Life & Work as a Touring Musician for Seniors • Amplifier Podcast • James Skarnikat
What is life like as a travelling musician? How does that answer change if... you exclusively tour seniors homes across Canada? Enter James Skarnikat. For the past decade and more, James Skarnikat -- branded as "Jimmy's Classic Radio Show" -- has made a living touring coast to coast in his van as a professional musical entertainer for senior citizens. James' deep philosophies and caring heart make the work he does so much more meaningful than what is thought of the typical musician lifestyle. Learn about what keeps him going year in and out in this episode of the Amplifyr Podcast.
Timestamps
00:00 Intro
06:03 Surviving COVID as a Musician
10:54 Branding Jimmy’s Classic Time Radio Show
13:50 Keeping old work fresh & building a library
18:02 The thrill of live music
24:47 “Ikigai”: Vocation, income, serving community
27:40 Fellow entertainers in the industry
29:23 Touring Canada (over & over)
35:59 Logistics of an independent musician
40:11 Networking & prospecting new opportunities
43:39 Bad clients & good clients
47:05 Referrals as a marketing strategy
51:11 Expanding services to include more
54:07 A valuable product no one wants to buy
56:53 The perks & challenges of this career
59:09 Urgency & the power of the human spirit
1:04:45 The true value and impact of music
1:09:15 Parallels to the funeral industry
1:11:40 Outro
If you'd like to be featured as a guest on the Amplifyr Podcast, reach out with a brief description of who you are and what your episode might be about! Remote access is available.
