No one can predict the future. No one can ever know what’s coming next (except me, just kidding). A lot of times we have to roll with what life throws at us, regardless of how predictable we want our life to be.
As humans we are creatures of habit, loving every minute of having a routine, going to work, coming home, advancing our career, staying organized and having everything in its place, and knowing that we have the power to make tweaks to it whenever we want, as long as its within our comfort zone.
But as we very well know, life enjoys throwing the occasional right hook at us to see how we handle it. This is something that both Michael and I, your humble podcast host, have experienced in recent years.
THANK GOD YOU FOUND A REAL JOB
Michael had two career path options in his early years: music and journalism. As you’ll hear, his father was super happy he chose journalism, a job that he knew was stable and had a future (cough).
As time (and the Internet) will tell you, music and journalism began to have more and more in common, debunking this “some industries are future-proof” myth. But lucky for Michael, he was able to merge his two passions into one as he worked through an array of music and non-music related publications and media outlets.
His crowning achievement? Landing a dream job as the longest-serving Editor-in-Chief at Guitar Player Magazine from 1997-2018, also overseeing Bass Player Magazine, Keyboard Magazine and Electronic Musician Magazine. Score!
EVERY ENDING HAS A NEW BEGINNING
In 2018, not long after the magazine’s parent company was purchased by a UK-based firm, several members of the team, including Michael, were let go as the new owners reorganized and changed the way the magazines were run.
While not a fan of the changes, the grieving process was short-lived. Michael got back on the horse and decided to launch a new endeavor that allowed him to continue his music journalism path.
In October 2018, Guardians of Guitar was born, an online media outlet that evangelizes guitarists, guitar music, and guitar gear while supporting players of all ages, genders, skill levels and styles.
ABOUT OUR GUEST
Michael Molenda, former Editor-in-Chief of Guitar Player Magazine and Founder of Guardians of Guitar, joins us in this episode to share his journey from his humble beginnings in journalism and Guitar Player Magazine to his new venture with Guardians of Guitar, and what he’s learned along the way.
--- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/behindthebackline/supportDynaMount - Bringing Engineering Back to Sound Engineering
Drumeo - Making Music Education Online as Easy as Netflix
Flattley Guitar Pedals - Creating Highly Personalized, Handmade Custom Guitar Pedals in the UK
Beier Drums - Custom Snare Drums from the Land of Beer and Cheese
SJC Drums - Custom Drums as Unique as the Drummers that Play Them
Audiofusion - Using Wi-Fi to Turn Your Mobile Device into a Wireless Monitoring System
Wampler Pedals - Achieving World Class Guitar Tones Through Experimentation
Blipblox - Encouraging the Future of Music Through Creativity and Audio Exploration
SMASHmouse - Giving You the Power to Kick It to Click It!
Frettable - Combining Artificial Intelligence with Songwriting
The Drum Wallet - Expanding Your Drum Sounds with the Flick of a Stick
Signal Flow - Making Stage Plotting & Setup More Efficient
Fano Guitars - Crafting the Ultimate Boutique Guitar at the Highest Standards
DrumLite - Giving the Drummer Some With LED Lighting
Welch Tuning Systems - Simplifying the Way We Tune Our Drums
ToneAlly - Behind NAMM's 2018 Best Teaching Tool
Mukikim - Music and Childlike Wonder for Adults and Kids
SN3 Innovations - Achieving True Sound Activation Mode in Entertainment Lighting
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
Irish Songs with Ken Murray
Immediately Kinfolk
Turned On
Resident by Hernan Cattaneo
Markus Schulz presents Global DJ Broadcast