Today we’d like to introduce you to Anthony Pitt.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Anthony. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I started playing guitar in 7th grade and quickly became obsessed with the challenge of mastering it. Then, when I learned to improvise I found a personal connection with music that blew my mind. My life changed forever and I had found my passion. It has taken me across the country and enabled me to make a living doing what I love. I played in rock bands throughout high school and college. My first band to have “success” was Overshot. They formed in Kingwood High School and then I joined the band on bass when we were all in college. We played original music and ended up playing some big shows, namely: Opening up for Blue October, playing the national anthem at two buzzfests, and playing multiple 94.5 The Buzz sponsored shows.
Once we all graduated from college, we moved to Austin and unfortunately broke up after about a year. I then joined another band. That band was called Full Service and we toured the whole country for seven years. The first three years of touring, we lost money. When I was home, I would have to work extra to cover the losses of touring. Finally, after touring relentlessly for three years, we had made some connections and we began being direct support for the Sublime Tribute band Badfish. That was a game-changer and we were playing to hundreds and sometimes over a thousand people every night. Eventually, we were asked to open for my favorite band of all time 311. We were lucky enough to be direct tour support for them on a couple of their shows as well as playing their first festival(311 Pow wow fest) and their first cruise.
In 2011 I found out that I was going to be a father so I moved back home to Houston to be with my new family. I had no job, no savings, thousands of dollars in debt, and living in my in-laws efficiency garage with my wife and newborn son. I would drive all around the Houston Metropolitan area and give guitar lessons. One day I was approached by an old Full-Service fan in Houston to play bass in his cover band FOR MONEY. I needed the work so I played the first gig with no rehearsal. Since that day, I have been a full time gigging musician. My passion for music became an entrepreneurial opportunity. At first, I mainly did guitar lessons and gigged on the weekends but I eventually graduated to playing acoustic solo and duo shows. I met talented artists and performers all over Houston and developed connections which led to many other great successful endeavors. The ability to play as a solo acoustic act opened up many weekday shows and for the last year, I have been playing 6-9 gigs a week.
After eight years of playing covers, I have recently started to write original music again. I started an original band with the three members of my cover band(Sick Duck) as well as two other musicians in the cover scene. The band is called Dreamwalker and we play soulful funk-rock. I have also been dabbling in music production. Using Garage Band and Logic Pro, I’ve been writing songs using all virtual instruments. I have two singles coming out with some amazing Texan vocalists in April under my name(Anthony Pitt). On these songs, I wrote the music and they contributed lyrics and melody. Really excited for my third un-released single, where I wrote and performed all the music, lyrics, and vocals.
Currently, I am unemployed due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the ensuing lockdown. All the venues I play are closed or can only do to-go orders. No music acts are playing out anymore including the famous big bands all the way down to the acoustic solo bar and restaurant acts. Right now, I do not know what I am going to do but I do know that this is not the first time I have been in this situation and I will figure out a way to support my family. Staying positive and working hard!
Has it been a smooth road?
Many struggles. During my success with Overshot, I developed panic attacks. They were so bad that I would have multiple attacks every day. I was prescribed medication but it made me feel like a zombie so I decided to cure myself. It took two years but I was able to do it by changing my lifestyle. I cut out everything that was unhealthy and started eating right, working out, and meditating. Since then, I have only had a handful of attacks in the last 15 years.
Aside from that, there’s the struggle of being a poor musician. There are not many jobs that will hire a touring musician. I was also not making any money on the road for years. I believe most people would not put themselves in a position where there is a small chance to succeed and in the meantime, you have to live on least amount to survive.
Becoming a father with no job and no money was the biggest struggle of all. It changed my life forever but also gave me the motivation to hustle harder than I ever had. Having a family that depends on you motivates you to do more than you would for just yourself.
Right now is another struggle but I feel it’s a struggle the WHOLE WORLD is going through together. I do not know if I will have gigs to play once the COVID-19 pandemic is over. All I know is I will do what I have to do to put food on the table and keep the lights on. I will also continue to play music and hopefully, I can return to being a full-time musician sooner than later.
We’d love to hear more about your music.
I have two businesses: I run my own music lessons company called Guitar and Bass 101 and I have my music company called Anthony Pitt Music.
WWW.GUITARANDBASS101.COM is the website for my music lessons company and it’s a free resource for my students or anyone interested in learning guitar or bass. I give lessons in person here in Houston, tx, at my home or in my students’ home, as well as online lessons to anyone with internet access. I do not read music but I am a music theory nerd. I believe what sets my lessons apart is that I dumb down music theory for myself to understand and I find that my students grasp my approach to theory very easily.
WWW.ANTHONYPITTMUSIC.COM is the website for my music company. This is where I post my gig calendar as well as host some videos and pics of me. I play bass and sing lead in my cover band Sick Duck, I play guitar and sing in at my solo and duo gigs, I play bass in my wedding band Party On!, I play bass and write all the music in my original band Dreamwalker, and I compose music for my self titled solo project Anthony Pitt. Between all of these musical endeavors, I cover all genres and all types of events.
Is our city a good place to do what you do?
Houston is one of the best cities to be a full-time musician. There are tons of venues to play every night of the week. Houston is closing in on being the 3rd largest city in America and because of that, we are a hotspot for major touring artists. I would definitely recommend someone starting out in music to start here in Houston. There is so much opportunity if you are willing to work for it.
Pricing:
- Private Lessons start at $25 per 1/2 hour
- Price is negotiable for live music depending on location, length of gig, and number of musicians needed
Contact Info:
- Website: WWW.ANTHONYPITTMUSIC.COM
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ap82music
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/anthonypittmusic
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