Ted Cline speaks about the impact of Covid 19
- Written by Ted Cline
I started a recording project in December of 2019 at Direct Image Studios in Nashville with producer Kenny Royster. I was ready for something big to happen knowing that Kenny is one of the best producers in Nashville. How was I to know that 30 days later a pandemic would ravage the world?! How’s that for luck – releasing a song as an independent artist in the middle of a global pandemic?
Independent artists are usually struggling financially anyway. Add in the influence of an economic shutdown and that struggle becomes even tougher. But as the old saying goes if you are an entertainer – “The Show Must Go On!”. Unfortunately, with Covid-19 the shows don’t go on – and that’s 90% of how independent artists feed themselves. To say it has been a struggle financially would be an understatement.
Regardless of these circumstances, there was really no alternative except to go forward with releasing the songs from the project. So with the help of Stephen Wrench of MusikandFilm the songs are now playing on thousands of radio stations and doing well on the Independent charts and on Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, etc… But an Independent artist really can’t make it on streaming and radio play alone. Live Performance, club work, and touring is the only way for an Independent artist like me to survive.
Most Independent artists don’t have the economic resources that established mainstream artists have. Just keeping the lights on and the rent paid is sometimes almost next to impossible. Well-meaning people will often say “Just go out and get a job if you need additional income.” Well, that’s easier said than done with Covid hanging in the air. So for now we take any odd job we can and put our careers on hold in order to keep our heads above water. (But I expect we musicians are not alone in this. Lots of people are in the same boat these days.)
It’s been hard - to say the least - with the lockdown and restrictions on the concert halls, the bars and the clubs. It has literally devastated the live music performance business. Will it ever come back the way it was? I don’t know. All I do know is that everyone should say a prayer for our world and our survival – and hope that someday soon we can all be back to work, earning a decent living doing what we love!
Ted Cline
Website: www.tedcline.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/tedclinemusic
