Out of the Valley: Doug E. Fresh on Discipline and Positive Energy for Musicians (Episode 18)

You learned how to make music. Nobody taught you how to make a living making music.

Episode 18 of The Career Musician is a quick backstage hang with a hip hop pioneer: Doug E. Fresh, the human beatbox. Nomad caught up with him in Jacksonville, Florida, where Doug E. Fresh and Slick Rick were on the bill with Babyface. Nomad was there with Babyface's band.

Nomad was inspired by the positive energy Doug puts out on his Instagram, so he asked a question every working musician needs an answer to: how do you pull yourself out of the valleys? Nomad warns up front that the backstage audio isn't great. The message is still worth your time.

Positive messages are medicine

Doug explained that most of what he says comes from his own experience. He has seen how many artists and people take their struggles and hide them away where they never get out. Sometimes hearing a positive message is what heals.

It's also why he believes in talking to other people who go through the same things. We all go through peaks and valleys. You are not the only one.

Getting out of the valley

Doug didn't skip a beat. He has habits he uses to get out of that space, and he laid them out:

Work up a sweat. For him, exercise clears everything up. When he's sweating, he leaves it all in the room.

Write it down. Putting what's on your mind on paper lets you release it, because what stays in your head is hard to get out.

Talk to a real friend. If you have a real friend you can tell anything to, you are one of the luckiest people there is. Not everybody has that safe place.

Pray or meditate. Whatever works for you, find the thing that gets you out of that space, because that's the space that destroys people.

That's Energy from ETHOS, the real kind. Not being hyped all the time, but having a routine that gets you back on your feet so you can show up.

Discipline creates balance

Nomad asked about the duality of the business side and the creative side, the reason artists and managers both exist. Doug's answer started with the word Nomad had used: balance.

"Discipline is a very important factor, because without discipline... you can't create a balance, because you're out of control."

Doug E. Fresh, 6:07

For Doug, discipline is the guiding word. It's what lets you control yourself, emotionally and in business, in situations where that is very hard to do. That is how you stay Low maintenance / no drama when the pressure is on.

It's always a collective

Doug's biggest point was about ego. When Babyface walked out that night, it wasn't just him. It was the lights, the engineers, security, the band and the singers in the background, all working together. When you're young, ego can tell you it's all you.

"Sometimes you believe that everything is you, and it's not. It's always a collective."

Doug E. Fresh, 8:08

If there's nobody to perform for, the performance isn't significant. Everyone in that building is part of the vibe. That is Humility, and it's coming from a legend who still treats every show as a team effort.

The takeaway

Be self-aware about the valleys and have a plan for them: sweat, write, talk to a friend, pray or meditate. Use discipline to build balance in your spirit, mind and body. And remember you are part of a collective on every gig. If you're working your way onto stages like this one, start with the free Get the Gig guide.

Get the gig. Keep the gig. Build the career.

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