Career challenges facing musicians in the United States

Ying Zhen ()
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Ying Zhen: Wesleyan College

Journal of Cultural Economics, 2022, vol. 46, issue 3, No 4, 519-540

Abstract: Abstract This study describes and analyzes the challenges that musicians face in the United States, based on a survey of 1227 musicians, which was conducted in 2018 by the Music Industry Research Association and the Princeton University Survey Research Center, in partnership with MusiCares. It reveals that the average American musician earns income from three music-related activities per year, but for 61% of musicians this is not sufficient to meet living expenses. We explore important factors affecting music-related income, focusing on the impact of attending a high school featuring music education, of joining MusiCares membership, and the interaction between these factors and being born in the U.S.A. Attending schools with music education increases music-related earnings, while MusiCares membership has a negative association. However, when MusiCares membership is controlled for, attending a high school featuring music education is associated with at least 36% higher music-related earnings. In addition, the earnings advantage among attendees of music high schools is around 56.8% higher for those who were born in the U.S.A. than those who were foreign-born.

Keywords: Music industry; Earnings; Well-being; Career challenges (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J15 J16 J44 J49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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DOI: 10.1007/s10824-022-09442-x

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