NOTE: Casey is one of my music writing partners in BHP.   Like Jim, who wrote one of our articles yesterday, Casey has agreed to let me use some stuff he’s written in the past, and he plans on writing some new articles as well.   If you enjoy what I write here, you’ll definitely enjoy what those two have to say as well.

This is one of those posts originally written for a BHP blog..  It was written about a year ago.     – Jason

Anyone who is married can attest that the more you commit to it, the more enjoyment you get out of it. I’ve found this to be true as well.

It’s the same way with music. The allegory of being married to one’s band mates notwithstanding, I’ve found that the more I am committed to the process of writing, the more productive I’ll be and the more enjoyment I get out of it. And let’s be honest, it’s crucial to be able to enjoy the music you are involved with. Otherwise it’s a sad and colossal waste of life to be in a band with any other end result.

Although BHP is not a band in the strictest sense, as we do not rehearse or gig, we do need to commit time and energy toward crafting our tunes. Otherwise they don’t get written and it becomes the whole sad and colossal waste… Sometimes pushing oneself even to do things one enjoys (songwriting, for example) is necessary. It’s not drudgery as it would seem at first. Always be mindful to push through the times where you may not be as inspired or when ideas don’t come as easy. It works. Giving yourself that extra push once in a while keeps you afloat and in the game. I’ve learned this with lyric writing in the past couple of months. I’ve written more lyrically in 2 months than ever.

Of course, knowing that you’ve got committed band mates helps too. As a musician, you may have been (may be) in a band where you are pulling most of the weight somehow. First, do not panic. Realize that most musicians are flakes (there, I’ve said it). But realize too that if you’ve got the fire to write and perform your own stuff, then you deserve to be with other musicians who have the fire to commit as well. Otherwise, you guessed it, sad and colossal waste of time!

I’ve been lucky the past ten years. I’ve been privileged enough to be in two bands that are committed and it’s made all the difference for me as a musician. It’s encouraged me to be committed and helped me enjoy the music so much more. Even today with my BHP group, I have that.

Commit to your music. You deserve the satisfaction of enjoying an end result. Your music deserves the commitment as well.

-Casey

Related posts:

1. Writing More Complex Music
2. Learning To Collaborate
3. My Songwriting Group: Blair-Hannah-Payne (BHP)