I need help making money, making music, and deciding a career.

You can email me whenever you want about whatever you want. Heck, I've got a great margarita recipe, once you turn 21 and know what alcohol tastes like ;) One good piece of advice I've learned from people throughout the years is that the best way to start doing something is to just do it. It doesn't have to be perfect, it doesn't even have to be that good, but actually doing something and getting momentum going is hard, and we often make excused for why we haven't started with a path yet. So, with that in mind, if you have a video camera, or a phone that does video, or even a webcam on your computer, I'll say this: Take whatever song you think you can play the best, and record it and put it on youtube. Not next week, or even in a few days. Do it now (or if you have to worry about a sleeping family in the house, do it tomorrow as soon as you can). It doesn't matter if you think it is fantastic, what matters is that it is out there. It is a starting point. From then on, when people ask you about your music career, you can point them to that video. If you don't think that it came out that great, than use that as a challenge to yourself to make the next video better. I don't know if you've heard of this musician named Justin Bieber, but he got his career going by posting youtube video's of himself singing. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1XC1jNo2g8s&feature=plcp There's no reason you can't, and once you do, a chance at a music career is one step closer. Heck, if it's even half way decent than I'll give you a thumbs up on youtube, and then you'll have your first fan!

Ah. I think this was the source of my speculation that the big midtown subway stations would attract the wrong sort of attention. I didn't realize those guys were pros renting space from the city. Yeah. Even then you'd probably just be shooed away, not ticketed or anything. In Cambridge, MA, on the other hand... And now that I know you're the 14th St 1/2/3, I'm going to come check you out... Heh, whether I'm there or not, that station has fantastic regulars. One guy just plays weird back-catalog classic rock ("Open all night") on the L platform.

for some reason the W. 4th street station (there's this guy who gets a piano down there in the elevator sometimes - AMAZEBALLS That would be http://nyulocal.com/on-campus/2012/04/18/a-day-in-the-life-of-the-crazy-piano-guy-of-washington-square-park/, who plays in parks (often in the winter) and in the subway. He also used to have a day job as music director at the Joffrey Ballet School.

the spaces that the MTA rents out to professional musicians in the subway (e.g., Times Square) -- these have signs on them, and I'm sure someone will bust you immediately. Ah. I think this was the source of my speculation that the big midtown subway stations would attract the wrong sort of attention. I didn't realize those guys were pros renting space from the city. And now that I know you're the 14th St 1/2/3, I'm going to come check you out...

I am a New York busker. (Note: I suck, which affects this advice.) I would find it very difficult to raise $150 - $200 per week. If I play for two hours I hope to make enough for pizza and a couple Gatorades. I've found other cities to be more hospitable for busking -- I made about 3x as much money in Copley Square in Boston than I've made anywhere in NYC in 8 years of performing. I feel like Manhattan already has sort of a set turf kind of arrangement, especially in Midtown and the big parks and subway stations, and you could easily get in trouble somewhere, whether it's because of territory or with the cops. Never found this to be true. If somebody wants to encroach on your territory around here, they just sit down and start playing until one of you gives in. (Sigh.) In my experience the cops are 100% disinterested in subway buskers, and will occasionally throw a quarter in. The only exception is the spaces that the MTA rents out to professional musicians in the subway (e.g., Times Square) -- these have signs on them, and I'm sure someone will bust you immediately. The problems I experience: (1) Not enough good spots. Most streets and subway stations in NYC are LOUD. You will struggle to be heard over traffic and trains. If you find a spot that isn't like this, it will already be full of performers (Washington Square Park and the like). (2) No one is interested in original material. Revenues go up massively if I just play Bruce Springsteen and various songs in Spanish. Anyway, just go out and see for yourself. You don't need to prepare -- I bring a little notebook with chords in it in case I want to try out a new song, but that's all I bring. Sometimes a milk crate. You'll get the idea quickly. Postcrypt at Columbia has a great open mic night if you'd like to start with a kinder audience. Oh, and stay the hell away from the 14th St 1/2/3 station, that's mine. :)

The good news: One thing that's dawned on me gradually as I get older is that doing something for a living is not the only way to do something seriously. Plenty of people have straightforward day jobs, but are awesomely accomplished at, and fulfilled by, something else that they do in their spare time. I've heard people speak at conferences about the most amazing projects they run, and then discovered that it's not what they do for a living. So you might decide you're not going to try and make your music pay your bills, but that doesn't mean you're giving it up. You can still be an amazing musician and nurture your talent as a lifelong passion.

[Hey, chongnosall, moderator here. It's not really great to put links to your youtube stuff in the thread; you can go ahead and add those to your profile page under the part that asks about how you got your user name, and people can check out your profile to see them.]

professional musician and producer here. you've got a nice voice, you play guitar well, and you're writing your own songs. all good. and i definitely hear some personality coming through your writing - "emergency exit" had a cool, interesting lil vibe to it. that's a great start! that said: you seem a little shy in your videos. keep em coming, but work on being a little more confident. it would probably help to just get on stage, or if you do already, do it more. find a small open mic night with a sympathetic crowd and bask in the love, lights and applause - it's a buzz that feeds on itself, and as you get positive feedback, you'll hopefully gain confidence, which will improve your performance, which will get you even better audience feedback the next week, etc etc unfortunately i don't live in nyc so i can't help you find the right open mic night, but it's out there. go find it. also, hate to say it but singer/songwriters with acoustic guitars are a dime a dozen. you might want to find your self a music partner in crime: either someone with a plethora of interesting instruments to play alongside you, or a band, or a laptop (give it a name, teach it to do cool backing tracks for you). try to do your thing, except in a style that doesn't exist yet, but should. just my 2 cents. ps. "I don't think there is anyone in their 40's or older who regrets spending a few more years in school than they would have liked" 43, and i kinda regret going to college. fun as it was. i'm a professional musician now, have been for 10 years, even though no one in my life honestly believed i'd actually make that happen. if i could do it over again, i'd give music making a serious shot for 5 years straight out of high school. if i was still getting nowhere at, say, 28 i'd go back and get a degree - peacefully, quietly. i'd enjoy it! knowing a music career wasn't for me. i mean, there's nothing stopping you from going to college in your late 20's, as long as you don't get your girlfriend pregnant anyway. basically, you'll never know if it will work till you try it. it worked for me, but i wasted 10 years of my potential career hedging my bets so my parents didn't freak out. as it turns out, that time probably would have been netter used doing what i do now for a living: making music.

A lot of great advice already, but I'd add one bit that hasn't been touched on too much - NETWORK. Especially in NYC, there are a ton of bands, venues, college radio stations, local mags, newspapers, etc. I worked in college radio and we had a weekly show devoted to local music where we'd accept demos from anyone, play them on-air, and do lots of in-studio live shows. I'd imagine at least one or two of the stations in NYC must have something similar. Also go to the local shows of other like-minded musicians. Talk to the bands after their gigs. You'll at least learn about the local music landscape from them, and you might end up with recording partners or finding a more famous act to open for. Open-mic nights may be better for getting used to being on stage, but opening for a band at a proper gig will get you more exposure to serious music fans. If you get some CDs or digital releases made, you can send them to local or online music mags for reviews/write-ups. Youtube and internet are a great free way to self promote, but in NYC you also have a huge music scene all around you that you should be taking advantage of too.