--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If someone decides to be a musician now…" description: "\"If someone decides to be a musician now, it means because there is no hope of money at the end of it, it means they really want to be a musician. And i..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ac/douglas-coupland-305_ends_if-someone-decides-to-be-a-musician-now_1862808.jpg" --- # If someone decides to be a musician now, it means because… ![“If someone decides to be a musician now, it means because there is no hope of money at the end of it, it means they really want to be a musician. And if someone is writing now, there is no hope for money at the end of it.” quote by Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ac/douglas-coupland-305_ends_if-someone-decides-to-be-a-musician-now_1862808.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ac/douglas-coupland-305_ends_if-someone-decides-to-be-a-musician-now_1862808.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ac/douglas-coupland-305_ends_if-someone-decides-to-be-a-musician-now_1862808.jpg) > “If someone decides to be a musician now, it means because there is no hope of money at the end of it, it means they really want to be a musician. And if someone is writing now, there is no hope for money at the end of it.” [Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Choosing a creative path despite financial uncertainty shows a deep intrinsic motivation for the art itself. **In simple terms:** People pursue art for love, not money. Key Takeaway Follow passion over profit. Themes creativity motivation risk authenticity Mood reflective inspired Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - career choice - artistic projects - personal fulfillment - financial planning Key Concepts intrinsic motivation artistic integrity economic trade‑offs Questions to Reflect On - What drives you more: passion or security? - How can you balance art and income? A Different Perspective Financial instability can limit long‑term sustainability. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hope/) [Money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money/) [Music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music/) [Musician](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/musician/) [No hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/no-hope/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [Don't ever think that the sin of your past means there is no hope for your future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-piper/don-t-ever-think-that-the-sin-of-your-past-means-there-is-no-hope-for/) [John Piper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-piper/) > [At the end of the day, I'm a New Orleans musician. Whatever that means.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trombone-shorty/at-the-end-of-the-day-i-m-a-new-orleans-musician-whatever-that-means/) [Trombone Shorty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trombone-shorty/) > [Being a musician means I am 'hanging out' a lot, like driving on tour or being at a show or whatever, so maybe there's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-elverum/being-a-musician-means-i-am-hanging-out-a-lot-like-driving-on-tour-or/) [Phil Elverum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-elverum/) > [I think that virtuosity is the first sign of morality in a musician. It means you're serious enough to practice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wynton-marsalis/i-think-that-virtuosity-is-the-first-sign-of-morality-in-a-musician/) [Wynton Marsalis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wynton-marsalis/) > [Being an American musician means being adventurous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-tilson-thomas/being-an-american-musician-means-being-adventurous/) [Michael Tilson Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-tilson-thomas/) > [I'd wanted to be a writer and when I came back to New York worked as a musician too, but I found my writing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-jarmusch/i-d-wanted-to-be-a-writer-and-when-i-came-back-to-new-york-worked-as/) [Jim Jarmusch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-jarmusch/) > [Everybody has their own approach to songwriting. When you're an electronic musician, the whole writing process just depends. Some people have a very live…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/travis-stewart/everybody-has-their-own-approach-to-songwriting-when-you-re-an/) Travis Stewart > [Busking taught me so much on so many levels, not just about being a musician or writing songs - actually about growing up and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/passenger/busking-taught-me-so-much-on-so-many-levels-not-just-about-being-a/) [Passenger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/passenger/) > [I've been a list maker for years, even before I was a musician. I was always writing things down and kept long lists of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/buzz-osborne/i-ve-been-a-list-maker-for-years-even-before-i-was-a-musician-i-was/) [Buzz Osborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/buzz-osborne/) > [The beauty of being a musician is writing songs. That's the best part. It's therapeutic and honest and private.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gin-wigmore/the-beauty-of-being-a-musician-is-writing-songs-that-s-the-best-part/) [Gin Wigmore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gin-wigmore/) > [My family didn't want me to be a musician, and therefore, they never helped out in my efforts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yo-yo-honey-singh/my-family-didn-t-want-me-to-be-a-musician-and-therefore-they-never/) [Yo Yo Honey Singh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yo-yo-honey-singh/) > [Burzum was never my choice of life. I didn't even want to become a musician.