NAMM 2012 Begins – An inspired backward glance
Today is the first day of the 2012 NAMM trade show. It’s the largest of it’s kind in the world. Musicians and vendors come from everywhere to scope out and present all the newest gadgets and gear in the music world. It’s pretty much the best if you’re a visiting musician. You get to check out endless (and I mean endless) rows of cool stuff – instruments, microphones, pedals, interfaces, software, accessories, and you can touch and sample almost anything! The show lasts for 4 days, and you need 4 days to cover everything. It’s that big.
4 years ago I had just graduated from Berklee, was working for PreSonus Audio and was attending NAMM for the first time. I loved my time with PreSonus, although from day one on the job, I knew I couldn’t last in a situation where I wasn’t actively involved in pursuing my own music career. The jobs that have followed taught me that I don’t like having a boss in general – and not in the “well, duh, no one wants a boss” kind of way. I am just not nearly as efficient, productive or creative when I’m in a situation with a boss. I’m too worried about making mistakes when someone is “accountable” for me and it prevents me from taking risks.
21-year-old me (right) during NAMM, working for PreSonus.
I moved to Los Angeles 10 months after taking the PreSonus job. I spent the next few years not having a place to live, being on food stamps, working several jobs, but being completely dedicated to nurturing my own ideas and letting myself have adventures. I upgraded my living situation to the dining room of a 1 bedroom apartment that I shared with 4 other people, started running ultra-marathons, and started working on my new record with Scott Nickoley.
Today I’ve been holding down the fort in an apartment of my own for the past 8 months, 4 of which were paid for by my brand new company. I still have no idea how I’m going to pay rent most months up until the days before it’s due, but that’s a lot of people.
This year at NAMM I’ll be performing in the PreSonus booth and the Sennheiser booth. Me from 2008 is high-fiving the present me SO HARD right now.
Have you ever quit your job(s) to work for yourself? Any insight to offer?
