We were lucky to catch up with John Courage recently and have shared our conversation below.

John, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Risking taking is a huge part of most people’s story but too often society overlooks those risks and only focuses on where you are today. Can you talk to us about a risk you’ve taken – it could be a big risk or a small one – but walk us through the backstory.

Decades ago I knew that any conventional career path wasn’t going to satisfy deeper yearning and curiosity I had. I decided about ten years ago to get serious in diversifying my skill set so that I could get more work in the music industry, and spent the years since 2018 as a freelance session musician, performing artist and session musician. I took the risk because there was no way not to- once you’ve decided you love doing something more than anything else, it’s just a matter of finding ways to make that your entire pursuit.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I have been performing as John Courage for over 20 years, and spent the first ten as the front person for my own original music project. The last ten years I have branched out into a wider variety of music work, including studio production, session work, and most recently as a touring musician for hire. I spent time in Olympia, WA and Santa Fe, NM in my musical development, but I grew up and currently reside in Northern California. Part of my passion and work on a local level is to facilitate a music scene for upcoming generations, and I bring the same joy to travel and getting to work with music communities across the globe. I feel most proud about cultivating a local legacy that will hopefully inspire musicians and guitarists for generations to come, and I aspire for a future of setting up a scholarship type of fund for young people who want to explore a career in performing music.
As I continue to chase the pursuits of success as working musician, my eyes are constantly to the future generations and how we can leave a more inclusive, accessible future.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

Coming from a very classic working class family, I had no leg up entering a field that has no framework and certainly no guarantee. I had no assistance in any financial regard, and kept my music alive through various day jobs and side work – and through the series of strange journeys and byways, found myself with the birth of the music career I had always dreamt about. When the entire journey is solely dependent on your resiliency, you have to find a way to enjoy and find beauty in the struggle.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

About twelve or thirteen years ago, I realized that only working on my own music was severely limiting the scope of what work I was able to get. I opened up my skill set and spent time focusing on practice- if anyone tells you there is a substitute for practice, don’t listen- and it blew the doors wide open on what adventure was available. I have since used that pivot to travel the world playing music, as well as performing on and producing a variety of different artists albums.      

Contact Info:

• Website: johncourage.net
• Instagram: Instagram.com/therealjohncourage
• Facebook: Facebook.com/johncouragemusic
• Youtube: YouTube.com/c/JohnCourage

Image Credits
Francesco Echo Bobby Cochran Dave Collins Bethany Johanna Jerry Wagley Jesse DuFault Philip Pavliger