Perception vs Reality in the Music Industry With Jay Mumford
How he lost his love of music and reclaimed it through learning drums
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TW Creative Director John Vogel interviews drummer and composer Jay Mumford from New York City. He is half of the funk duo the Du-Rites and author of the out-of-print autobiography Root for the Villain, which pokes fun at the classic musician’s story of rising to fame and fortune. The book offers a different and more realistic perspective of a creative career.
Over the past 10-plus years, Jay has been razor-focused on mastering the drums and making his way back to the funk music of his childhood with his band the Du-Rites, a duo with guitarist Pablo Martin. Pablo has also played with the Tom Tom Club, started by two members of the Talking Heads as a side project in the early 1980s. Jay and Pablo both play multiple instruments on their recordings to emulate the sound of an entire funk ensemble.
Jay came up as a completely independent artist in the late 1990s with his rap persona J-Zone. Throughout his first decade of releasing music, popularity for the persona faded, as did his desire to keep playing that character. In 2008, he took a break from music entirely and wrote Root for the Villain, which chronicles the downward trajectory of his independent rap career. After three years of not playing, Jay’s dad bought him a drum kit and kicked off his reunion with music that continues today.
In this week’s episode, John and Jay discuss the perceptions and realities of the music industry. Jay talks about how the audience wants the rags-to-riches story in music biographies, especially those related to hip-hop. This perception flies in the face of the reality that many musicians live when they are working on music full-time. The precarious nature of not knowing when or from where the next paycheck is coming causes most musicians to live in a limbo of not knowing whether to keep going or pack it in by getting a steady job.
In particular, Jay’s trajectory has been full of ups and downs, with moments of seemingly “making it” and playing big shows juxtaposed with playing tiny clubs and bars for modest crowds. For him it boils down to the money, the music, and the hang. If he can get two out of three of those elements—the money is good, he enjoys the music, and he likes the people—he’ll take the gig.
Jay also discusses his creative career and how he navigated working in the music industry. He says it took him a while to realize that all the gigs and jobs he was getting were because he knew someone. So, when he took a break from the music industry and looked for employment elsewhere, he thought that he could rely on his skills to get him a job. However, this became significantly more difficult due to his lack of connections outside of the music industry. After a three-year hiatus, he returned to music through drums with a newly rekindled love for his creative career.
Check out more of Jay’s story and hear what it’s like to make a living off of a creative career now wherever you listen to podcasts.
For more about Jay Mumford, visit his website and check out his music.