A guitarist friend moved to Nashville in 2020 and had more session work in six months than I had …
T=0: The Decision
Four years in Brooklyn. Gigging three nights a week and bartending four. Rent was $1,850 for a room I shared with mold. The music industry I had moved to New York to access had largely moved to streaming platforms that paid fractions of cents.
A guitarist friend moved to Nashville in 2020 and had more session work in six months than I had managed in two years in Brooklyn. The cost of living arithmetic was simple: same hustle, half the cost, twice the industry proximity.
Paying rent from music alone. Playing on a record I am proud of.
6 Months Out
More session work in 6 months here than in 2 years in New York. Rent is $850 for a one-bedroom with a porch. The music community is collaborative in a way NYC never quite managed — less competition, more co-writing.
“Nashville runs on relationships. Go to the open mics, go to the writers' rounds, go to everything. The first 3 months are for being seen, not for performing.”