have paid for a lot of equipment with our gigs.

There are a number of paying jobs in our part of the country, within a 50 mile radius of where I live. Cities are growing here and so are assisted living places. Also, this is prime vacation land around here and lots of jobs in the summer months.

That said, it's not easy to make a living around here entertaining. However, I do have a few friends that give it their best shot.

I have a good keyboard playing friend that spent 35 years on the road and recently retired..he's 65. As he says, he didn't retire on what he made playing but rather on investments and inheritance. He loved what he did for a living but, as he says, you pay a price for doing what you love to do.

Rog

One other thing on shrinking budgets....

Prior to her death, my mother lived in a nursing home facility.

Her small room ran, $6,000 a month, and that was 10 years ago.

There were many residents in that facility and it didn't take much calculation to figure out that that facility generated $$$ millions of dollars a year.

However, they refused to pay for any entertainment. "We have no budget for that" I would hear from the activities director.

Truth is, that business...and that's what it was a business, was generating big income for it's investors.

And that income was what was most important. To pay a few entertainers each month a $100 or so would have been such a small part of the monthly budget(I estimated once about .001% of
their monthly budget) that no one would have missed it.

Many of these places are big business and big business likes big returns.

That said, there are a number of places in our area where I live now that find entertainment important enough to have a budget for it.

It's a place like that that 'cares' that I'm going to choose to live in when the time comes.

The problem is too many people into the music business pigeonhole themselves into a specific category . So for example nursing home performers see primarily themselves as musicians to play in nursing homes and therefore don't look for opportunities outside of that. Wedding band musicians do the same. To survive in any business you have to have fingers in many pies and you need to be actively and continuously marketing yourselves in those areas to bring a steady income stream. For example my brother-in-law is a choir leader who is paid to instruct and to write and arrange music for about eight choirs in the London area. He also teaches music professionally eight times a year by organising seminars where people will pay up to £200 for a weekend in a hotel where he will provide intensive advanced keyboard and programming techniques. He also does session work for the BBC which is a large television network in the UK and he also performs live regularly at numerous clubs throughout London.he generates a combined income sufficient to take care of himself his family is home his car and save. He works very hard on his musical skills but most important, he works even harder at his business skills and is able to Leveridge sufficient pay for the work that he does to remain in control of his income (subject to the normal variations that comes with self employment ) .

It is by no means easy, but it is achievable

My brother is a full time music teacher, going on 42 years at it.

He makes a pretty good salary teaching music and loves what he does.

He is an accomplished keyboard/piano player but tells me he has no great ambitions to play publicly other than what he does for his choir.

Short story is that yes, you can make it. Lots of ways to do that but it ain't always easy.

I've been self employed since 1975, but not always as a full-time, musician/entertainer. I've also made a good living as a full-time freelance outdoor writer, a freelance radio newscaster, and as the owner of a moderate sized sporting goods store that specialized in fishing, boating and hunting equipment.

When I left the field of cardio-pulmonary medicine in 1975, that was my last regular paycheck. It was also the last time anyone other than myself contributed to my social security and retirement. However, it was the same time when I set up my OWN retirement account, so that one day, I hoped, I could stop working for a living. That day has not come.

Over the many years I've been on this forum, I've tried to encourage forum members to create a retirement account. And, anyone that believes they can live off Social Security obviously believes in the Tooth Fairy. It's not at all difficult to set up an IRA, or any other forum of retirement account - but I was amazed at the number of full-time musicians that I've come across over the year that have not done this. Then, when health issues forced them to retire from music, they had to either take a reverse mortgage on their home, or in some instances, sell their home and move in with their children.

I treat my retirement account just like it was the electric bill. I used to pay it monthly, but now I pay it annually in one lump sum, and I contribute all that I can legally pay into it. That works out to about $100 a week - which is usually less than I spend on a couple meals at Red Lobster for Carol and I. (I hate Red Lobster food!)

Now that I have surpassed my 71st birthday, the law requires that I take out a minimal amount from my retirement. The feds don't like it if you don't do this, so they made it a law. However, I still continue to make the same contribution, which is more than I withdraw. And, there's no law against that. Consequently, the amount of the minimal withdrawal has increased over the past few years, which is great, because the cost of living has increased as well, so in a sense, I merely break even, which is better than most folks do on Social Security.

My point is, IF YOU HAVE NOT SET UP AN IRA, AND YOU ARE A FULL-TIME MUSICIAN ENTERTAINER, you are, or will be, in deep $hit in the very near future. There's an old saying about life that really puts a good light on this subject "Life is like a roll of toilet paper - the closer you get to the end of the roll, the faster it comes off!"

Nothing is forever, including my, or your, job. I suspect that one day, the NH circuit of the musical entertainment field will no longer exist, and if that day comes while I'm still performing, well, I'll sell my stuff to DNJ and sail to the Florida Keys where I'll retire to a life of sailing and fishing, or just drinking Margarettas and sitting on the deck in the sunshine.

Cheers,

Gary

No need for that Gary,.........
If I drop dead on stage singing "MY WAY" I'll have had a wonderful musical career, with no complaints ......
Music has been very good to me..

Gary, you are right about retirement/IRA. I've been paying into SSI since I was 18, I'm now 65, and still paying into it. The upside was that my SSI check is a good one. I also get a retirement check from my former employer that I retired from 10 years ago. I pull a little out of my IRA once a year to play catch up and then by the time the next year rolls around, that money is made up by interest payments.

Another thing to consider is getting everything paid off..house, car, etc. By the time my wife retires, we'll be there on that one.

I no longer contribute to an IRA but my wife, who is 4 years my jr. still contributes to hers.

So between the two of us, we do o.k. Income doesn't provide for a lot of toys but I can always buy more toys by playing out just a bit more.

Some of the most beautiful things in Life are FREE!!