Outside the Jukebox Quotes

“Mine is just one such story; every day, people around the world are making creative breakthroughs that change the way we live, listen, and learn. And although it may seem like these breakthroughs come about spontaneously, born from inspired bursts of clarity, the reality is that most of them make their way to the surface only after a series of disappointments, false starts, and spectacular failures. If you can find a way to smile through the letdowns, learn from the disasters, and—above all—stay loyal to the people you care about, you’ll discover that you’re unstoppable. Life is messy, and we’re all just a bunch of creeps and weirdos. And that’s okay. We are perfect, just the way we are. Now go forth and make art.”
― Scott Bradlee, Outside the Jukebox: How I Turned My Vintage Music Obsession into My Dream Gig

“Freedom doesn’t necessarily come from working for yourself, or from setting your own hours, or even from never having to worry about money. Freedom is a state of mind. It’s the recognition that pursuing what modern celebrity culture has a way of telling us we should want in life—fame, fortune, accolades—will never lead to contentment. Freedom is about surrendering control and letting the chips fall where they may—and knowing that you’ll be okay.”
― Scott Bradlee, Outside the Jukebox: How I Turned My Vintage Music Obsession into My Dream Gig

“Indeed, the people you surround yourself with will become the most important people in your life. If that thought doesn’t scare you too much, you’re probably doing it right.”
― Scott Bradlee, Outside the Jukebox: How I Turned My Vintage Music Obsession into My Dream Gig

“Whenever you hear “it’ll never work,” in response to an idea you might have, take it for what it is: a challenge. Standing out from the crowd requires real mental toughness, and if you can’t stand up for yourself when people try to shame you into abandoning your dreams, you’ll never be prepared to face the obstacles that come your way when you finally do start to experience success. When someone challenges your vision in a way that doesn’t sit right with you, don’t waste your time arguing with them or trying to change their mind. Instead, thank them for their concern and just continue on your journey.”
― Scott Bradlee, Outside the Jukebox: How I Turned My Vintage Music Obsession into My Dream Gig

“What we’re told as children about the value of “waiting our turn” doesn’t necessarily hold true when you get off the playground and into the world of adults. Waiting around in the hopes of being discovered as an artist has never been a good strategy. Go ahead and be impatient. We only have thirty thousand days on this planet, give or take, and the typical life span of a career in music is a small fraction of that. You don’t need to do the math to get the message: There’s not enough time to be wasting it waiting for someone else to decide when you’re up for your time in the spotlight.”
― Scott Bradlee, Outside the Jukebox: How I Turned My Vintage Music Obsession into My Dream Gig

“The great paradox of the age we live in, then, is that it’s one in which it’s exceedingly difficult to secure a record deal, and yet pursuing the path of an independent musician has never carried with it more potential upside. Another way to look at it: For the first time in the history of recorded music, you now have the astounding ability to become your own record label.”
― Scott Bradlee, Outside the Jukebox: How I Turned My Vintage Music Obsession into My Dream Gig

“Lots of artists wonder how to get a record deal, as though everything is easy street after that one hurdle is cleared. The fact of the matter is that if you need a record deal, you won’t get one—at least not anymore. Today, being a talented singer, a great songwriter, or an innovative composer just isn’t enough to land a major label deal. Today’s labels are looking for safe bets with proven track records of ticket sales. In fact, most of the great artists from the past that we love probably would not have gotten record deals in today’s market. It’s important to understand this because many assume that record deals are just awarded to the most talented individuals. The modern-day record industry excels at expanding upon existing commercial success, but it’s no longer interested in nor deft at scooping up raw, unknown talent and sculpting superstars.”
― Scott Bradlee, Outside the Jukebox: How I Turned My Vintage Music Obsession into My Dream Gig

“Successful is a relative term. You can be considered successful by your peers and not feel accomplished at all if you’re constantly comparing yourself to the world’s most influential people. If you’ve ever thought that your happiness levels would radically change with success, I can assure you with complete certainty that you’re wrong. Sure, you may experience some temporary spikes in happiness, but after a while, it will return back to its baseline level, just like always. Once upon a time, I found it baffling that people who seemingly had it all could ever be anything less than happy with their lives, but getting to the other side gave me a new perspective. If anything, more extreme highs make the lows that much harder to handle. And since past success doesn’t guarantee future success, chances are high that there will be lows.”
― Scott Bradlee, Outside the Jukebox: How I Turned My Vintage Music Obsession into My Dream Gig

