---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: This is the music business. 'Five years…"
description: "\"This is the music business. 'Five years is five hundred years' - your words.\" — Jennifer Egan"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/239/jennifer-egan-825_business_this-is-the-music-business-five-years-is_1054222.jpg"
---

#  This is the music business. 'Five years is five hundred…

![“This is the music business. 'Five years is five hundred years' - your words.” quote by Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/239/jennifer-egan-825_business_this-is-the-music-business-five-years-is_1054222.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/239/jennifer-egan-825_business_this-is-the-music-business-five-years-is_1054222.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/239/jennifer-egan-825_business_this-is-the-music-business-five-years-is_1054222.jpg)

> “This is the music business. 'Five years is five hundred years' - your words.”

[Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

The music business compresses time, making a short span feel like centuries of effort and change.

**In simple terms:** Music industry feels like centuries in a few years.

Key Takeaway

Adapt quickly and value long‑term vision.

Themes

industry time change

Mood

cautious motivational

Type

advice reflective

When to use this quote

- artist development
- record label negotiations
- tour planning

Key Concepts

compression career longevity creative cycles

Questions to Reflect On

- What strategies sustain creativity over time?
- How do you balance short‑term demands with long‑term goals?

A Different Perspective

Risk of burnout from relentless pace.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business/) [Business Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business-years-590617/) [Five years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/five-years/) [Hundred](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hundred/) [Music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music/) [Music business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music-business/) [Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years/) [Years Words](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years-words-640300/) [Years Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years-years-1217317/)

## Related quotes

> [For last years words belong to last years language. And next years words await another voice. And to make an end is to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/for-last-years-words-belong-to-last-years-language-and-next-years-2/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [For last years words belong to last years language and next years words await another voice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ts-eliot/for-last-years-words-belong-to-last-years-language-and-next-years/)

[TS Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ts-eliot/)

> [It took man thousands of years to put words down on paper, and his lawyers still wish he wouldn't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mignon-mclaughlin/it-took-man-thousands-of-years-to-put-words-down-on-paper-and-his/)

[Mignon McLaughlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mignon-mclaughlin/)

> [I read a lot until was about 12, then as a teenager I was more interested in kissing boys. But I kept a diary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dawn-o-porter/i-read-a-lot-until-was-about-12-then-as-a-teenager-i-was-more/)

[Dawn O'Porter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dawn-o-porter/)

> [Remember in the forms of speech comes change Within a thousand years, and words that then Were well esteemed, seem foolish now and strange;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geoffrey-chaucer/remember-in-the-forms-of-speech-comes-change-within-a-thousand-years/)

[Geoffrey Chaucer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geoffrey-chaucer/)

> [Some people are happy to work in a particular domain or some field of computer science for years, and years. I personally like to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-dean/some-people-are-happy-to-work-in-a-particular-domain-or-some-field-of/)

[Jeff Dean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-dean/)

> [I have been working on two problems for three years: one of them for 8 or 9 years, and one of them for 3, 4, 5 years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whitfield-diffie/i-have-been-working-on-two-problems-for-three-years-one-of-them-for-8/)

[Whitfield Diffie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whitfield-diffie/)

> [“Imagine 4 years. Four years, two suicides, one death, one rape, two pregnancies (one abortion), three overdoses, countless drunken antics, pantsings, spilled food, theft,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/courtney-summers/imagine-4-years-four-years-two-suicides-one-death-one-rape-two/)

[Courtney Summers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/courtney-summers/)

> [For years and years I have done the work I was born for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-larkin/for-years-and-years-i-have-done-the-work-i-was-born-for/)

[James Larkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-larkin/)

> [Four years in the White House and two presidential campaigns is an awful long time. In politics, every year in the White House is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-stephanopoulos/four-years-in-the-white-house-and-two-presidential-campaigns-is-an/)

[George Stephanopoulos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-stephanopoulos/)

> [I haven't killed anyone on television in years and years. Must have been twenty something years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-macleod/i-haven-t-killed-anyone-on-television-in-years-and-years-must-have/)

[Gavin MacLeod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-macleod/)

> [I've been in TV for years and years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-cheban/i-ve-been-in-tv-for-years-and-years/)

[Jonathan Cheban](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-cheban/)

> [The only problem is whether one adds life to one's years or years to one's life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-parrott/the-only-problem-is-whether-one-adds-life-to-one-s-years-or-years-to/)

[Ursula Parrott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-parrott/)

> [Having a great time YEARS AND YEARS ago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/myself-jeremy-renner/having-a-great-time-years-and-years-ago/)

[Myself Jeremy Renner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/myself-jeremy-renner/)

> [Me in the middle! years and years ago!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/me-in-the-middle-years-and-years-ago/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

## More by Jennifer Egan

> [“Behind the desk was nothing but view-the whole city flung out in front of us the way street vendors fling out their towels packed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/behind-the-desk-was-nothing-but-view-the-whole-city-flung-out-in/)

[Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/)

> [I just think that, for my particular personality, feeling slightly invisible is always a help.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-just-think-that-for-my-particular-personality-feeling-slightly/)

[Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/)

> [Between books, I have to throw out everything I did before, because the tools I've used to write the previous book will not only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/between-books-i-have-to-throw-out-everything-i-did-before-because-the/)

[Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/)

> [As a reader and a writer, I'm happiest when apparently mutually exclusive states can somehow coexist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/as-a-reader-and-a-writer-i-m-happiest-when-apparently-mutually/)

[Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/)

> [I teach intermittently, and while I enjoy it, I don't find that it's a calling for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-teach-intermittently-and-while-i-enjoy-it-i-don-t-find-that-it-s-a/)

[Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/)

> [Like all failed experiments, that one taught me something I didn’t expect: one key ingredient of so-called experience is the delusional faith that it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/like-all-failed-experiments-that-one-taught-me-something-i-didn-t/)

[Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/)

> [“Thousands of solar panels lift and tilt at the same time, in the same way. I clutch at Dad's arm: "Why are they doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/thousands-of-solar-panels-lift-and-tilt-at-the-same-time-in-the-same/)

[Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/)

> [It was the hat. He looked sweet in the hat. How could a man in a fuzzy blue hat have used human bones to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/it-was-the-hat-he-looked-sweet-in-the-hat-how-could-a-man-in-a-fuzzy/)

[Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/)

> [I was a stepchild in two different families. The hardest thing about being a stepchild is you know that in some way everything would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-was-a-stepchild-in-two-different-families-the-hardest-thing-about/)

[Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/)

> [“The seconds pass. I know what’s going on because it’s the same thing that always happens: give me something nice, something I love or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/the-seconds-pass-i-know-what-s-going-on-because-it-s-the-same-thing/)

[Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/)

> [I had this idea that I could hire myself out as a person to go on archeological digs and dig, without any training! I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-had-this-idea-that-i-could-hire-myself-out-as-a-person-to-go-on/)

[Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/)

> [At night, the house thick with sleep, she would peer out her bedroom window at the trees and sky and feel the presence of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/at-night-the-house-thick-with-sleep-she-would-peer-out-her-bedroom/)

[Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/)

> [I number my drafts, and by the time a book is done, I'll have 75 or 80 drafts of some sections.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-number-my-drafts-and-by-the-time-a-book-is-done-i-ll-have-75-or-80/)

[Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/)

> [Read at the level at which you want to write. Reading is the nourishment that feeds the kind of writing you want to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/read-at-the-level-at-which-you-want-to-write-reading-is-the/)

[Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/)

> [I was a stepchild in two different families. The hardest thing about being a stepchild is you know that in some way everything would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/i-was-a-stepchild-in-two-different-families-the-hardest-thing-about-2/)

[Jennifer Egan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/)

[Explore all 358 Jennifer Egan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/)

## More Business quotes

> [Companies with cultures that celebrate diverse opinions and encourage the exchange of ideas have an advantage when solving difficult problems. A company that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doug-mcmillon/companies-with-cultures-that-celebrate-diverse-opinions-and-encourage/)

[Doug McMillon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doug-mcmillon/)

> [You can laugh at me, but I understand show business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ksenia-sobchak/you-can-laugh-at-me-but-i-understand-show-business/)

[Ksenia Sobchak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ksenia-sobchak/)

> [“Start a business, not a startup”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/start-a-business-not-a-startup/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/)

[Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/)

> [I'm a business first and foremost so whatever my business is, it's separate from my personal. It's like whatever I do business wise, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/snoop-dogg/i-m-a-business-first-and-foremost-so-whatever-my-business-is-it-s/)

[Snoop Dogg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/snoop-dogg/)

> [Many early-stage entrepreneurs make one simple mistake: Describing this 'big picture' in vague concepts and words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunil-nagaraj/many-early-stage-entrepreneurs-make-one-simple-mistake-describing/)

[Sunil Nagaraj](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunil-nagaraj/)

> [Nobody has a crystal ball, and part of evolving a business plan is to say, 'I might have said we're going left, but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-kavanaugh/nobody-has-a-crystal-ball-and-part-of-evolving-a-business-plan-is-to/)

[Ryan Kavanaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-kavanaugh/)

> [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/)

[G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/)

> [ “\[S\]ometimes, when you are a food person, the possible irrelevance of what you are doing doesn’t cross your mind until it’s too late. (Once,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-ephron/s-ometimes-when-you-are-a-food-person-the-possible-irrelevance-of/)

[Nora Ephron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-ephron/)

> [If you have a different mindset, you will have a different outcome: if you make different choices from your peers, your life will then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-ma/if-you-have-a-different-mindset-you-will-have-a-different-outcome-if/)

[Jack Ma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-ma/)

> [“Some say the Earth is angry Because he wants no company; I say the Earth is angry Because he lives alone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/some-say-the-earth-is-angry-because-he-wants-no-company-i-say-the/)

[N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/)

> [ If the State does not acquire supremacy over \[vast private\] enterprises, it becomes their puppet, and they become the real State. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/if-the-state-does-not-acquire-supremacy-over-vast-private-enterprises/)

[Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/)

> [It's not just that families can't buy a home or start a business without some savings tucked away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-cooper/it-s-not-just-that-families-can-t-buy-a-home-or-start-a-business/)

[Jim Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-cooper/)

> [I'm not into business at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freddie-mercury/i-m-not-into-business-at-all/)

[Freddie Mercury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freddie-mercury/)

> [I've long believed one of the mainsprings of our own liberty has been the widespread ownership of property among our people and the expectation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/i-ve-long-believed-one-of-the-mainsprings-of-our-own-liberty-has-been/)

[Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/)

[Browse all 39,016 Business quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "This is the music business. 'Five years is five hundred years' - your words.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Jennifer Egan"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/this-is-the-music-business-five-years-is-five-hundred-years-your-words/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Business"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/this-is-the-music-business-five-years-is-five-hundred-years-your-words/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/239/jennifer-egan-825_business_this-is-the-music-business-five-years-is_1054222.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/239/jennifer-egan-825_business_this-is-the-music-business-five-years-is_1054222.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/239/jennifer-egan-825_business_this-is-the-music-business-five-years-is_1054222.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“This is the music business. 'Five years is five hundred years' - your words.” — Jennifer Egan",
                "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": "Jennifer Egan",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-egan/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "This is the music business. 'Five...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/this-is-the-music-business-five-years-is-five-hundred-years-your-words/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-egan/this-is-the-music-business-five-years-is-five-hundred-years-your-words/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
