(Part 2) I'm a rockstar - Ask Me Anything

[SweetnSaltyPopcornPlease]

Hi there,

Some of you may remember when I started an AMA thread called 'I'm a rockstar on hiatus'. I have actually been OFF hiatus for quite a while and have been very busy.

I'm considering publishing my experience in the music industry. I'm making notes about what people want to know. So do you have any burning questions?

Was snorting all the free coke very onerous? Did your PR girl have to score it? Or did you sometimes bring your own? Also when boarding a private jet, do you still get scanned by security? If so is it the PR’s job to bring the cocaine onto the plane, or do they have contacts in each territory? Important questions…

Not sure who you are but there are very few people who sustain "Rock Star" status for a prolonged time.

Also define Rock Star please?

Genre? Rock covers a lot of musical scope...

Uk? Broken the US?

Album sales?

Apologies if this was in the previous thread but useful to have here. Not trying to identify you but to ask questions that are relevant.

Some starters though...

• did you think you would "make it" when you started out?
• do you have any relationships/friendships that have not been impacted by your profession?
• if you have children do you worry about the impact of your career on them (touring/fame/legacy depending on how "big" a star you are)?
• do you think your success has made you a better person than if your music career hadn't worked out?

Are you male or female? Just because some of the questions I want to ask depend on that!

I’m just wishing I had read the original thread now!

Found it:

I'm a rockstar on hiatus - Ask Me (Almost) Anything www.mumsnet.com/Talk/AMA/3977208-i-m-a-rockstar-on-hiatus-ask-me-almost-anything

I'll try my best answer everybody. This works best if you ask one question at a time.

I used to be heavily involved in our social media. Then one day I was locked out of all the platforms. Apparently, I was too chatty.

I'd need some time to think but generally everyone I meet is friendly in some level. Some people I just wouldn't approach even if they were at the table/dressing room/studio right next to me. I've heard they make people feel small, like Madonna.

How do you think that streaming and the Internet have changed the music industry in the last 20 years?

Do you think it’s good that it’s possible for unknown artists to just whack their stuff up on the likes of Spotify for everyone to hear? Do you think it’s meant that kids of this generation won’t ever have their own stadium rock bands and are relying on the likes of Oasis, Arctic Monkeys, Coldplay for that type of experience?

Have you been complicit in the exploitation of women in your industry?

Of course you’re a rock star 😂 I’m a princess.

What’s the biggest pub crowd you’ve ever played to and do you get a free pint of snakebite at the end of the evening?

You answered in the old thread what your favourite song is. What's your favourite song that's been released since 2021?!
(Not sure I could answer that myself tbh!)

Streaming has taken the control away from the record labels and into the hands of the artist. You no longer needed a powerful entity behind you for people hear your music. It just depends on how much work you want to put in to expose your art to as many people as possible. The record labels don't like this AT ALL. This is why they take such a big cut of streaming revenue, to profit where they are losing power.

Ah cool, of what country?

No.

It really depends on the tour. The last one we had zero time for anything. It was pretty dull on. We're all still exhausted from the lack of sleep. Some tours we factor in time. For international, we usually have a rep who looks after us and takes us wherever we want to go so we get to see parts of a country that a tourist would never go to. Where the real people live. It's pretty cool. In Japan instead of hotels we stayed with Japanese families and slept on their bedroom floor, living in their homes. We loved this experience.

In my previous thread I use the term rock star a bit tongue in cheek.

I'm not exactly Mick Jagger but perhaps most people's definition of a rockstar is a little outdated.

I am an established musician, my rock band is respected in the industry, we are a cult band that still sells out show after many albums and many years. We have been on music tv shows and award shows. We tour internationally, have played and headlined festivals globally, have a dedicated fan base and we rock hard. If you watch us live, you will sweat too.

Goodness some envious catty comments, someone even asked if you were conceited in your last thread. Welll done in being so polite and restrained in response.

for some reason I think you’re male.

I gig in a covers band. Love it! We play to an average of about 1-200 people. It takes me ages to wind down from each gig as it gives me a real buzz. It must be like that x 1000 for you guys, playing in front of thousands.
What do you do to wind down after a gig? Is it sex,drugs and alcohol? Or just toast and tea? Do you ever have periods where you can just not sleep?

Do you watch any of the celebrity documentaries. Eg the Robbie Williams one or the crazy one I just saw about the Ponzi scheme that the Backstreet Boys promoter was involved in.

How accurate are they?

I am glad you are back OP. Enjoyed your last thread.

If you ever need a couch in the SH, give me a shout 😀 I think that would make the coolest neighbour ever as well. And I will take you for the best Shisa Nyama.

.

😂

Do you write your own music op?

How do people get into the industry as a tour manager/PA or some such job?
Can one of my kids do work experience with you on your next tour?