“A word to the wise: If ever you should feel like you have too much choice in life, remember that life still makes a good deal of choices for you. You can only play with the hand you’ve been dealt, and options that you have in one moment often disappear the next if you don’t make moves to capitalize on them. The beauty in this is that drastic change is the catalyst for personal growth, and personal growth is a vital component of the artist’s life, with each phase of it bringing new challenges, new opportunities, and a new perspective.”
― Scott Bradlee, Outside the Jukebox: How I Turned My Vintage Music Obsession into My Dream Gig

“My salad days—that time when youth, enthusiasm, and idealism all combine into one exhilarating and unstoppable force—were officially over. The salad days don’t last forever, and neither does Internet fame. Quite simply, there are a host of new, exciting creative exploits happening all over the world at any given second, and the novelty of “the hot new thing” is doomed to wear off eventually. When that happens, there are only two paths forward: to give up or grow up. Let the growing pains commence.”
― Scott Bradlee, Outside the Jukebox: How I Turned My Vintage Music Obsession into My Dream Gig

“The Internet, I was learning, is a place for growth, a medium where anyone with the right idea, some talent, and a lot of ambition can go from anonymous to beloved almost instantly. Indeed, it’s often the best place to launch your idea and pull in potential fans. However, the fact that it’s a medium on which free content is broadcast around the clock means that it’s also a place where the advantage of being an established incumbent is minimal. Put simply, everyone likes the shiny new toys.”
― Scott Bradlee, Outside the Jukebox: How I Turned My Vintage Music Obsession into My Dream Gig

“In some ways, Puddles was made for the modern Internet age. He’s a reflection of our loneliness and confusion in a world that’s come to be increasingly characterized by those emotions. Humans have never before lived in a time of such constant stimulus and abundance of choice, and part of me wonders if experiencing life as one big dopamine rush isn’t making us less happy instead of more so. In the end, aren’t we all just wandering through life with a suitcase and a lantern, searching for a place where we belong?”
― Scott Bradlee, Outside the Jukebox: How I Turned My Vintage Music Obsession into My Dream Gig

“To get back into the creative groove, I need to be relaxed enough to allow my mind to drift, with no thought of deadlines or other obligations. Of course, creativity usually needs something else, too, to flourish, and that something is what I call creative hunger. For me, it’s the name for what happens when creativity is mixed with profound inspiration. If you aren’t filled with creative hunger, then it’s all too easy to put things off, rationalize that a project is too difficult to tackle, or decide that you would be just as content watching TV instead. Ambitious young people generally start off with a great deal of creative hunger, but as they age and experience tastes of success here and there, the drive has a way of dissipating. After you’ve got a hit under your belt, it’s tempting to simply keep enjoying the fruits of the labor you’ve already harvested. If you want to stay at the top of your game, though, it’s imperative that you stay hungry.”
― Scott Bradlee, Outside the Jukebox: How I Turned My Vintage Music Obsession into My Dream Gig

“Truth be told, though, stress is an integral part of being successful. Even after achieving a rewarding career, expect the relatively simple stresses of being able to pay your bills to quickly be replaced by the more complex stresses of managing multiple projects and many different individuals.”
― Scott Bradlee, Outside the Jukebox: How I Turned My Vintage Music Obsession into My Dream Gig

“I was learning that part of being a good music director is being able to put aside the desire to control the output and allow others the opportunity to do what they excel at doing. It seems like a simple concept, but in practice, it can be a difficult experience—particularly for the ego—to permit things to drift away from your original vision and assume a more collaborative format. Give others a chance, and you just may find yourself surprised—and your ego rightfully humbled. The fact of the matter is that all great projects are collaborations; it’s up to the person in charge to guide the process in a positive and fruitful manner.”
― Scott Bradlee, Outside the Jukebox: How I Turned My Vintage Music Obsession into My Dream Gig

“I was becoming all too familiar with the phenomenon that is the YouTube comments section. It was—and still is—a strange, sometimes ruthless place where you can observe our society slowly learning to get used to madness born out of the collusion of anonymity, freedom of speech, and the ability to say something to the entire world at once. Before the Internet, most people didn’t have to go through life reading vile insults directed at them on a daily basis, a phenomenon that is now familiar to most artists who release material digitally. And although reading negative or even downright cruel comments may initially prove disheartening, it’s not necessarily a bad exercise for an artist looking to develop a thick skin.”
― Scott Bradlee, Outside the Jukebox: How I Turned My Vintage Music Obsession into My Dream Gig

