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Fit for a King<\/a> bassist Ryan “Tuck” O’Leary has taken exception to recent comments made by Periphery<\/a> guitarist Misha Mansoor<\/a> on the financial state of touring for aspiring young bands and called out the musician for the bleak projection he shared.<\/p>\n Specifically, O’Leary disputed Mansoor’s claims that bands need to have other means of support in order to keep their musical pursuits going.<\/p>\n While guesting on Nik Nocturnal’s podcast<\/a>, Mansoor\u00a0addressed\u00a0the challenges faced by young\u00a0bands\u00a0and\u00a0emphasized how\u00a0pertinent it is\u00a0for bands\u00a0to be aware of the current financial landscape.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019d say it\u2019s probably more relevant than ever,” Mansoor\u00a0said (as transcribed by ThePRP<\/a>). “People always got the wrong message from what I was saying because I did this interview with Rick Beato and that was my point, like, hey, you\u2019re going to need side hustles. You\u2019re going to need income streams and those take a while. \u2026 Those take a while to build and to bear fruit, if they\u2019re going to bear any at all. So start early.”<\/p>\n The guitarist added: “This is stuff that we did from the beginning, and any band would benefit from knowing this information from the beginning, rather than believing like, \u2018Ah, man, if you just believe it hard enough, you just have to want it more than the next guy, you\u2019re going to make it. The music will be enough.\u2019 Being just a musician is just not enough for most people to make [it]. If it is, it\u2019s great.”<\/p>\n Mansoor emphasized that he wasn’t complaining about his financial status or Periphery’s success. “People always took away from it, \u2018Oh, Misha\u2018s complaining he doesn\u2019t make money with Periphery.\u2019 It\u2019s like, no, I don\u2019t care that I don\u2019t make money with Periphery, because I use it as the nucleus for all my other stuff that does make me money so that I can have a life,” he said.<\/p>\n “I did this because I started these things very, very early on,” he continued. “And if I hadn\u2019t done that, I probably would have quit the band by now, because I wouldn\u2019t have been able to afford to continue being in a band. I think nowadays, dude, I don\u2019t know how bands who rely just on the band are going to survive the next few years.”<\/p>\n READ MORE:<\/strong> The Best ‘Epic’ Song By 11 Big Prog Metal Bands<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n Mansor then listed several specific challenges for actively touring bands trying to make ends meet, including the skyrocketing costs of buses, a shortage of crew members, higher guarantees for opening bands on a tour package and more. Even when headliners fetch higher guarantees, their money doesn’t go as far.<\/p>\n “So now, on all ends, there\u2019s just not enough money to go around, and basically as anyone who\u2019s in a band knows, you\u2019re the last one to get paid,” Mansoor explained. “Your crew gets paid. Your manager, your business manager, your booking agent, they all get paid. … If your business manager is smart, he\u2019ll do a 40 percent tax hold back on whatever money that you get after it\u2019s split five, six ways.”<\/p>\n Based on Mansoor’s examples, it’s easy to see how a band’s\u00a0earnings quickly dwindle. “What\u2019s left over for the band is usually little to nothing and everyone else will get paid \u2014 and they should get paid, because they\u2019re working very hard,” he said. “There\u2019s very little to go around. So I don\u2019t really know how bands are going to survive this without something changing. And I don\u2019t really know what that is. I think the next few years are going to be pretty tough for a lot of bands that don\u2019t have side hustles or … ancillary income to help justify the the little to no money they\u2019ll make on tour.”<\/p>\n Elsewhere in\u00a0the chat, Nocturnal addressed Mansoor’s concerns and\u00a0discussed some creative ways for bands to supplement their income, such as Patreon exclusives, tablature books and giving music lessons.<\/p>\n “That\u2019s exactly what they should be doing,” Mansoor said. “And that\u2019s what I was trying to say all along. Just like, \u2018Hey, your band\u2019s not going to make any money. Do the other stuff.\u2019 And who knows where it may lead? Yeah, maybe at first it\u2019s just lessons. Maybe at first it\u2019s just this. Maybe at first it\u2019s just YouTube. Who knows where that leads? Now you\u2019re opening a door to other possibilities.<\/p>\n “But you know what? What won\u2019t help is just sitting there and being like, \u2018Well, I hope the band makes enough to survive.\u2019 Because even if it did five years ago, it doesn\u2019t anymore. Because you are earning maybe 10 to 20 percent more and the costs of everything are doubled. And there is no business model that would survive that.”<\/p>\n Mansoor\u00a0concluded: “Imagine that you\u2019re running a business and your cost of goods and services doubles. That just ruins most businesses. That makes them insolvent, you know? So what is the answer to that? The answer is you have to do other stuff, whether you like it or not.\u201d<\/p>\n The Fit for a King bassist shared his thoughts about Mansoor’s interview on social media, accusing the guitarist of delivering a doom-laden narrative.<\/p>\n \u201cRich guy in a band said you need a side hustle because he doesn\u2019t understand how budgets work,” O’Leary wrote on X<\/a> on Monday. “@NikNocturnal talk to someone that\u2019s not a f—ing idiot and actually makes a living touring. This rhetoric is unhealthy for young musicians.”<\/p>\n READ MORE:<\/strong> Fit For a King’s Ryan Kirby Discusses Personal Growth Amidst Band’s New Album<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n When one fan\u00a0challenged\u00a0O’Leary on his comment,\u00a0suggesting that Mansoor was trying to point out how inflation has killed the margins, O’Leary countered<\/a>: “Bands are also charging double for shirts and are getting paid a lot more. I would fully disagree with you on the ‘can\u2019t play 500 caps and survive.’ Doesn\u2019t mean you\u2019re ‘roughing’ it in a van either.”<\/p>\n Responding to another user who argued that it’s harder than ever to make ends meet while pursuing artistic endeavors, O’Leary said<\/a>: “It\u2019s always been hard. People have always had to hustle. Not a weird take, just speaking from my experience as a player, manager, etc.”<\/p>\n In the same thread, others accused O’Leary of simply being jealous and noted the irony that, as a member of multiple bands and a manager, O’Leary is, in fact, diversifying his income stream \u2014 which is exactly what Mansoor suggested in his podcast appearance.<\/p>\n Fit for a King released their most recent album,\u00a0Lonely God<\/em>, in 2025. Periphery will return with\u00a0A Pale White Dot<\/em>\u00a0on Friday.<\/p>\n Below you’ll find the best prog metal bands for each letter of the alphabet.<\/em><\/p>\n These prog metal bands deserve all the glory, representing each letter of the alphabet.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Gallery Credit: Jordan Blum<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nWhat Did Misha Mansoor Say About the Financial Concerns for Young Bands?<\/h3>\n
What Does Misha Mansoor Think Bands Should Be Doing?<\/h3>\n
Periphery’s Misha Mansoor Guests on the Nik Nocturnal Podcast<\/h3>\n
What Did Ryan ‘Tuck’ O’Leary Dispute About Misha Mansoor’s Comments?<\/h3>\n
The Best Prog Metal Band for Each Letter of the Alphabet<\/h2>\n