--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I was doing gigs to stay alive. I worked…" description: "\"I was doing gigs to stay alive. I worked two or three jobs at a time, there were times when I stayed up for 36 hours straight. I slept in shopping mall..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ed/dat-phan-37618_alive_i-was-doing-gigs-to-stay-alive-i-worked_291909.png" --- # I was doing gigs to stay alive. I worked two or three jobs… ![“I was doing gigs to stay alive. I worked two or three jobs at a time, there were times when I stayed up for 36 hours straight. I slept in shopping mall parking lots. A stand-up gig paid $35; then I could eat for another few days until the next gig. Literally, I was performing to live.” quote by Dat Phan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ed/dat-phan-37618_alive_i-was-doing-gigs-to-stay-alive-i-worked_291909.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ed/dat-phan-37618_alive_i-was-doing-gigs-to-stay-alive-i-worked_291909.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3ed/dat-phan-37618_alive_i-was-doing-gigs-to-stay-alive-i-worked_291909.png) > “I was doing gigs to stay alive. I worked two or three jobs at a time, there were times when I stayed up for 36 hours straight. I slept in shopping mall parking lots. A stand-up gig paid $35; then I could eat for another few days until the next gig. Literally, I was performing to live.” [Dat Phan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dat-phan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He endured extreme hardship, juggling multiple jobs and exhausting gigs to survive, highlighting resilience in the arts. **In simple terms:** Surviving as an artist often requires relentless hustle. Key Takeaway Persist through hardship for your art. Themes resilience survival artistry Mood raw honest Type personal motivational When to use this quote - touring - stand‑up comedy - freelance work Key Concepts gig economy night shifts temporary housing Questions to Reflect On - What support systems could ease such struggles? - How do you maintain health while hustling? A Different Perspective May glorify unsustainable sacrifice. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Alive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alive/) [Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jobs/) [Malls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/malls/) [Shopping](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shopping/) [Staying alive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/staying-alive/) ## Related quotes > [“Truth was, I didn't really want to die today. I was in the middle of a really good book, and being alive had always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-fortunato/truth-was-i-didn-t-really-want-to-die-today-i-was-in-the-middle-of-a/) [Jessica Fortunato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-fortunato/) > [As young musicians, we cut our teeth on doing gigs at clubs and functions and colleges. That was really the proving ground for young…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-bailey/as-young-musicians-we-cut-our-teeth-on-doing-gigs-at-clubs-and/) [Philip Bailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-bailey/) > [It was 2002, we all got guitars for Christmas and started playing in my garage that summer, rehearsed there and in a warehouse for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-turner/it-was-2002-we-all-got-guitars-for-christmas-and-started-playing-in-2/) [Alex Turner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-turner/) > [I was playing in bands and doing gigs from the age of 14 on. I stopped at the age of 28. Technology replaced me.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitchell-joachim/i-was-playing-in-bands-and-doing-gigs-from-the-age-of-14-on-i-stopped/) [Mitchell Joachim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitchell-joachim/) > [I hate doing gigs in front of people I know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maisie-peters/i-hate-doing-gigs-in-front-of-people-i-know/) [Maisie Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maisie-peters/) > [What do you know when you're 19? I was just stomping around doing gigs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-howard/what-do-you-know-when-you-re-19-i-was-just-stomping-around-doing-gigs/) [Russell Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-howard/) > [The thing about doing gigs is you make music, and then it is gone and that is being watched by thousands of people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-melua/the-thing-about-doing-gigs-is-you-make-music-and-then-it-is-gone-and/) [Katie Melua](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-melua/) > [I enjoy doing my gigs and I keep my hand in by putting records out now and again. You can't really get over the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chesney-hawkes/i-enjoy-doing-my-gigs-and-i-keep-my-hand-in-by-putting-records-out/) [Chesney Hawkes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chesney-hawkes/) > [Every time I'm not on a project, I'm writing or in the studio or doing gigs DJing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taryn-manning/every-time-i-m-not-on-a-project-i-m-writing-or-in-the-studio-or-doing/) [Taryn