“Contrary to popular belief, an “overnight success” has often been years in the making. In the same way that we’re only able to see the tip of the iceberg that’s above water, the general public really only gets to see the “overnight” part of a success story. A truly successful project generally takes years to build and involves a series of smaller successes punctuated by a few failures. Eventually, a critical mass of attention is reached, and the project gets launched into the mainstream, where it circulates widely, and its identity is cemented in its current form—a form that, intentionally or otherwise, rarely pays obvious homage to the years of blood, sweat, tears, and more rudimentary sounds that engendered it.”
― Scott Bradlee, Outside the Jukebox: How I Turned My Vintage Music Obsession into My Dream Gig

“Over the years, I’ve made a habit of asking professionals with unlike areas of expertise for advice whenever I find myself venturing out of my comfort zone and into theirs for the first time. It’s a habit that’s served me well time and again—and certainly far better than letting ego stand between me and the information I need. There’s no shame in allowing yourself to lean on others’ expertise and become the student again; the only shame would be in not returning the favor should your wisdom be sought out someday. Most people—myself included!—love doling out wisdom, especially on subjects they’ve dealt with for most of their professional lives. It’s a big, confusing world out there, especially in the entertainment industry, and it’s important to actively develop for yourself a team of unofficial advisors that you can turn to for help in navigating the myriad decisions and dilemmas you’ll undoubtedly encounter in life. As”
― Scott Bradlee, Outside the Jukebox: How I Turned My Vintage Music Obsession into My Dream Gig

“think this inclination artists have to bury what’s rough and not yet fully formed is a huge mistake. Fans want to witness the growth and maturation of the artists they love; they want to see the messy false starts, and they recognize that these early works are intended to be representative not of an artist’s entire output but a piece of it. And that piece—every piece—is essential to understanding and appreciating the whole. A body of work, no matter how masterful, is nothing without its individual parts.”
― Scott Bradlee, Outside the Jukebox: How I Turned My Vintage Music Obsession into My Dream Gig

“I was tired of feeling like fear had power over me, though, and so I made a rule for myself: Whenever I was having trouble working up the gumption to create something, I simply set a deadline for its completion and told my newfound fans about it, so that they’d help hold me accountable and follow through with it. I continue to put the rule into action to this day, and I urge you to do the same if ever you’re feeling stuck.”
― Scott Bradlee, Outside the Jukebox: How I Turned My Vintage Music Obsession into My Dream Gig

“You will never feel “ready” or “comfortable with” putting your work out there. It is so important to make peace with and internalize this idea. If you’re a musician and you’ve just written a song that you’re on the fence about, the best time to record it is right now. If you’re a filmmaker and you want to make a movie but don’t have the best equipment, the best time to begin making it is right now, with whatever equipment you can get your hands on. If you’re reading this and have a feeling that this might apply to you, set my book aside, get up, and go do whatever creative project you’ve been putting off—you guessed it—right now.”
― Scott Bradlee, Outside the Jukebox: How I Turned My Vintage Music Obsession into My Dream Gig

“Empathy works wonders when dealing with the most brutal kind of criticism. The harshest of the negative feedback I received oozed with the kind of insecurity that had, for a long while, been lodged so deep within me that it had prevented me from sharing my music. I was able to recognize the ugly emotion and the place of fear that it was born from because once upon a time, I, too, had been at its mercy. The only difference was that I’d resisted the impulse to go on the Internet anonymously and be a jerk about it by taking it out on other people. The choice is always there.”
― Scott Bradlee, Outside the Jukebox: How I Turned My Vintage Music Obsession into My Dream Gig

“The most difficult battles we face in life are those we wage within. Self-doubt, feelings of unworthiness, and fear of rejection: This is the trifecta of demons that holds us back from reaching our full potential. We’re not born with these demons; for proof of this, one need only look at how free and uncensored young kids are. By the time most of us reach adulthood, however, we’ve devolved into a tangle of insecurities and negative experiences. From what I’ve seen and from what I’ve suffered, I’d wager that perfectionism hits artists the hardest. Artists—whose very calling is based on the expression of feeling—tend to be more introspective than your average human being and spend much more time living internally. Releasing a creative project out into the world requires ceding a part of yourself to the world and exposing it to the slings and arrows of external criticism. So, it’s only natural that the artist, aware of the vulnerability and invitation for judgment inherent in the act of creating publicly, would take painstaking care to ensure that whatever is released into the world is as close as possible to “perfect.” If left unchecked, this tendency to obsess and strive for perfection can lead the artist to devote months, if not years, to producing a single flawless creation. The truth of the matter, though, is that our actual creations will never be so perfect as we’ve dreamt them to be; they can only be perfected in the sense that, when released, they exist. Sometimes, it takes losing control to gain control over this obsession with perfection.”
― Scott Bradlee, Outside the Jukebox: How I Turned My Vintage Music Obsession into My Dream Gig

