All thoughtful points from Eimear, Lisa1, and the Judist.

Where are the rest of you?

We're all very good at gushing about KT's talent, creativity, wit, charm, etc. Can't we also have a conversation about her career? We're among KT's most dedicated fans who have followed and supported her for many years. We bring to the table a myriad of life experiences and perspectives. So...we actually may have something valuable to contribute to KT's own thought process.

Please, get off your arses* and share your ideas!

Would you do it for a Scooby snack? (send PM if not familiar with this iconic cultural reference)

*I love this from Wikipedia: "Arse or ARSE may refer to British English Anglo-Saxon word for the buttocks, usually replaced by "ass" by US and some Canadian English speakers."

You get my last brain cells before I retire for the evening.

I got a kick out of Eimear's comments about the crowd being "older". I resemble that remark but I also noticed the same thing in Mpls. But she sells out no matter what venue she plays, whether it's a small bar, a nightclub or this last David-esq cheap, sterile seated venue. I actually think they should be trying to book her for the 1500-3000 seat theaters, where Brandi Carlisle has no problem selling out. I do think more older people turned out for this venue because they do not want to deal with trying to see her in a noisy nightclub.

But here is the thing. There is a huge cost difference between the 300-800 modest club / auditorium versus the 1500-3000 seat theater. While I think she would come close to selling out in Mpls, it's a huge risk for everyone in any town. Most bands that play the Orpheum or State in Mpls wind up charging 50-75$ a ticket. Kt only charged $27 to play the Cedar, which was the highest I ever paid to see her show.

For all practical purposes, KT seems to be more of a solo performer now (which I have no issue at all.) Keeping her costs down will allow her to keep ticket prices low and not feel pressured to sell out the venue.

On the subject of promotion. I think that only takes her so far. She is not that big of an artist and the cost to promote her show would probably not have a decent return. People only have so much in the budget for shows and KT is caught in a growing field of musicians that make most of their money performing live shows. The promotion is not going to really do anything when Trampled by Turtles, Mumford and Sons, Bon Iver and other current named acts are trying to sell out the same venues.

Months later, I still think ICEM is KT's second best album but it's just not a mass consumption album (although I won't be surprised if a few wind up being sleeper songs that you will hear on every huge movie.) If KT was pressured to make a ton of money, she would probably try to find more of a mainstream producer and try to market the heck out of albums. At the end of the day, she might be doing just fine with Walmart fees and modest venues.

"We're all very good at gushing about KT's talent, creativity, wit, charm, etc. Can't we also have a conversation about her career? We're among KT's most dedicated fans who have followed and supported her for many years. We bring to the table a myriad of life experiences and perspectives. So...we actually may have something valuable to contribute to KT's own thought process."

I do have some thoughts...

Of course, I agree that given decent promotion, KT could sell out larger venues. But, I'd never want her to 'sell out'. I wonder if the smaller tour and album promotion is her concession to making the music she wants to make? If that's the case, that is what I want for her.

Thanks, STPK. Of course, your comments trigger more thoughts on some pretty important issues and questions; but that's the idea, right? Here are a few to consider...

Not true.

Sure, more expensive venue rental fees increase costs so revenue has to grow to maintain profit margins. How this is done for any particular artist no doubt depends on a host of variables but likely there are common industry formulas. Anyone have relevant experience to share?

Exactly! More on this with ST's thoughts.

KT's net worth right now surely is more than enough for her to live quite well on interest alone. There are an endless number of motivations KT could have for making more money, but she no longer "needs" to worry about it. I can't "prove" this is true without breaking more than a few laws but I'd bet everything...except my dogs and wife...not necessarily in that order.

Does becoming a more known artist necessarily require or result in selling out? I have no idea. Anyone?

I agree 100% if greater success would in any way limit KT. But is this inevitable? I'm searching my brain for examples of big-time artists who at least from appearances seem to have held on to creative control. Anyone? Maybe it's just not possible in today's music business. Bottom line: KT should do whatever she wants to do with her career. Period. If she's content, there's nothing more to discuss. I've never come across an article or audio/video clip in which she talks about it. Have you? Actually, I'm surprised because it's a common type of question posed to celebrities. "How do you feel about all you've accomplished?" or "Where do you see your career in five or ten years?" or "What's left for you to do?"...

For me, its down to the lack of impact from Invisible Empire. I've seen her what..63 times? and on this tour im "only" doing 3 dates because I don't like the album. Which I understand is still a lot but to a casual fan maybe if they didn't like the album maybe they wouldn't bother at all.

