--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I was working so hard at music and trying…" description: "\"I was working so hard at music and trying to do this whole 'industry' thing and realised that it wasn't for me.\" — Skepta" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/413/skepta-5714_hard_i-was-working-so-hard-at-music-and-tryin_2728081.jpg" --- # I was working so hard at music and trying to do this whole… ![“I was working so hard at music and trying to do this whole 'industry' thing and realised that it wasn't for me.” quote by Skepta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/413/skepta-5714_hard_i-was-working-so-hard-at-music-and-tryin_2728081.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/413/skepta-5714_hard_i-was-working-so-hard-at-music-and-tryin_2728081.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/413/skepta-5714_hard_i-was-working-so-hard-at-music-and-tryin_2728081.jpg) > “I was working so hard at music and trying to do this whole 'industry' thing and realised that it wasn't for me.” [Skepta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/skepta/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He realized the music industry didn't align with his values, leading him to step away. **In simple terms:** He left the industry because it wasn't right for him. Key Takeaway Listen to your inner compass. Themes self‑discovery career authenticity Mood reflective determined Type personal career When to use this quote - career change - creative pursuits - mental health - self‑reflection Key Concepts values industry pressure personal fulfillment Questions to Reflect On - What truly motivates you beyond external success? - How can you redefine success on your own terms? A Different Perspective Leaving may cause financial uncertainty. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Industry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/industry/) [Music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music/) [Working hard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/working-hard/) ## Related quotes > [Trying to find this industry's tendency to celebrate the physical is a waste of time. So I'm happy to play the game. But I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivia-wilde/trying-to-find-this-industry-s-tendency-to-celebrate-the-physical-is/) [Olivia Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivia-wilde/) > [That's the beauty of creative industry that when one thing does not pan out, you have other things to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhishek-banerjee/that-s-the-beauty-of-creative-industry-that-when-one-thing-does-not/) [Abhishek Banerjee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhishek-banerjee/) > [Agriculture is now a motorized food industry, the same thing in its essence as the production of corpses in the gas chambers and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-heidegger/agriculture-is-now-a-motorized-food-industry-the-same-thing-in-its/) [Martin Heidegger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-heidegger/) > [Now listen, the one thing about agriculture is we've lost our manufacturing, we've lost a great deal of jobs overseas, lots of our industry.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-boozman/now-listen-the-one-thing-about-agriculture-is-we-ve-lost-our/) John Boozman > [I think it's really hard to describe music without alienating somebody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-petrucci/i-think-it-s-really-hard-to-describe-music-without-alienating-somebody/) [John Petrucci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-petrucci/) > [I'm glad I took that time to work really hard on the music. I feel the effects of that now in a positive way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenny-chesney/i-m-glad-i-took-that-time-to-work-really-hard-on-the-music-i-feel-the/) [Kenny Chesney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenny-chesney/) > [I get so much inspiration from people working hard at music, even though it's nothing to do with what I do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-scharpling/i-get-so-much-inspiration-from-people-working-hard-at-music-even/) [Tom Scharpling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-scharpling/) > [I practice and work hard at my music, but I'm not saving lives here.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-connick-jr/i-practice-and-work-hard-at-my-music-but-i-m-not-saving-lives-here/) [Harry Connick, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-connick-jr/) > [I guess everyone has their own definition of what folk is or pop or whatever. I find it incredibly hard to describe music these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-droste/i-guess-everyone-has-their-own-definition-of-what-folk-is-or-pop-or/) [Ed Droste](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-droste/) > [I don't actually have a lot of discipline. I've worked hard at music. But I feel like you know, I felt like kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norah-jones/i-don-t-actually-have-a-lot-of-discipline-i-ve-worked-hard-at-music/) [Norah Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norah-jones/) > [I lived in Scotland a long time, and I became aware of Mogwai really from the beginning. They seemed to be fusing hard music…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-richter/i-lived-in-scotland-a-long-time-and-i-became-aware-of-mogwai-really/) [Max Richter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-richter/) > [To be a composer, you have to be a die-hard music lover - which I am.