“No musician needs a degree testifying to his or her ability to play. Every musician, however, needs the networking and support system that comes from collaborating with ambitious, creative people on a daily basis.”
― Scott Bradlee, Outside the Jukebox: How I Turned My Vintage Music Obsession into My Dream Gig

“No matter who you are or what you’ve accomplished, if you’re working for someone else, you must always have humility about your role. Try looking at it like this: When you’re hired to play background music, you’re essentially filling the same role as an ice sculpture. Sure, you’re playing music, but you’re meant to blend in as atmosphere. No one throws a party and thinks, “Man, I’d really like to bring in an ice sculpture that shows up late and half-sculpted, refuses to pose in place and keeps sliding around, and then demands to be compensated in full despite pulling a premature meltdown and leaving before the night’s over.” Similarly, no one throws a party and hopes that the hired musical performer arrives without a suit, refuses to turn down the volume after being asked twice, and then insists at the last second on being paid in cash instead of by check because rent is due. If you agree to be an ice sculpture, be the best damn ice sculpture you can be.”
― Scott Bradlee, Outside the Jukebox: How I Turned My Vintage Music Obsession into My Dream Gig

“To me, the true value of college is not in what you learn but in how you go about learning. Essential, for instance, is keeping yourself open to experiencing unexpected insights, even if they conflict with previously held views. That mind-set will serve you well in school, though really, it’s a mind-set worth striving for throughout all of life.”
― Scott Bradlee, Outside the Jukebox: How I Turned My Vintage Music Obsession into My Dream Gig

“I want to take a second here to talk about my decision to go to school for music, since I get asked for advice on this pretty often. If you’re a young musician (or dancer, or musical theatre actor, or any type of creative performer for that matter) and you’ve progressed in your abilities to the point that a career in the arts seems like a viable path forward, it’s only logical that you’ll find yourself considering a formal continuation of your music studies post–high school. Whether you go the route of the conservatory or enroll in a music program within a more traditional college, you’ll receive training from professional musicians, perform in ensembles alongside other talented students, and have access to state-of-the-art facilities and concert halls. The icing on the cake? You’ll get to sleep in late on weekdays, take classes that appeal to you, and surround yourself with artsy, inspiring kids who share your interests and passions. If all that sounds like a dream, it’s because, in many ways, it is. But any dream has its potential downsides, and I think that it’s important that you’re aware of them, too.”
― Scott Bradlee, Outside the Jukebox: How I Turned My Vintage Music Obsession into My Dream Gig

“I was becoming very confident in my skills as a musician. There’s an inherent contradiction embedded in practice—at least that I’ve found in my experience: While motivation to put in the hours comes from being confident in your ability to eventually master and contribute to a craft, arriving at that confidence to begin with often requires putting in many, many hours of practice. This catch-22 is the reason so many people pick up the guitar only to quit after learning a couple Jimmy Buffett songs—it’s difficult to imagine yourself as anything but a beginner when you are starting out.”
― Scott Bradlee, Outside the Jukebox: How I Turned My Vintage Music Obsession into My Dream Gig

“knowing that I wanted to be a piano player, and knowing that practicing, of course, was just something piano players did, I turned my daily practice into a habit. Now, habits get a bad rap; we tend to think of things like biting our nails or smoking when we talk about them. But really, a habit is defined as “a settled or regular tendency or practice, especially one that is hard to give up.” Tooth brushing is a habit (for most of us). So is showing up to work on time. Those are some good habits. Habits can be good; say it with me. Once you’ve trained your brain to view practicing as a habit, the next step is finding the motivation to adopt that habit. The key to motivation, I’ve learned, is coupling your profound inspiration to a strong belief in yourself, and that’s not something even the best teacher is able to instill. It has to come from within. Building a strong core identity to drive your motivation requires first believing that you’ll eventually master the skill you’ve set out to learn—no matter how farfetched that might initially seem to yourself and others. Having the correct image of yourself is really key here; you have to think of yourself as the thing you want to be long before other people think of you as that. You may only have taken one trumpet lesson and sound horrible, but you still must think of yourself as a trumpet player in order for the habit to stick. You are whatever you do repeatedly. Practicing became such a constant in my day—and in such a natural, unforced way—that I hardly had to think about it. It had become, in other words, a habit.”
― Scott Bradlee, Outside the Jukebox: How I Turned My Vintage Music Obsession into My Dream Gig