I'd better clarify my words before I get myself in trouble. I'm guessing that KT's net worth if invested and earning a conservative rate of return would produce enough income to lead a nice life by common everyday first-world standards. I have no idea if any portion of KT's net worth is unavailable for investment. I have no idea about her financial obligations or plans. I have no idea about her personal tastes or expectations. I have no idea if she has a secret addiction to macadamia nuts or organic bananas (which do taste sweeter, by the way). She could very well need every penny she earns to live her life. My only point is to suggest that she may already have financial flexibility with respect to career decisions. In the immortal words of Forrest Gump, "and that's all I have to say about that."

Ahh, sorry, my comment was only relevant to Mpls. She has sold out every venue there for the last six years. My point is they could take a risk and book her into a larger venue in this town but probably not true elsewhere.

My thoughts on the 'older' audience subject. KT once noted that stars tend to become locked in at the mental age of when they became stars. I think a lot of this is the pressure to keep selling the same music to appeal the same age group to maintain the accelerated life style to keep the stardom and it keeps spiraling upwards. KT has resisted that trap.

KT's music has evolved as her life has. She is still writing about what she sees as her life progresses. I like that. To me it makes her music timeless. That also means her audience has aged with her! I enjoy her older music as much I enjoy her current music. It is different from what she used to do. And her long time fans embrace it! Nat may not like the new album as much, but she's still there!

I think because KT is a true artist, the work is more important to her than the size of the fan base. Her songs are her babies and as long as she is touring and people are showing up, she can share her babies with the world and she is happy. Perhaps this is just the level of success she wants. Maybe we want more for her than she wants for herself because this is what we have been taught to expect from an artist? I enjoy being able to sit front row and meet KT at her tour bus after each show. I just hope she continues to make more music and have enough success that she can continue to tour and I will continue to show up and thank her for it.

Also, we have to remember that bigger is not always better. I would much rather KT have a slow burn career than be the proverbial "flash in the pan" like so many "artists" we see today. Their record labels whore them out to make as much money as possible.. selling out to huge audiences.. but where will they be in 10 years? Like I said before, I would prefer to see KT from the front row and have the chance to say hello to her after the show than have her become the celebrity that is expected of a musician. Celebrity means not accessible and often times creativity is stifled. It's KT's originality and creativity that I admire the most. Her songs speak to me because they are real and from the heart. Her songs have soul. We feel the soul because she experienced them, she wrote them.

After saying all of this, I will clarify that I want to see KT successful and I want her to sell all of the seats in her venues. I feel that she can do this by promoting herself more than she has been on this tour or the previous tour. She played a fantastic venue in my home town years ago and it was half empty. It was during her Campfire tour in 2008 (my favorite tour to date) and the venue probably would seat 1500 people but there was no promo work done for the show and people didn't even know about it. That made me sad because I want people to support KT and experience her music. I do want her to be in venues that are worthy of her talents, I just don't want her to compromise her creative genius to do that, which is the fine line for all artists. At the end of the day, if she is happy and able to continue to work, then I am happy for her.

I couldn't agree more, Lisa. KT is certainly grateful for the opportunity to share her music and for all of our support. This doesn't necessarily translate into satisfaction with her career almost 10 years after performing on Later with Jools Holland. Also, let's not forget that she busted her arse for 10 or so years before even getting her big break. On a related note, how it could take the biz so long to embrace KT I'll never understand. Granted she may have been less polished at 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, and 27 but how could her talent and potential not have been obvious to those clowns? Can you even imagine listening to KT perform on a street corner or imagine listening to an audition tape and thinking, "She sure gets an A for effort but I just don't see her going anywhere." Clowns, every last one of them.

I will never understand why the masses embrace crap celebrities that are all smoke and mirrors and it takes so much work for a real artist like KT to gain momentum. It's like some sort of cruel joke. The masses are fake and they like fake and it leaves the real artists to the real people I guess so it's probably a blessing in disguise! I think I just had a revelation..

She never wore a pink poodle skirt before.

It's a bit ironic that while we are hand wringing over her ability (or not) to sell out venues, she seems no less in demand on TV. Seems like every tour, she is performing on the big variety shows in the US. So thank God the people who book artists for The Ellen Show, Leno, Conan and Today seem to have her on their 'A' list.

Good point. So why has KT's management been unable to leverage these American national TV appearances? At least in the US. Do you think management is even trying? What would leverage of these big-time appearances even look like? Do we have any nutjobs in marketing or promotion who can offer some insight? Is it possible that her labels over the years have pegged her as a niche artist with limited potential for mass appeal? Doesn't seem to jive with her "A" list status among American TV producers. Or could these producers in New York and Hollywood be cultural elites who personally enjoy KT's music and that's enough for them to pull the trigger?