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/devi-sri-prasad/to-be-a-composer-you-have-to-be-a-die-hard-music-lover-which-i-am/) [Devi Sri Prasad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/devi-sri-prasad/) > [I've always gone back and forth between acting and music, but for music I'm not trying to be a pop star - I just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-greenberg/i-ve-always-gone-back-and-forth-between-acting-and-music-but-for/) [Bryan Greenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-greenberg/) > [I think the music that speaks to me the most is music that is personal. And that's the music that I'm trying to make.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rostam-batmanglij/i-think-the-music-that-speaks-to-me-the-most-is-music-that-is/) [Rostam Batmanglij](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rostam-batmanglij/) > [I just want to make that my life: recording music and trying to write a good song every day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-granduciel/i-just-want-to-make-that-my-life-recording-music-and-trying-to-write/) [Adam Granduciel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-granduciel/) ## More by Skepta > [They respect rappers in the U.S., but in England, it's the Queen's country. She'll forever be putting out the message on these BBC networks…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/skepta/they-respect-rappers-in-the-u-s-but-in-england-it-s-the-queen-s/) [Skepta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/skepta/) > [There would be weeks when I'd just go to Paris on a cheap ticket, sleep on my friend's floor, and just do a show…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/skepta/there-would-be-weeks-when-i-d-just-go-to-paris-on-a-cheap-ticket/) [Skepta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/skepta/) > [A good diss track needs to have some facts in it and definitely tell some truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/skepta/a-good-diss-track-needs-to-have-some-facts-in-it-and-definitely-tell/) [Skepta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/skepta/) > ['No fear' is a mindset that I stand for. It's the reason why I've got to where I am today.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/skepta/no-fear-is-a-mindset-that-i-stand-for-it-s-the-reason-why-i-ve-got-to/) [Skepta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/skepta/) > [I've been trying to do this music stuff and work it out for so long... I was like, 'Let's do it for ourselves.' All…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/skepta/i-ve-been-trying-to-do-this-music-stuff-and-work-it-out-for-so-long-i/) [Skepta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/skepta/) > [The worst thing that happened to me at a gig was when the microphone wasn't on one time, and for the three lines of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/skepta/the-worst-thing-that-happened-to-me-at-a-gig-was-when-the-microphone/) [Skepta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/skepta/) > [Radio 1 doesn't exist to me. I don't judge my success by anything they say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/skepta/radio-1-doesn-t-exist-to-me-i-don-t-judge-my-success-by-anything-they/) [Skepta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/skepta/) > [When I was a youth, to be called 'African' was a diss. At school, the African kids used to lie and say they were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/skepta/when-i-was-a-youth-to-be-called-african-was-a-diss-at-school-the/) [Skepta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/skepta/) > [At every stage of my life, I've always wanted to do good for Earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/skepta/at-every-stage-of-my-life-i-ve-always-wanted-to-do-good-for-earth/) [Skepta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/skepta/) > [I don't think grime has ever been respected; it's not seen as a nice sound.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/skepta/i-don-t-think-grime-has-ever-been-respected-it-s-not-seen-as-a-nice/) [Skepta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/skepta/) > [Bullying is bullying, man. Even the biggest of the bullies got bullied. And what was happening in school comes from the media, innit? It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/skepta/bullying-is-bullying-man-even-the-biggest-of-the-bullies-got-bullied/) [Skepta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/skepta/) > [I've realised that there's art in everything we do in London. Suddenly, a photo of two boys sitting on a wall in tracksuits with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/skepta/i-ve-realised-that-there-s-art-in-everything-we-do-in-london-suddenly/) [Skepta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/skepta/) > [You won't feel inferior in my sportswear!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/skepta/you-won-t-feel-inferior-in-my-sportswear/) [Skepta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/skepta/) > [For a long time, men weren't respecting women. They weren't understanding Mother Earth, Mother Nature, the Motherland, all the motherly stuff. And now we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/skepta/for-a-long-time-men-weren-t-respecting-women-they-weren-t/) [Skepta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/skepta/) > [Thank you to everybody who was there for me when I was going through depressed times.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/skepta/thank-you-to-everybody-who-was-there-for-me-when-i-was-going-through/) [Skepta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/skepta/) [Explore all 100 Skepta quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/skepta/) ## More Hard quotes > [You'd be surprised how hard it can often be to translate an action into an idea.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-kraus/you-d-be-surprised-how-hard-it-can-often-be-to-translate-an-action/) [Karl Kraus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-kraus/) > [Making the right decision is hard,telling someone your decision is even harder.