Wait, that's all I have to do to regain my status as a colonial power?
I never knew it would be so easy.
I did not state that many people make the "rockstar" salary. That was the poster I was responding to.
In the US, the majority of "independent" arts who make middle-class, stable incomes are folks who compose for TV/movies and contribute to music libraries.
Making money as a performing artist is very difficult, not the least reason of which is that in the US touring rock acts (regional bands, for example, which 3-4 decades ago could make a hard but respectable living touring around their region) haven't gotten a pay raise in 40 years (that is, the per-man take for a night is about the same as it was in the 1970's -- a regional touring band, assuming it can find regular venues -- which is difficult -- can expect to make 125$ per man, per night, before expenses). The only local/regional "music" occupation that can play regularly and make a decent per-man income is that of a DJ.
Most of the folks working in the "music industry" are not musicians.
If you do not agree that we should encourage a robust system whereby musicians (and other artists) can make a middle-class age and contribute/enrich our society, you and I will never be able to have a reasonable conversation.
The gulf between "average independent musician income" and "super rich musician" is astronomically huge.
If you want our culture to have a rich music component, full-time musicians need to make a decent middle-class living. Currently the number that can is vanishingly small.
Very few Independant artists make enough money doing live shows that they host their music for free.
FTFY. And of those very few, the ones who are making a living that's equivalent to even a 1st year helpdesk employee usually had help from a label at one point or another.
You will have many recoverable tape errors.