1st Generation Artists

 When I see someone who is a 1st gen artist  (w/ no family or friends in the industry) making their way fwd, I am aware that they have had to overcome so many obstacles, get doors slammed in their face, be humbled, humiliated, fall, fail, learn mostly by failure, thought about giving up 100 times, faced dark nights of the soul, dealt with lack for years (money, housing, stability, freedom, healthcare, etc) overcome the doubts of family members, claw their way up (while smiling), walk over hot coals (w/ a smile...no 'not angry, I love these hot coals burning my feet, yay!'), not scare away the rich ppl, absolutely DO NOT SCARE AWAY THE RICH PPL, work shit jobs, hold their tongue against 'hot emerging' artists who are industry babies with publicists, miss the dentists, miss the vacation, probably have some ailment or injury from school or work that they can't afford to fix, live on the razor's edge of despair and AND AND...

...have to actually be talented! Like obviously brilliantly gifted in some way to succeed on just gumption, guile and talent (but not bitter, do not scare away the gatekeepers) and to not let addiction, anger, envy and the unfairness of it all sink their spirit, I am in awe. 

Some times I step back and look at where my artsy friends were 10 yrs ago and where they are now and it's astonishing. Yes, where do I want to be in five years? Absolutely. But also, look at how far you've come. Look at how far your peers have come from raiding school events for free cheese, trying group reiki b/c it's the only healthcare you can afford, stuffing catering leftovers in plastic bags, and being told 'no, no, why are you still here? No. No...I said NO! GTFO....never. NEVER and HELL NO' to 'hmmm, well maybe. Ok...hey, we love you, hey can we get a meeting? Oh, we LOVE her' and manage to be coherent, compassionate, imperfect adults dealing with the scar tissue, and continuing to move up.

And if you're just starting out and you don't have any friends or family in the industry and are making those professional mistakes and being told no, and don't have healthcare or stability...you are not alone. You are not the first or the last. But you can be a link in a chain that lifts others up if you just find a reason to get the fuck up in the morning and go out into a world that's going to scream 'NO' at you for years until they coo 'we've always loved you.'