This is only partially a “starving artist” post. Plato said necessity is the mother of invention. This is especially true of songwriters, it seems, since we all need something to write about. Without a hole somewhere, we wouldn’t be able to fill it. Music is something I create out of a struggle for something greater. Greater success, money, understanding, guidance, love… Without the hunger for whatever’s on the next shelf up, I wouldn’t be compelled to climb.

All that being said, being hungry in the literal sense just gets old. There is a point at which “starving artist” changes from cute moniker to annoying fact of life. A working musician faces 12-hour days with a schedule that extends to 2am on weekends, usually for very little money and no job security. To have some corporate schmuck with a regular commute, a 401k, and a 2-beer lunch break treat you like some lazy hippie gets discouraging. Sometimes I think it’s sour grapes- that their hunger for something artistic or expressive has simply made them bitter.

Hunger, literally, sucks. But a spiritual hunger has led to some of the best work I’ve ever produced. Latté Days & Porter Nights is all about hunger (well, actually, thirst, but same idea). Hunger is the road sign that only the café on the horizon can satisfy. It is what keeps you driving, even if it’s an all-nighter with the band sleeping in the seats behind you.