Jessica ended up stopping in Raleigh, moving in with friends, but without a job, she had to find other ways to make ends meet.

You know, I used to go gas station to gas station and ask people for money, pretty much.

I'd be like, "Listen, I wanna, blah, blah.

I got a road trip." Most people hand me money, you know, five bucks or something, but you can only do that for so long.

So I was just like, I'm sitting there, and I was trying to figure out what I did this for, first of all.

Like, I gave up all my stuff.

I'm almost broke.

... did you have second thoughts? [laughs]

They'll just get someone else.

Yeah.

There that's, I think that's the crux of the issue, isn't it? Um, I think that when artists know their value and they know their unique differentiator or we might say unique value proposition, what they're bringing to wherever they're going, whether it's soloing or teaching artistry or working on a gig.

And let's put working on a gig, let's put a pin in that for a second.

When it's a personal contract that you're negotiating yourself, presumably the artist approach to that is with your your value in mind and your you know the person that you're making the contract with their value in mind so everybody wants to get a deal everybody wants to work together and so the process of asking for what you need Or asking for something that the other person says, I cannot meet you on that.

Or, you know, can you explain how you got to that number? And is there any other things that you're willing to negotiate with? trying to open the box of tools that you have.

So whether it's, OK, maybe you are not getting paid the amount that you want, the wage that you want, but perhaps they're going to provide free airfare or perhaps they were going to provide cartage for your instruments.

What are some of the problems that they're coming up with for the skits? Sometimes

And I just felt

like my heart drop.

You'd heard all these stories about L.A. and, yeah, have to be careful and people are going to try to scam you and trick you.

And I felt like, oh, that's what this is.

Like they've tricked me.

Specifically, she thought they were probably making porn.

I was just so devastated.

does it make you feel bad?

And I just felt

like my heart drop.

You'd heard all these stories about L.A. and, yeah, have to be careful and people are going to try to scam you and trick you.

And I felt like, oh, that's what this is.

Like they've tricked me.

Specifically, she thought they were probably making porn.

I was just so devastated.

does it make you feel bad?