We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Jacob Pence. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Jacob below.
Jacob, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Have you been able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen? Was it like that from day one? If not, what were some of the major steps and milestones and do you think you could have sped up the process somehow knowing what you know now?
One of the many goals of any artist is to subsist upon your own creative pursuits. Creatives long to engage in meaningful projects, providing themselves with opportunities for individual growth, development, or fulfillment. Many artists, performers, and creatives, especially in the earlier stages of their careers, spend the majority of their time, talent, and efforts, working in capacities completely unrelated to the craft and skills they have carefully cultivated in order to survive. Artists must often engage in rigorous self-discipline as they continue to hone their craft, finding resources and solutions necessary to provide for themselves, but it is truly a struggle and not the romanticized, galvanizing, “starving artist” trope, frequently presented to the public in the worlds of literature and entertainment. This has been my experience, alongside the many other artists, performers, musicians, and creatives I have come to know on my journey. Though I do not earn a full-time living from my work as a musical performer/entertainer, as of October 16th 2020, I am no longer a musician who is employed outside of their field as a full-time music teacher and musical performer/entertainer.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
I’m a Central Florida based singer-actor who delights in slice-of-life characters on stage, screen, and the microphone. I love creating honest portrayals of colorful people, like Shakespeare’s Benedick or Beaumarchais’ Figaro; characters who enter our lives and captivate us with their humanity. I’m a dedicated performer with over 10 years of experience on the operatic stage. I’m known for my baritone voice, my musicianship, and my commitment to performing music in the operatic, musical theater and new music genres, while continually seeking to expand my presence in musical theater and theatrical productions. I’m skilled in accents, improvisation, and Tae Kwon Do. When not singing, I train with other actors in the McCaskill Studio, honing my skills for future auditions as an actor and voice actor.
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
The massive economic changes resulting from the global recession of 2008 were similar to the impact felt by the arts community from the COVID-19 pandemic. The economic downturn altered the landscape of the performing arts, drastically changing how many non-profit organizations and performing arts companies which employ artists and creatives, do business. Fortunately I had a supportive family, from whom I rented a room at home. This gave me recourse to fully engage my tenacity and resourcefulness, in order to navigate the challenges of the changing times, alongside addressing the financial hurtles of my student loans. The next eight months were an exercise in patience as I attempted to locate a job that could help me grapple with my financial situation and the job that I found as an auditor for a Waste Management Company was not an easy one. The position involved swing shift hours for three week stints, disagreeable personnel, and uncomfortable or precarious on-site working conditions, but, it provided hourly-pay, healthcare and retirement benefits and would allow me to keep a weekend job necessary for maintaining my current healthcare benefits until the new benefits became active. After maintaining two jobs for one year and six months I was able to pay-off my student loans and return to pursuing my artistic endeavors full-time. If I had not taken this job, I would have been unable to take the future artistic opportunities that brought me to Florida.
What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?
Being an artist is a singular experience. It is never boring and it is occasionally terrifying, but an artist’s life is rich and full. Artists engage with members of every social standing and economic background within the communities that they live and work. It is not uncommon to directly (albeit briefly) encounter the upper echelons of society at a performance function, while interacting with disadvantaged students enrolled in Title I schools or members of a social club for immigrant families at an Education and Outreach Event. Communicating with each of these groups and understanding their struggles, desires, daily experiences, triumphs and tragedies is imperative for any artist’s work to speak truth, whether representing any or all of these people in the creative work they produce.
Similarly, artists are constantly consuming a wide variety of media, art, music, and engaging in a multitude of different experiences beyond those found in the cultural mainstream to support their own work. This gives artists a unique perspective when relating to the environments in which they live, and the people they encounter, especially as they further develop their talents and skills with age. Since artists consistently engage with the world in unpredictable or singular ways, when different artists collaborate the result is always unique and innovative, often producing growth through revelation experienced in the creative process, which is as truly satisfying to observe as to experience firsthand.
Contact Info:
- Website: [email protected]
- Instagram: jacobgpence
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/pence85
Image Credits
Opera Orlando Photography courtesy of Bearded Lens Photography.