[Harp-L] List of harmonica players who have achieved becoming millionaires?

[46long Blake]

$20 is about 7,500 streams on Spotify, according to this:
https://virpp.com/hello/music-streaming-payouts-comparison-a-guide-for-musicians/



On Tue, Dec 12, 2023 at 10:14 AM 46long Blake <46long at xxxxx> wrote:

> Yeah, come to think of it, it may have included selling 2 physical CDs in
> that $23, LOL.
>
> On Tue, Dec 12, 2023 at 10:13 AM Mike Fugazzi <harpninjamike at xxxxx>
> wrote:
>
>> $23 is like 2 billion listens! Way to go!
>>
>> On Tue, Dec 12, 2023 at 9:10 AM 46long Blake <46long at xxxxx> wrote:
>>
>>> I got a $23 royalty check from streams of my duo's original music this
>>> year! Like Weird Al said, "Thanks for the sandwich!!" ;)
>>>
>>> On Tue, Dec 12, 2023 at 10:01 AM Mike Fugazzi <harpninjamike at xxxxx>
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>>> In fairness, if a harmonica player makes $40,000 a year and has a 25
>>>> year
>>>> career, they have made a million dollars.  That being said, the list of
>>>> harmonica players making a decent living - Forbes reports that the
>>>> average
>>>> annual salary in the US is $59,428 - is probably very very low.  For
>>>> those that are making "good" money, they are surely diverse in revenue
>>>> streams.  Meaning, they aren't just playing music for people to listen
>>>> to.
>>>> Those that do make a significant amount of money gigging probably do
>>>> things
>>>> other than play harmonica too.
>>>>
>>>> Anecdotally, in my head, many of the "famous" harmonica players I know
>>>> supplement their income working jobs outside of music.  Those that don't
>>>> are few and far between like Jason Ricci and Dennis Gruenling (I
>>>> assume).
>>>> The elder statesmen have either been that established over decades OR,
>>>> I am
>>>> guessing, have benefits from being at retirement age that make things
>>>> more
>>>> manageable?
>>>>
>>>> Many years ago, I read the Little Walter biography, and I swear I read
>>>> that
>>>> even at peak popularity, LW was playing covers on guitar to make most of
>>>> his money.  To make an average salary, a harp player would have to make
>>>> $1,250 a week, year round.  Let's say you have no expenses and three
>>>> great
>>>> gigs a week making a couple hundred dollars for a couple of sets, so
>>>> roughly $600.  I am not saying you can't make more than that, but am
>>>> looking at it realistically.  You could teach a few lessons a day at $50
>>>> and get close to $1,250.  But you are also probably booking your own
>>>> gigs,
>>>> doing your own promo materials, and trying to be a content creator....so
>>>> you'd be working full time as a musician.
>>>>
>>>> The best way to make a livable wage as a musician is to perform in a
>>>> cover
>>>> band.  I know guys locally charging several thousand a show.  Assuming
>>>> it's
>>>> $6,000 a night, almost half probably goes to expenses.  The other $3,000
>>>> would be split between 5 band members, maybe?  So, they are making about
>>>> $600 a gig.  Pros are the amount of effort to sustain booking shows is
>>>> lesser and you don't have to work as much off stage.  Locally, the
>>>> seasons
>>>> create a stronger demand for shows part of the year, so winters might be
>>>> slower.
>>>>
>>>> Another workable model is to not play in a band but to do duo or trio.
>>>> You
>>>> can charge $300-400 a show with lesser expenses and overhead.
>>>>
>>>> At the end of the day, there is a lot of nuance to the topic of who
>>>> makes
>>>> money with harmonica and how much.  There is also popularity vs money or
>>>> online presence vs gigging to consider too.  I've noticed a lot of
>>>> contemporary harmonica content creators get views, but are
>>>> intermediates at
>>>> best.  They seem to teach content at their level or maybe a step
>>>> below.  My
>>>> point being there is a doable floor of entry for trying to make income
>>>> as a
>>>> content creator.
>>>>
>>>> Finally, the case can be made at times that the better you are from a
>>>> technical standpoint, the more you hit a point of diminishing returns
>>>> where
>>>> the general public cares less about what you are able to do or how
>>>> "good"
>>>> you are.
>>>>
>>>> I started playing in the early 2000's and was too late for the 5-7
>>>> shows a
>>>> week and too early to get in on the YouTube train before it became
>>>> saturated.  I long ago decided that harmonica was a hobby and I would
>>>> only
>>>> do it under my terms, whatever they are at the time.  I view it like the
>>>> lottery, you put a little effort in and some day you might get lucky
>>>> meeting the right person at the right time (kind of like Mickey
>>>> Raphael).
>>>> Could I sing and/or play harmonica at a professional level? Absolutely.
>>>> Have I ever really tried to do that?  No.  I like having a steady job,
>>>> income, and supporting my kids.  Since returning to gigging (I took a
>>>> long
>>>> time off when I went to grad school), I've booked limited winter dates
>>>> and
>>>> as much as I can in the summer.  I play in a dad band (wide range of
>>>> covers
>>>> on a very small scale of $75-$100 a night) and a duo (which I LOVE LOVE
>>>> LOVE to do), where I clear $150-300 depending on the gig.
>>>>
>>>> As a duo, I basically get to do whatever I want.  I get to play stuff
>>>> like
>>>> this https://www.youtube.com/shorts/7IvCJu7ifl8 and still get to do
>>>> this
>>>> https://www.youtube.com/shorts/NPICWtlg1k0.  FWIW, when it comes to
>>>> posting
>>>> gig content, I consistently get the most views from Facebook.  TikTok is
>>>> consistent, but not as many, and YouTube is all over.  I posted clips
>>>> from
>>>> the same gig where the one I thought was kind of lame got a ton of views
>>>> and then one that I think is really good got like 100.  I can't figure
>>>> out
>>>> YouTube.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> On Tue, Dec 12, 2023 at 5:49 AM Ken H in Ohio <airmojoken at xxxxx>
>>>> wrote:
>>>>
>>>> > Not sure a list exists... but I bet these three are at the top of it !
>>>> >
>>>> > 1. Bruce Willis -- $250 million
>>>> > 2. Jim Belushi -- $50
>>>> > 3. John Popper -- $10 million
>>>> >
>>>> > Ken H in OH
>>>> >
>>>> > On Sun, Dec 10, 2023 at 5:57 AM F F <franze52 at xxxxx> wrote:
>>>> >
>>>> > > Does anyone have statistics on the harmonica players who have
>>>> achieved
>>>> > the
>>>> > > milestone of becoming millionaires?
>>>> > >
>>>> >
>>>>
>>>