David Benoit – HuffPost 7.20.12

Mike Ragogna: Dave, what advice do you have for new artists?

David Benoit: Get out of the business; be a doctor. (laughs) I think the best advice I could give is to make sure that your definition of success involves opportunity meeting preparation. Just make sure that you’re prepared for if and when you do get that call. Preparation means practicing, of course, and looking for every opportunity to play. You have to live it and breathe it because it’s too hard, and there are far too many people who want to get into the business. In my case, it was playing the piano incessantly when I first started. It wasn’t practicing, necessarily, but I played all the time. (laughs) So, I think the best advice is just to play as much as you can, be prepared, and don’t have a safety net. If this is what you’re going to do, do it. I saw some religious show, and I’m not religious at all, but sometimes, I watch some of these televangelists because they are pretty dynamic. I think it was Joel Osteen that was talking about knocking on doors when people keep telling you no, but you have to keep knocking until someone says yes. I thought that was pretty cool. Hang in there!