With Gusto

Tokyo Music Scene

I will use my free-time and study the Tokyo music scene. This will include going to one or two shows a week and purchasing CDs. I will also research promoters, venues, record labels, studios, managers, and so on. By the end of the summer I want to be gigging regularily, and have a full-length CD recorded as well as some merchandise, like T-Shirts, stickers, and buttons.

The music scene is nearly impossible -- just 80 people going to see 4 bands play is considered a huge success. And to get a show, one has to meet the shop owner for a long-winded Japanese style business meeting where nothing gets resolved. On the good side, the music scene in Japan is widely known as a pay-to-play system, which means not only is there hardly any money to be made, but usually, by the end of the day, a band stays in the red -- but at least they played in a bar half-the-size of a Canadian living room.
I've decided that I must learn how to organize myself. I make more than enough money to live on. Maybe by the end of summer I will be bumped up to about 50k Canadian a year. So I will learn about the Tokyo Music Scene solely for the knowlege to be gained in terms of self-organisation and familiarity with a once in a lifetime opportunity.
I will also enroll in Japanese classes. Found a school close to work. I will be speaking with muzos, managers, et al. So a little more vocab under my belt, and a few extra structures, will go a long way.