Tami Neilson says her dream gig would be playing the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville. Photo / Supplied
Each week the Herald's entertainment team asks a different celebrity to share key moments in their life and career. Today, country and soul singer/songwriter Tami Neilson.
My first job was… singing in my family band, from age 11. Me and my brothers used to get $20 a show from Mom and Dad — such riches!
It taught me… that you don't make much money as a musician! If I can pay myself $20 after all the
expenses today, it's a good day! In all seriousness, being raised in a family of professional touring musicians, I knew from a very young age that it was a whole lot of work and not a lot of glamour, so it prepared me for the realities of the business side of music. Watching my dad write and record the music, create the artwork for album covers and posters, book the shows and the accommodation, load the gear, run sound from the desk that was always set up next to him on stage, entertain a crowd and connect with the audience, pack down and drive the tour bus was a first-hand education and equipped me with the tools I needed to do it myself.
My big break came… There's no such thing as a big break. It's years of small steps forward, big steps backward, big opportunities lost and small opportunities gained and finding joy in doing what you love no matter the outcome ... and not giving up.
The last job I quit was… I was working as a secretary for a tech company when I first moved to New Zealand and didn't know anyone in the music business until I got a gig at SkyCity in a covers band on the weekends, four-hour sets from 10pm-2am. I quit the office job once I was making enough with my singing to replace that income.