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhishek-tiwari/making-the-right-decision-is-hard-telling-someone-your-decision-is/) [Abhishek Tiwari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhishek-tiwari/) > [It is hard to admit to someone that you love him..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/misherie/it-is-hard-to-admit-to-someone-that-you-love-him/) [Misherie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/misherie/) > [It's a hard thing to describe. It's just this sense that you got something to say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonah-lehrer/it-s-a-hard-thing-to-describe-it-s-just-this-sense-that-you-got/) [Jonah Lehrer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonah-lehrer/) > [There Was Many Time I Had Wanted To Give Up In Life On So Many Things…But Naw F\*\*\* That...I'm Not Going To Never Give…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/out-spoken/there-was-many-time-i-had-wanted-to-give-up-in-life-on-so-many-things/) Out Spoken > [I think you can get, as a player, stuck in the mindset of trying too hard to prove yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trinity-rodman/i-think-you-can-get-as-a-player-stuck-in-the-mindset-of-trying-too/) [Trinity Rodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trinity-rodman/) > [America is a democracy and has no Hitler, but I am afraid for her future; there are hard times ahead for the American people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/america-is-a-democracy-and-has-no-hitler-but-i-am-afraid-for-her/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [One of the worst things to come out of the Consumer Protection Board's misleading claims is the impression that government resources are to hard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-lesko/one-of-the-worst-things-to-come-out-of-the-consumer-protection-board/) [Matthew Lesko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-lesko/) > [In our society we have hard nerds and soft nerds. The hard nerds are the ones who used to have the slide rules at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-kay/in-our-society-we-have-hard-nerds-and-soft-nerds-the-hard-nerds-are/) [Alan Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-kay/) > [I think the next 50 years are going to present the human race with challenges that so far exceed the limitations of geopolitical boundaries…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zachary-quinto/i-think-the-next-50-years-are-going-to-present-the-human-race-with/) [Zachary Quinto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zachary-quinto/) > [Don't be afraid of hard work. Nothing worthwhile comes easily. Don't let others discourage you or tell you that you can't do it. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrude-b-elion/don-t-be-afraid-of-hard-work-nothing-worthwhile-comes-easily-don-t/) [Gertrude B. Elion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrude-b-elion/) > [High school, going into my junior year, I kind of had the idea I was going to be the starting running back. I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saquon-barkley/high-school-going-into-my-junior-year-i-kind-of-had-the-idea-i-was/) [Saquon Barkley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saquon-barkley/) > [It's very easy to fool yourself that you're working, you know, when you're really not working very hard. I mean, I'm very lazy. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-caro/it-s-very-easy-to-fool-yourself-that-you-re-working-you-know-when-you/) [Robert Caro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-caro/) > [If I had to speak in front of a Korean audience, I would be hard pressed to sound other than a little girl.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/an-na/if-i-had-to-speak-in-front-of-a-korean-audience-i-would-be-hard/) [An Na](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/an-na/) > [It took me 20 years of hard training to get the physique I have today. what you need is what i had - BELIEF…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/branch-warren/it-took-me-20-years-of-hard-training-to-get-the-physique-i-have-today/) [Branch Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/branch-warren/) Browse all 29,826 Hard quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I was working so hard at music and trying to do this whole 'industry' thing and realised that it wasn't for me.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Skepta" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/skepta/i-was-working-so-hard-at-music-and-trying-to-do-this-whole-industry/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Hard" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/skepta/i-was-working-so-hard-at-music-and-trying-to-do-this-whole-industry/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/413/skepta-5714_hard_i-was-working-so-hard-at-music-and-tryin_2728081.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/413/skepta-5714_hard_i-was-working-so-hard-at-music-and-tryin_2728081.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/413/skepta-5714_hard_i-was-working-so-hard-at-music-and-tryin_2728081.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I was working so hard at music and trying to do this whole 'industry' thing and realised that it wasn't for…” — Skepta", "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": "Skepta", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/skepta/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I was working so hard at...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/skepta/i-was-working-so-hard-at-music-and-trying-to-do-this-whole-industry/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/skepta/i-was-working-so-hard-at-music-and-trying-to-do-this-whole-industry/#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 } } ] } ```