Fame
& Fortune: Rock singer Liz Phair
Million-dollar
ideas vs. financial realities | | |
| Bankrate: Does
it matter to you how you're perceived in the music business now?
Liz Phair: It does,
but not as much as I think people would like for me to care. It
matters to me because I am, of course, hopeful that people will
like the music I make, because I like it. Plus, I want to give people
something. I have the most honest intentions. At the same time,
though, there are also my job worries if it's not well-received.
Bankrate: In New York
Magazine, you said, "I've spent so much time scheming on how
to make money -- I've read 'The Tipping Point' three times."
Liz Phair: I do that
all the time. Don't you? Don't you sit there with your million-dollar
ideas? I think home ultrasound would be a really good idea. What
I'd be selling is the software. Check this out. You'd stick the
program in your own home computer, and it would be like a shower
gift for women. You could get it at the pharmacy, because when you're
pregnant, you do a lot of going to the pharmacy. You rent the paddle,
you buy the gel and you have the software that allows you to ultrasound
your baby at home, anytime you want. But of course, you'd need to
absolutely approve the safety of that, which would cost a billion
dollars. But it is a great idea.
Bankrate:
Are we just talking, or are you really looking into this? Liz
Phair: No, we're just talking. I've been bugging my dad for years to get
into a business with me, but no, we're just talking. I don't want you to take
me that seriously. But to me, business can be creative just like anything can.
Like cooking can. I think people have a really narrow view of what an artist is
because they don't have a life. They just live in a hovel and they just make music.
That's silly. Bankrate: Are
you at the point where you have to think about something else to do one day?
Liz Phair: I definitely
have to keep a job for myself, no question. I have to look at how
I can evolve. As you get older in this business, it's harder unless
you build up your touring. There are financial realities -- it's
not in any way, shape or form a safe or gentle trip for an artist.
And I wasn't so great at saving my money, and I also didn't figure
out that you should put out a record every year for financial reasons.
I was very cavalier with it. I never expected to have to be the
real wage-earner for my family. I didn't expect to be divorced.
I was a victim of a lot of internal prejudice I had myself about
a woman's role. I had to learn the hard way that it's really up
to me. You can't really be just a wife anymore. Households require
two incomes.
Bankrate:
Are you investing in real estate and stocks and stuff? Liz
Phair: I'm not investing in real estate at the moment. This area is so
ridiculous. I can't move my son out of his school district because he needs to
be where he has his friends. But I am invested. I have an accountant, and he has
me balanced close to what my monthly budget should be. Bankrate:
So now that you're at this point, do you do a better job of saving? Liz
Phair: I do. I'm not going to tell you it's fun.
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