ZHZ Podcast: Independent Music, Artist Interviews & The Utah Scene · Zak Davis & Matt Allen

The Burnout Nobody Talks About in Independent Music

·31 min·2 clips

Touring “like dogs” made the band miss birthdays, vacations, and a grandfather’s final days.

1. ZHZ Podcast’s "The Burnout Nobody Talks About in Independent Music" centers on Nick Sifakis, Ayatera, and the strain of independent reggae touring. 2. Nick Sifakis is the guest, Ayatera is his band, and the host steers the conversation toward burnout, business, and creative recovery. 3. The episode asks how an independent musician keeps making art when touring, promotion, and money start feeling like a machine. 4. Nick says Ayatera toured "like dogs" for many years and became one of the hardest touring bands in the scene. 5. He ties burnout to missing birthdays, missing vacations, and losing time with his grandfather before he passed away. 6. He says the pressure changed once the band got a booking agency and "other people started getting paid" off the work. 7. The host compares that grind to his own years driving a semi-truck and missing Christmas in Nebraska. 8. They also talk about road stress from old maps, mile markers, low bridges, and trucker apps that warn about roads being too low. 9. Nick says he has recently taken artwork off his plate and left album art to other artists. 10. He says a new little music device forced him to simplify ideas and make songs faster. 11. Nick describes being in "album mode" for so long that production work now feels like a break from constant creation. 12. He says a new Rhythm album will use the same beat with different singers writing their own versions. 13. He explains that the project lets him stay at the production helm while other artists send files back for mixing. 14. He says producing for young artists and first-time studio guests gives him back the youthful energy he had when he started music. 15. He says he asks himself what his 16-year-old self would think after walking into his studio. 16. He says the music business can be compatible with ethics, even when he has to do good business with bad people. 17. The tone stays conversational and reflective, with a lot of jokes, road stories, and reggae references. 18. The format is an interview with long back-and-forth sections, punctuated by practical details like SubmitHub, DistroKid, SoundCloud, and his mix prices. 19. Listeners who like independent reggae, studio workflow, and touring realities would probably enjoy this episode. 20. Listeners wanting short headlines or high-drama conflict probably should skip it.

As heard by us

A plainspoken look at touring hard, missing home, and handling the business without losing your ethics.

The conversation stays close to burnout, touring, and the business side of music. Ayatera is still peaking while the band is on the road nonstop, and that pace clearly takes a toll.

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Why you'd press play

When touring stopped feeling like glory and started feeling like a bill you could not ignore

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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