Any law student-musicians??? I need help Forum

[PhillyLawGirl]

Is anyone currently managing law school and a part-time music gig?

I've been playing music my entire life- bands, choir, theater, etc. I put it on hold when I chose to go to law school so that I could focus 100% of my time on school. I did really well first semester- I'm in the top 5% of my class and I have a federal judicial internship lined up for this summer. I feel like I've got the hang of it and might be able to handle a side music project.

I've been offered a spot in a well-known cover band. I'm not trying to "make it," but it would be a great opportunity to make some money and have fun doing it. They play about 6-8 shows a month, always on weekends. Travel occasionally.

Is anyone successfully managing both? Any tips? Does school get harder or should I feel comfortable moving forward with the band considering that I did relatively well last semester?

[faceman9000]

I played in a touring band for 3 years. Once I decided to go to law school, I gave up the band...extremely hard decision

I hope you can find a way to balance both music and law school...I might give it another shot after 1L.

[macattaq]

Yeah, I'd go with what Faceman said.

I've been Djing and producing for about a decade now. There just isn't enough time in the day to do extremely well at both school and music (and let's face it, musicians are perfectionists by nature), so music is on hold until summer. If you really, really want to be involved in music though, you may want to check and see if either your law school or parent school has a choir or something that you can join. That shouldn't be too much of a time commitment and they will understand when you have to bail for finals, whereas playing in a cover band sounds like a big time investment (at least up front, when you are learning the songs).

[solidsnake]

^^^
Fail for implying that Dj's qualify as musicians.

[holydonkey]

^^^
Fail for implying that Dj's qualify as musicians.

disagrees

[steve_nash]

I've been a musician since I was very young, but I essentially gave it up to do well in law school. I play a little but not nearly as much as before law school. I really don't think you can balance part-time gigs (at least 1L year) and doing well in school. It's a risky move, to say the least. If you can, good for you, but you'd be rare, and 1L grades are too important to chance it.

[gntsf12]

I still try to practice an hour a day and get out to play every few weeks. Some say that law school is not worth giving up your life for

[billyez]

Sacrificing nine months to law school isn't really akin to sacrificing your life though. It's a short term investment. We've all given things up that we enjoyed, I'm sure, in order to succeed in undergrad, but it doens't mean that we won't be able to get them back after all is said and done.

[gntsf12]

True, 9 months isn't really sacrificing your life. However, I'm not sure time will necessarily free up in the trajectory of a legal career, unless you make it free up. Don't want to wake up 5 years and realize lofty ambitions of playing again after 1L year were somehow forgotten/neglected. I guess people will/should place value where they think it is appropriate for them and adjust accordingly.

[macattaq]

^^^
Fail for implying that Dj's qualify as musicians.

When you have written, recorded, mastered, and performed your own songs, feel free to pass judgment.

[solidsnake]

< Music composition major at a conservatory.

lol @ "recording" and "mastering" making you a musician. Are sound engineers necessarily musicians, too?

[macattaq]

Hm. That's a bit humbling. No, sound engineers aren't necessarily musicians. What I am saying is that I do the whole process myself, from conception to performance. Many DJs do this, many more do not.

[leftofthedial]

Hm. That's a bit humbling. No, sound engineers aren't necessarily musicians. What I am saying is that I do the whole process myself, from conception to performance. Many DJs do this, many more do not.

I want to argue for the engineer being a musician, actually. With massive control over the sound of an album, I see his/her coloring of sound as definitive in the music creation process...I mean, it's something new when recorded. I think it's the same as hiring a certain type of bass player. Tone/style is everything.

And I'm a bit nervous about school and music as well...I've been writing and playing out for 15 years...when I don't, I don't feel right.

[leftofthedial]

And oh yeah - dj's are totally musicians.

[PhillyLawGirl]

Thanks for the input. I think I'm going to go ahead and try it out.

Looking back on Fall semester, I wasted a ton of time on facebook/getting drunk/complaining about law school and still managed to pull a 3.8. I'd much rather spend my limited free time playing music/making money. I'm 25- if I don't do it now, I'll never do it. The moment it interferes w/school, I'll bounce.