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/varg-vikernes/burzum-was-never-my-choice-of-life-i-didn-t-even-want-to-become-a/) [Varg Vikernes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/varg-vikernes/) > [I don't want to be a musician's musician. I want to be an everyone's musician.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitski/i-don-t-want-to-be-a-musician-s-musician-i-want-to-be-an-everyone-s/) [Mitski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitski/) > [Patreon is here to give control back to artists so it doesn't need to be a hard conversation when a kid tells their parents…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-conte/patreon-is-here-to-give-control-back-to-artists-so-it-doesn-t-need-to/) [Jack Conte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-conte/) > [I don't want to be a musician forever. I want to keep going to school and become a lawyer for women's rights and also…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonita-alizadeh/i-don-t-want-to-be-a-musician-forever-i-want-to-keep-going-to-school/) [Sonita Alizadeh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonita-alizadeh/) ## More by Douglas Coupland > [And in your new lives you'll have to live entirely for that one sensation-that of imminent truth. And you're going to have to holler…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/and-in-your-new-lives-you-ll-have-to-live-entirely-for-that-one/) [Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/) > [A man in a bookstore buys a book on loneliness and every woman in the store hits on him. A woman buys a book…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/a-man-in-a-bookstore-buys-a-book-on-loneliness-and-every-woman-in-the/) [Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/) > [The future and eternity are two entirely different things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/the-future-and-eternity-are-two-entirely-different-things/) [Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/) > [Do you remember how you felt at seventeen? I do and I don't (...) Imagine you came from outer space and someone showed you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/do-you-remember-how-you-felt-at-seventeen-i-do-and-i-don-t-imagine/) [Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/) > [You can't fake competence, creativity, or sexual arousal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/you-can-t-fake-competence-creativity-or-sexual-arousal/) [Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/) > [“But Dag, for all of his efforts, might as well have been talking to a cat. Our parents’ generation seems neither able nor interested…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/but-dag-for-all-of-his-efforts-might-as-well-have-been-talking-to-a/) [Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/) > [Negative? Moi? I think realistic might be a better word. You mean to tell me we can drive all the way here from L.A.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/negative-moi-i-think-realistic-might-be-a-better-word-you-mean-to/) [Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/) > [It was pivotal in making you but you don't remember it. Or do you? Do we understand the events that make us who we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/it-was-pivotal-in-making-you-but-you-don-t-remember-it-or-do-you-do/) [Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/) > [Your ability to rationalize your own bad deeds makes you believe that the whole world is as amoral as you are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/your-ability-to-rationalize-your-own-bad-deeds-makes-you-believe-that/) [Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/) > [“I like to go beach-combing, and I like to find interestingly shaped rocks. When I really get into the groove I start finding beautiful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/i-like-to-go-beach-combing-and-i-like-to-find-interestingly-shaped/) [Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/) > [“You know, Dag and Claire smile a lot, as do many people I know. But I always wondered if there is something either mechanical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/you-know-dag-and-claire-smile-a-lot-as-do-many-people-i-know-but-i/) [Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/) > [Brain research tells us that only twenty percent of human beings have a sense of irony, which means that eighty percent of the world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/brain-research-tells-us-that-only-twenty-percent-of-human-beings-have/) [Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/) > [I keep vampire hours, going to bed at 2 A.M. and waking up at about 10:30-11 A.M.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/i-keep-vampire-hours-going-to-bed-at-2-a-m-and-waking-up-at-about-10/) [Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/) > [“Anna-Louise leans over and whispers in my ear. "This is so surreal," she says, "I think I'm turning into a melting clock.