Manning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taryn-manning/) > [Man, I pull up to Home Goods, and people are waiting on me in the parking lot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khalil-mack/man-i-pull-up-to-home-goods-and-people-are-waiting-on-me-in-the/) [Khalil Mack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khalil-mack/) > [What I really want is to sit next to someone under an L.L. bean blanket on the beach in the fall and drink coffee…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augusten-burroughs/what-i-really-want-is-to-sit-next-to-someone-under-an-l-l-bean/) [Augusten Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augusten-burroughs/) > [I was actually born in L.A. My sisters and I were playing in a parking lot, and my dad was like, 'Nah, nah, nah.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-keller/i-was-actually-born-in-l-a-my-sisters-and-i-were-playing-in-a-parking/) [Rachel Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-keller/) > [I did archery when I was in high school. In our gym class we had two weeks of archery, and I remember taking the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-barrowman/i-did-archery-when-i-was-in-high-school-in-our-gym-class-we-had-two/) [John Barrowman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-barrowman/) > [By the time they were pulling into the parking lot of the A&P, the mood was fading, the moment gone. Amy could feel it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-strout/by-the-time-they-were-pulling-into-the-parking-lot-of-the-a-p-the/) [Elizabeth Strout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-strout/) > [It's nice to go skating in a parking lot and hang out with people who aren't talking about their next movie role.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-green/it-s-nice-to-go-skating-in-a-parking-lot-and-hang-out-with-people-who/) [Tom Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-green/) ## More by Dat Phan > [Money comes and goes. I'm thankful I have money. I'm trying to save up more. I would like more money. But it's not happiness.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dat-phan/money-comes-and-goes-i-m-thankful-i-have-money-i-m-trying-to-save-up/) [Dat Phan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dat-phan/) > [I knew comedy was the thing for me when I was the only Asian kid in high school... who failed math.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dat-phan/i-knew-comedy-was-the-thing-for-me-when-i-was-the-only-asian-kid-in/) [Dat Phan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dat-phan/) > [And I come from a small Vietnamese family. We're really close too, all ten of us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dat-phan/and-i-come-from-a-small-vietnamese-family-we-re-really-close-too-all/) [Dat Phan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dat-phan/) > [It's a constant battle between what your heart tells you, and what your brain tells you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dat-phan/it-s-a-constant-battle-between-what-your-heart-tells-you-and-what/) [Dat Phan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dat-phan/) > [When you grow up poor, you have to either work really hard to try and get where you want to be, or you'll just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dat-phan/when-you-grow-up-poor-you-have-to-either-work-really-hard-to-try-and/) [Dat Phan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dat-phan/) > [I learned that money's not happiness. The more famous I am and the more money I make, the closer I stay to my family…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dat-phan/i-learned-that-money-s-not-happiness-the-more-famous-i-am-and-the/) [Dat Phan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dat-phan/) > [We want to be seen as more than just martial artists, or bad stereotype token roles in American TV and movies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dat-phan/we-want-to-be-seen-as-more-than-just-martial-artists-or-bad/) [Dat Phan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dat-phan/) > [I did whatever it takes to do stand-up. There is an abundance of material in struggling and poverty and trying to make it. There…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dat-phan/i-did-whatever-it-takes-to-do-stand-up-there-is-an-abundance-of/) [Dat Phan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dat-phan/) > [I was living under a desk in West Hollywood. It was a closet that I shared with another comic. I was shocked when they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dat-phan/i-was-living-under-a-desk-in-west-hollywood-it-was-a-closet-that-i/) [Dat Phan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dat-phan/) > [Vietnam, we take over by doing pedicure! That's how we take over. We take over one foot at a time, damn it - that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dat-phan/vietnam-we-take-over-by-doing-pedicure-that-s-how-we-take-over-we/) [Dat Phan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dat-phan/) > [Us Asians look like we're twenty until we're fifty. Once we're fifty, we look like Yoda.