Episode 107: The Cost of Touring with Half Gringa

Music Therapy with Jessica Risker

Happy Thanksgiving, everybody! In the spirit of holiday traveling, we have an episode all about touring.

In October 2022, Isabel Olive (Half Gringa) posted the following on Instagram:

"Hey folks. A photo of me smiling because this is a tough one - I’ve decided to cancel the last four dates of the HG October tour in Boston, NYC, Philadelphia, and Cincinnati. This was hard to make because I’m both the artist and the manager, but the manager in me looked at the writing on the wall and knew it was time to call it.

Touring is extra expensive and extra hard right now. Whether you’re a band on a support tour playing to sold out rooms trying to make enough on merch to cover expenses or (in my case) trying to win over a few groups of people at a time in 150 cap rooms while paying a band with your job money and hoping to break even, it is harder than it was before and what has happened in the last few years has caught up to a lot of us.

I’m 31, I work full time in a different industry in addition to being a musician to pay the band and make things work as best I can. But I am so sick of people devaluing art to the point that we’re relying on no income to make it. It’s untenable. And it’s why people are canceling tours and in some cases getting out of the industry all together.

I have so much more anger and feelings about this, but for now I’ll say: thanks to my incredible band, to everyone who came and saw us and bought merch, to the fellow musicians I met who commiserated with me and gave me some much needed words of encouragement. You’re the best part of this. To the folks in Boston, NYC, Philly - you can get refunds at your point of purchase and I promise I’ll see you out there again soon."

Josh first noticed Izzy's post and pointed me to it. We thought this would make a great episode. So many musicians are struggling with feeling valued in our culture.

Izzy and I talk about why she canceled her shows, and how this is impacting her music and career. She also shares how she’s adapting her approach to touring from now on.

For anyone else struggling with making touring work, this is a great episode that acknowledges the challenges facing musicians right now.

We also listen to Half Gringa’s brilliant new single “Miranda” off her upcoming EP, out January 27, 2023.

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Music Therapy Podcast Credits:

Music Therapy is hosted by Jessica Risker, produced by Sullivan Davis of Local Universe, and engineered by Joshua Wentz in Chicago.

Opening and closing music composed by Joshua Wentz.