Frank Ocean did a recent interview in the Gayletter discussing his success and creative process. One response he had to the music industry was this -
What about more generally — how do you keep yourself protected as an artist in the music business?
For me, it’s about Why am I doing this? What exactly do I want from this? And how do I get those specific things I want out of this? And what does success look like on those terms? And what does failure look like on those terms? That’s how I think about it now.
Most artists are not presented many different paths on how to make their careers successful. Success can come the traditional route (gallery representation, advance degree) but is it the type of success that you want?
Galleries are not making any money. Grants can be a struggle to obtain. Residencies are expensive and most museums are struggling to pay the bills. After reading this article I have made a list of what this type of success looks like. Many things have been scratched off my list and it has now become more manageable. New project to come.
The full interview is here