1. To Be a Musician By: Christopher Ladwig

2. Table of Contents What is this job like? How do you get ready? How much does this job pay? How many jobs are there? What about the future? Salary Sources

3. What is this job like? Musicians compose, sing, and play music Some music is very loud and can cause hearing loss Many musicians can only find part-time work Some musicians go on concert tours, traveling all over the U.S. and the world

4. How do you get ready? To be a musician or singer you need musical talent Many songwriters now write music on computers, so technical skills are handy Join a school band or choir or perform in a school musical

5. How much does this job pay? Earnings depend on how popular a performer is Musicians often have to hold down other jobs while they're building their careers They usually are paid for each performance or recording Musicians earn about $10.81 and $36.55 an hour

6. How many jobs are there? Musicians, singers, and related workers held about 264,000 jobs in 2006 Some perform in restaurants and nightclubs and at weddings and other special events

7. What about the future? Competition for jobs as a musician or singer is strong Talent alone is no guarantee of success To have a music career, you need a lot of motivation and good luck Very few people earn enough money to support themselves as musicians or singers

8. Salary

10. Sources BLS PayScale