scale paper It is our effort to break the taboos about money in the music industry. Today, Annie Blackman handles income and expenses from performing at SXSW 2023.
Brooklyn-based folk artist Annie Blackman is all about honesty. It’s baked into her songwriting, which feels personal, original, and full of clarity; Her latest, EP titled insect, is the latest evidence of this. The album’s third and final single, “The Well,” is richly grounded and lyrical, but it arrives with a haunting music video that serves as a window into Blackman’s more bizarre sensibilities.
As an artist who has been writing since her teenage years, Blackman is no stranger to the lifestyle required of working musicians. In our latest version of scale paperBlackman takes us behind the scenes on her trip to SXSW 2023 in Austin, Texas, detailing costs required for travel to and from the festival as well as accommodation and entertainment.
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“I made $300 from one show, but it all went into two band memberships,” she shares her experience with us. Read on to get a picture of the conditions many up-and-coming artists must manage in order to bring their music to a wider audience.
Travel
I flew to Austin, Texas, from Newark, NJ. At the airport, I bought a chocolate chip bar, a turkey stick, and iced coffee with whole milk (yes, whole milk). I slept most of the trip there and back. Was the travel fare worth nearly half a thousand dollars? I think so. Uber costs have also been added. Getting around Austin wasn’t easy, especially since I frequently switched between casual and downtown offerings. I got two free rides and took long walks, but the cars increased. There was also one pedicab ride during which I thought I might die.
Subtotal: – 702 dollars
Accommodation
The greatest blessing of SXSW 2023 was how my friend Marlon and his partner Claire opened up their perfect/beautiful/awesome home in Austin (for free) to me and other musician friends. I can’t stress enough how meaningful it was to let me (and Evan, Stephen, and Mario) crash in their house for free for an entire week. Who does that!? I slept like a baby for seven nights and woke up to fresh coffee, clean towels, friendship, great vibes, etc.
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Subtotal: $0
