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Mojo Zap



Last Updated: 11/21/2009

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Status: Single
City: CHICAGO
State: Illinois
Country: US
Signup Date: 7/6/2006

Who Gives Kudos:


Sunday, October 29, 2006 

Current mood:  contemplative

HI : Taking the time to give everyone some feedback about music in general. Although I dont want to admit it ive been playing a LONG time! When I first started to play the guitar I did all the normal stuff. learned scales and chords and bought music books of all my favorite bands and musicians.

 As a lot of you know the music is seldom ever right so trying to learn all the songs of my favorite artist was hard for me at least. Then I figured that why even try to learn them because I knew how to play so why not just write all my own songs.  My question to myself was: will I ever be as good as Hendrix? Or  Clapton or Santana??? At that young age my answer was NO!!!  So the most logical thing to do was make my own music and hope one day I would get good.

 Then  as I got good at playing and writing songs and everyone wanted to hear my music I got my first dose of the reality of  all the sleezbag music producers and labels ripping off every young sucker that came along.  Most of them had a god all right and it was money.  They could care less what ever happned to me or anyone.  Today that has not changed one single bit except now it takes even more money to even try to open a door in the music world.

 Listine to the radio are they playing good music? Do they have the best songs and the best musicians on the radio? NO is again the answer  and the chance you will ever make it in the music world is slim to none.  Now we all Blog and have My Space websites to expose and promote our music. Thousands and thousands of us are here all trying to make that one right conection to the top. Dont hold your breath to long!!! 

 It's great to have all these modern tools to use to let others know about our music BUT  as the comunity grows bigger and bigger every day and musicians become more skilled than ever the question comes to mind what is the future of music and what is the future for us as musicians?  Tower Records went bankrupt and is closing all it's stores. They were one of the few music chains that would display and sell local musicians music without a label. Some of the largest recording studios in the world are closing now and being replaced with condo's.

 Music sales worldwide are down as much as 40% and recording contracts for musicians by major labels is down as much as 30%  With that being the case one has got to ask the question what in fact is the future of music?  The answer is dim at best. When people expect us to give our music away for free on the Internet as MP3 downloads they sure arent going to buy our music. And if we think that as unsigned musicians we can make a living selling our CD's online we are fooling ourselves. Few if any have ever done that. Eating beans the rest of your life an wearing rag's might be a good lesson in humility but it sure doesent make for a good life. Working a regular full time job and trying to be a musician full time gets real old fast to.

 So for the faint hearted or those less than devoted to music it for sure will never work. Believe it or not LUCK still plays a big factor in music. Being at the right place at the right time still has a lot of merit. So if your not lucky and your not willing to give up a lot dont even consider music for anything other than a hobby. The stuff I just shared is not negative it's factual and true. Reality sucks but it is reality!

 

PEACE

Mojo Zap

Chris Gonterman

 
Let me start by sayingI like what I have heard of your music.Now as for the message I can relate,I've been at it 31 years myself and have made little more than free drinks and lots of friends.I definitely can't quit my day job but I love music.I feel the advent of rap is killing us.Total lack of musicianship in my opinion.Never give up,music may not make us a living but it is a gift from God it's just too bad the biz is run by such godless s.o.b.'s.I've met good people in this industry but it always comes down to a talentless hack calling the shots.Oh well,I bet heaven has alot of great bands and not many promoters or producers.Jam on brother...
 
Posted by Chris Gonterman on Saturday, December 02, 2006 - 1:09 PM
[Reply to this
Darren Sherley

 

As a kid I started playing because I liked to play. Then later it was about the girls and the parties. Now at almost 40, a wife, 2 kids and a hundred pounds of extra weight, it’s not about money for me. It is about and only about the opportunity to play before a group of people to hopefully show that real musicians can still be seen. Although I do make some money, its only enough to buy bass strings when they are on sale and have a little money to take my wife out to moderately priced restaurant.

  My hopes for stardom were squashed years ago, but I’m grateful for that. You see now my soul motivation is to become the best player I can be and not to be the best gunslinger. Rather to build musical relationships with, as many good players I have the good fortune to find and be invited to play with. The truth be told, we as musicians feel we are far more important to the world then we really are. Even now a large number of adolescents of this decade have no idea who Eric Clapton, the Beatles and even Elvis is. What hope do we have to be remembered?

  I do have faith though that one day that the musicians will reign again. The control of creativity song and music will be in the hand of the musicians and not the corporate world. Until then we as the musical mentors must keep on being the herald for good music and musicianship.
 
Posted by Darren Sherley on Tuesday, December 19, 2006 - 2:02 AM
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Mojo Zap

 

Darren : For the most part I guess I agree with you. In reality Im taking a new and diferent angle on it all  but as to weather or not it works I will wait and see.

 I dont think anything of myself or my playing or have any ego at all. That seperates me from 99% of all musicians. In the past ive found that musicians as a whole are so flakey and undependable and hard to deal with. Now I am an independant musician and write all my own music and play all the instruments and sing. When I need musicians to record with me I go to the musicians guild and hire them. Tell them what to do and lay down the tracks and say thanks and they do the job.

 Personally Untill a few years ago I was a full time electronics engeneer but now because of my age and tenure no one will hire me so I have to wear a lot of hats  and do a lot of things to get by so life is never boreing ,(HA!).  I dont have any false hopes of glory or fame BUT  im a better singer and songwriter than a player so I have a talent that does have some merit regardless of my age. I can still write and sell songs till  I croak! 

 

Peace

Leo


 
Posted by Mojo Zap on Tuesday, December 19, 2006 - 10:58 AM
[Reply to this
Photography by Suzanne

 
I just want you to know that I have read this Leo and I think you are great!!
Kudos to you!!
Hugs!
 
Posted by Photography by Suzanne on Monday, October 08, 2007 - 7:25 PM
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