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19 articles
Being second choice stings — until you realize it might be the best thing that ever happened to your career. The artists who started as understudies, alternates, and Plan B options often come out the other side with something the headliners never had to build: an unshakeable foundation. Here's why the wait list might be the best training ground in the business.
There's a weird moment every performer eventually hits — when the ritual that once felt like rocket fuel starts feeling more like a leash. Understanding why we cling to success habits long after they've stopped working is the first step to breaking free without blowing up your confidence in the process.
There's a fine line between a ritual that steadies your nerves and a belief system that quietly keeps you stuck. This piece takes a hard look at how performers accidentally let good luck thinking cap their own growth — and what it really takes to cut the cord.
There's a version of the artist's life that looks great at dinner parties — wild inspirations, dramatic breakthroughs, colorful chaos. Then there's the version that actually produces the work. This piece is about that second version, and why it's the one worth protecting.
Some artists won't step on stage without touching a lucky coin or whispering the same phrase they've said since their first gig. Others think all of that is noise. So who's right — and does neuroscience even care?
Plenty of performers swear by a worn-out bracelet, a specific pair of socks, or a coin tucked into a jacket pocket. But are these things genuinely lucky — or are artists accidentally hacking their own psychology in ways that science is only now catching up to?
A lot of artists trying to stage a comeback spend all their energy trying to resurrect someone who's already gone. The version of you that made people fall in love with your work in the first place? That person has moved on — and so should you.
Every performer knows the feeling — you're about to walk out under the lights and suddenly your own brain starts heckling you from the back row. This piece digs into how artists mentally outmaneuver self-doubt before it tanks a performance, and what those strategies can teach the rest of us about showing up with conviction.
Not every shiny opportunity deserves your energy, your calendar, or your creative capital. Learning how to read the room — and walk away when the fit isn't right — might be the most underrated skill in any artist's toolkit. Here's how David Clovers thinks about the ones worth passing on.
Some of the most defining creative moments don't come from meticulous planning — they show up uninvited, unscheduled, and a little messy. David Clovers reflects on why leaving room for randomness in your process isn't reckless. It might actually be the smartest move you make.
Every artist has a story about the moment everything clicked — the phone call that changed everything, the introduction that opened a door they'd been circling for years. But dig a little deeper and you'll find that luck had very little to do with it. What looked like a fortunate coincidence was almost always the result of years spent quietly building something worth noticing.
The music industry has a very specific idea of what success looks like — chart positions, sold-out venues, streaming numbers. But David Clovers has spent years building a different kind of scoreboard, one that actually means something. Here's why tossing out conventional metrics might be the smartest creative move you ever make.
Some performers won't step onstage without kissing a photograph or wearing the same pair of socks they had on during their big break. Others think the whole thing is hogwash. So who's actually right — and does it even matter?
Before the lights come up and the curtain pulls back, a lot of strange things happen backstage — and most of them are completely intentional. David Clovers breaks down the psychology behind pre-show rituals, explaining why the right kind of superstition isn't magical thinking at all. It's mental architecture.
A lot of people look at an artist's big break and call it luck. David Clovers sees something completely different. Here's why preparation — not chance — is the real engine behind lasting creative success.
The spotlight gets all the attention, but the real work of sustaining a creative career happens in spreadsheets, contract negotiations, and uncomfortable conversations about money. David Clovers gets candid about the unglamorous business skills that separate artists who last from those who don't.
The version of an artist that shows up onstage or in the final cut is only possible because of everything that happened when no one was watching. Here's an honest look at how David Clovers spends the in-between time — the habits, the routines, and the unglamorous practices that keep the creative engine running long after the applause fades.
Finding your artistic voice isn't a lightbulb moment — it's a slow burn built from failed experiments, borrowed ideas, and eventually the courage to trust your gut. Here's an honest look at why the messiest chapters of your creative life are actually the most important ones. If you're still searching, good — that means you're still growing.
Everyone loves a good 'overnight success' story — but those stories are almost never true. Drawing on David Clovers' own path through the entertainment industry, this piece gets honest about what luck actually looks like, why hard work is non-negotiable, and what today's emerging artists can do to build something real.