There was a thread going around on Bluesky a while back about how the reason we had so many good Grunge bands in the 80’s/90’s is because it was entirely possible to make a living off of a part-time income back then. Thirty years ago the dirtbag lifestyle was as feasible as supporting two families on one full-time income. Then rents skyrocketed with the advent of Realpage price fixing, minimum wage stagnated, jobs dried up or cut back, and suddenly everyone’s focused on surviving shit life syndrome. Is it any wonder the only artists these days who can survive long enough to get popular are the ones who already have means?
There was a thread going around on Bluesky a while back about how the reason we had so many good Grunge bands in the 80’s/90’s is because it was entirely possible to make a living off of a part-time income back then. Thirty years ago the dirtbag lifestyle was as feasible as supporting two families on one full-time income. Then rents skyrocketed with the advent of Realpage price fixing, minimum wage stagnated, jobs dried up or cut back, and suddenly everyone’s focused on surviving shit life syndrome. Is it any wonder the only artists these days who can survive long enough to get popular are the ones who already have means?