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/anna-louise-leans-over-and-whispers-in-my-ear-this-is-so-surreal-she/) [Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/) > [When you grow up these days, you're told you're going to have four or five different careers during your lifetime. But what they don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/when-you-grow-up-these-days-you-re-told-you-re-going-to-have-four-or/) [Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/) [Explore all 704 Douglas Coupland quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/) ## More Ends 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/) > [The end is nothing; the road is all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-cather/the-end-is-nothing-the-road-is-all/) [Willa Cather](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-cather/) > [Well, The Day the Earth Caught Fire was a story... I don't if anybody knows what it is but it was about... in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/val-guest/well-the-day-the-earth-caught-fire-was-a-story-i-don-t-if-anybody/) [Val Guest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/val-guest/) > [Bush reiterated his stand to conservatives opposing his decision on stem cell research. He said today he believes life begins at conception and ends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-leno/bush-reiterated-his-stand-to-conservatives-opposing-his-decision-on/) [Jay Leno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-leno/) > [Dating someone on the opposite end of the happy spectrum teaches you an incredible amount of patience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-pine/dating-someone-on-the-opposite-end-of-the-happy-spectrum-teaches-you/) [Chris Pine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-pine/) > [What is history after all? History is facts which become lies in the end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-cocteau/what-is-history-after-all-history-is-facts-which-become-lies-in-the/) [Jean Cocteau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-cocteau/) > [Sometimes it's just enough for me to have the idea. I don't need to see it through to the end. When it actually happens,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-sedaris/sometimes-it-s-just-enough-for-me-to-have-the-idea-i-don-t-need-to/) [Amy Sedaris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-sedaris/) > [In the fight between biology and morality, biology has commonly won in the end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/semir-zeki/in-the-fight-between-biology-and-morality-biology-has-commonly-won-in/) [Semir Zeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/semir-zeki/) > [At the end of night, before you close your eyes, be content with what you've done and be proud of who you are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-almond/at-the-end-of-night-before-you-close-your-eyes-be-content-with-what/) [Steve Almond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-almond/) > [it is the brevity of life which makes it tolerable; its experiences have value because they have an end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winifred-holtby/it-is-the-brevity-of-life-which-makes-it-tolerable-its-experiences/) [Winifred Holtby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winifred-holtby/) > [I hope that the Palestinians don't make the mistake of unleashing a new intifada. They've tried it twice before, and the consequences were bad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-segev/i-hope-that-the-palestinians-don-t-make-the-mistake-of-unleashing-a/) [Tom Segev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-segev/) > [Believe to the end, even if all men went astray and you were left the only one faithful; bring your offering even then and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoevsky/believe-to-the-end-even-if-all-men-went-astray-and-you-were-left-the/) [Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoevsky/) > [When the amount of change externally exceeds the amount of change internally, the end is in sight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-welch/when-the-amount-of-change-externally-exceeds-the-amount-of-change/) [Jack Welch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-welch/) > [A man cannot speak but he judges himself. With his will or against his will he draws his portrait to the eye of his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/a-man-cannot-speak-but-he-judges-himself-with-his-will-or-against-his/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [The beginning of love is all about the butterflies, but the end of it is when you can't get out of bed in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-swift/the-beginning-of-love-is-all-about-the-butterflies-but-the-end-of-it/) [Taylor Swift](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-swift/) Browse all 20,790 Ends quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If someone decides to be a musician now, it means because there is no hope of money at the end of it, it means they really want to be a musician. And if someone is writing now, there is no hope for money at the end of it.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Douglas Coupland" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/if-someone-decides-to-be-a-musician-now-it-means-because-there-is-no/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Ends" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/if-someone-decides-to-be-a-musician-now-it-means-because-there-is-no/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ac/douglas-coupland-305_ends_if-someone-decides-to-be-a-musician-now_1862808.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ac/douglas-coupland-305_ends_if-someone-decides-to-be-a-musician-now_1862808.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0ac/douglas-coupland-305_ends_if-someone-decides-to-be-a-musician-now_1862808.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If someone decides to be a musician now, it means because there is no hope of money at the end of it, it…” — Douglas Coupland", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Douglas Coupland", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If someone decides to be a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/if-someone-decides-to-be-a-musician-now-it-means-because-there-is-no/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/if-someone-decides-to-be-a-musician-now-it-means-because-there-is-no/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```