Marc,

I agree. We've often told people that the education you get from listening to a LOT of other music, especially from your own peer group (versus just what is on the radio) is that you learn and get the best self education you can get. You need to be aware of what is out there to have a clue about where you need to be to compete. I really had my eyes opened early on when I toured around the US and really saw the talent level out there not only among writers, but also live performers. There are live artists I've met that are a million miles ahead of the average and even they struggle to get gigs. So if you're not focused on being top notch and you don't know how good you need to be, how can you find serious success? The answer is, you probably won't.

Brian