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Gavin Friday was born in Dublin on October 8, 1959 and founded the band Virgin Prunes in 1977. In 1986 Gavin briefly abandoned music to paint, which culminated in the[…]
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Gavin Friday tells aspiring musicians not to think about how to get into the music business; instead, they need to join music because it is a part of them.

QuestionWhat advice to you have for young people entering into music?

Gavin Friday: I like the way that you said entering into music. There is a terrible thing that's been happening probably for the last 20 years or so and it's called the music business. And music isn't really business; it's work and you got to pay and you've got to buy your guitar or go into the studio. So there is a business side but when people say, "I'm going into the music business," it's not. It's about expression. It's about creativity. You don't join music, in my mind, to make money. You join it because it's in you; it's in your blood stream. So if you want to be Justin Timberlake, go for it. But if you want to be somebody else, go for it but it's usually very hard. You just got to believe in yourself, work hard. I've no advice, I did everything the right and wrong way. You make it up as you go along, but it has to be in your blood stream and it's not a job. It's a way of life.

Recorded on: October 1, 2009


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