Some of you have been curious and some concerned as to why I've retired from live performances. I have always been a strong supporter for the Independent Christian Artist, in part because I am one, but unfortunately the local support for Indie artists in this area rarely shows it's face.
The simple and plain fact that I write and sing Christian music should say to churches, Christian coffee houses and Christian promoters in this area that I sing for the Lord and minister in song. If that wasn't the case I would sing secular music and get gigs in other genres. But, in this area it's not enough to say that. In this area churches, Christian coffee houses and promoters use the excuse to not pay any honorarium to local artists because they should be "Doing it for the Lord and not for money."
Churches don't survive without money. Christian coffee house don't survive without money and Christian promoters who promote events wouldn't promote events unless they made money too. But, all of these venues and more I suppose fail, or refuse, to pay Independent Christian artists anything for showing up and ministering in song to their audience. So, who ends up paying the tab? That local Christian artist who wants to share their music and ministry with others picks up the tab and ends up paying for the opportunity to sing.
Many would say that's "Going through the ropes" and "Paying your dues." To a small degree that's true but in the big picture it's simply a way to take advantage of talent. But then there are those so called Christian venues that not only won't give you an honorarium but won't allow you to sell your CD's at their venue. They will tell you it's not about commercialism. Yet those same venues will sell a wide variety of "Crap" in their display area to help them generate money.
In the end I just simply got tired of it all. Independent artists spend months and months recording a CD. Then they spend what money the can to record, mix, master and produce the physical product. In the end that artist rarely gets a return on the money they've put out to make their CD. Trust me I know. I know plenty of local artists who have given me their CD or album in cassette form and I didn't even know they had an album. I've asked them why they don't sell them when they sing and I hear the same thing I say about venues. In the end they didn't make enough on the album to pay for it so they didn't even make a next album.
I'm not bitter, I'm tired. I'm tired of the what seems to be "the fight" for indie artists to receive some kind of compensation for driving 100 miles to minister in music, or even 5 miles. The distance should be irrelevant. Well that's my 2 cents. And that's about the average amount of honorarium Indie artists tend to make at live performances too.
