For the Love?

Does anyone tell film/television directors/actors/screenwriters, comic book writers/illustrator/colorists, video game designers/writers/voic… — you get the point, etc., that they should be creating their art for love, rather than being able to afford living?

It’s a question that tends to pop in my head, whenever someone says “This is art, you should be creating it because you love it (or something to that effect),” when it comes to those of us who make music. While I don’t disagree, where I get stuck, is wondering why/how that negates getting paid for creating said art.

Can one not love what they do, while getting paid for it, or is there a special rule in place, specifically for music? Hip-Hop especially. I’m not excluding other genre’s, I specify Hip-Hop, as it’s my primary focus as an artist.

Making music can be expensive. Making music can be time consuming. Making music can be beautiful, frustrating, maddening, wonderful, soul-crushing and many other things, but ultimately… making music is WORK. It’s also expensive to make — in both time and cost.

Typically, people expect to get paid for their work, but for whatever reason, it seems that some believe that making music should be something one does for the love of the craft and nothing more. Maybe I’m misunderstanding?

Sure, I CHOOSE to make music, but doesn’t every professional — or at least, most professionals choose their profession? Are we saying that music-making isn’t a profession? That it’s not work? Do we really believe that those who make the music that we enjoy, shouldn’t be compensated for their hard work?

For the love.

I play video games for the love. I work out, for the love. I read comics, watch television and film. For the love. Hell, I listen to music, for the love. And what do I have to do to enjoy all of these things for the love? Pay. I pay to enjoy all of the things mentioned, as well as many others I didn’t. Someone’s getting paid to create the activities, foods, entertainment, etc. Someone’s definitely getting paid for the music that you’re paying to listen to.

Why shouldn’t it be the artists?