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dat-phan/us-asians-look-like-we-re-twenty-until-we-re-fifty-once-we-re-fifty/) [Dat Phan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dat-phan/) [Explore all 12 Dat Phan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dat-phan/) ## More Alive quotes > [I understand that it's the music that keeps me alive... That's my lifeblood. And to give that up for, like, the TV, the cars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/i-understand-that-it-s-the-music-that-keeps-me-alive-that-s-my/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [I feel very grateful to be alive and well enough to make music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-ant/i-feel-very-grateful-to-be-alive-and-well-enough-to-make-music/) Adam Ant > [I don't crave applause. I'm not one of those guys who comes alive on stage. I'm much more alive at home, I think.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bowie/i-don-t-crave-applause-i-m-not-one-of-those-guys-who-comes-alive-on/) [David Bowie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bowie/) > [We must master our egoism, and through this mastery, step outside ourselves and educate ourselves in giving. Fasting requires that we rediscover all that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tariq-ramadan/we-must-master-our-egoism-and-through-this-mastery-step-outside/) [Tariq Ramadan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tariq-ramadan/) > [I can't say that there are 'things' that make me come alive. There are thoughts that make me come alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/i-can-t-say-that-there-are-things-that-make-me-come-alive-there-are/) [Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/) > [We're like the wicked witch. We promise gingerbread, then eat the little brats alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/we-re-like-the-wicked-witch-we-promise-gingerbread-then-eat-the/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [If Jovan Belcher didn't possess a gun, he and Kasandra Perkins would both be alive today.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-costas/if-jovan-belcher-didn-t-possess-a-gun-he-and-kasandra-perkins-would/) [Bob Costas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-costas/) > [Peace is an ongoing process. It begins with the first step and it does not end. We, all of us alive today, are the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-krieger/peace-is-an-ongoing-process-it-begins-with-the-first-step-and-it-does/) [David Krieger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-krieger/) > [I think adoption becomes complicated whenever the biological parents are alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-haven/i-think-adoption-becomes-complicated-whenever-the-biological-parents/) [James Haven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-haven/) > [The pain of love is the pain of being alive. It is a perpetual wound.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-duffy/the-pain-of-love-is-the-pain-of-being-alive-it-is-a-perpetual-wound/) [Maureen Duffy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-duffy/) > [I have tried to resign myself, and to console myself; and that, I hope, I may have done imperfectly; but what I cannot firmly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/i-have-tried-to-resign-myself-and-to-console-myself-and-that-i-hope-i/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [If Melanchthon were alive today, he might not weep because of controversies that surround the Lord's Supper, but he might well sorrow because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erwin-w-lutzer/if-melanchthon-were-alive-today-he-might-not-weep-because-of/) [Erwin W. Lutzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erwin-w-lutzer/) > [If you’re alive, don’t move, if you’re dead, don’t worry about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurell-k-hamilton/if-you-re-alive-don-t-move-if-you-re-dead-don-t-worry-about-it/) [Laurell K. Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurell-k-hamilton/) > [Here Greek and Roman find themselves alive along these crowded shelves; and Shakespeare treads again his stage, and Chaucer paints anew his age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-greenleaf-whittier/here-greek-and-roman-find-themselves-alive-along-these-crowded/) [John Greenleaf Whittier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-greenleaf-whittier/) > [You're alive!" Fezzik cried. The man in black sat immobile, like a ventriloquist's dummy, just his mouth moving. "That is perhaps the most childishly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-goldman/you-re-alive-fezzik-cried-the-man-in-black-sat-immobile-like-a/) [William Goldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-goldman/) [Browse all 7,282 Alive quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alive/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I was doing gigs to stay alive. I worked two or three jobs at a time, there were times when I stayed up for 36 hours straight. I slept in shopping mall parking lots. A stand-up gig paid $35; then I could eat for another few days until the next gig. 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