When no one believes in you – how to keep going as a musician, even without applause

It's late at night and you're sitting at your laptop, working on your new booking list.
Your last email hasn't been answered. Your latest song has hardly been streamed. And someone close to you asks, "Do you really want to keep doing this?"

That's the moment when many people give up. Not because they lack talent, but because they believe they are alone.

When applause is absent and doubts become loud

I know so many musicians who wanted to quit.
They started out with passion and dedication, only to realize months or years later:
"I can't do this alone. No one sees what I'm doing. It's pointless."

But that's not true. You're not alone. You're at a point that everyone who seriously wants to professionalize their music goes through.

Three ways to walk through silence

1. Reflect instead of resigning yourself
Instead of immediately making new plans, look back.
What small successes did you have last year?
Maybe it wasn't a viral hit, but someone wrote to you saying that your song touched them.
Maybe you didn't play 50 gigs, but you caught the attention of three new bookers.

2. One person is enough
You don't need a thousand fans, you need one person who believes in you.
And if there's no one else right now, then that person is you.
Write down why you started. What music gives you. What you want to say.

3. Think of visibility in steps
Especially in the digital world, many people believe that everything must be visible immediately.
But visibility often begins in the invisible, in repetition, in perseverance, in a quiet day in the studio when you don't give up.

Conclusion: You're not here because it's easy.

You are a musician. You have an inner calling, a voice, a message. And even if no one is applauding right now, that doesn't mean you're wrong.

It just means that you are currently walking the part that many want to skip: the real path.

Kind regards