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In my experience...this sounds cliche-ish, but is totally true--you can do whatever you want as long as you're willing to give up everything to do it.

I think it depends how do you define a living? Enough money to get by and keep doing what you want?...or enough to be constantly carefree, and also have an iPhone and lots of gear? Tour and stay in hotels or tour and live in cars and on floors?

But more specifically...play as many shows as possible (In a town with a non-existent music scene, I still can get $100 per show with no promo and a following of like 10 or fewer people. So tour, and attempt to do at least that twice a week? That's not the worst living, depending on your needs). Also, try living room shows, coordinate online, link up with other artists to do collaborative living room shows across the country...I know a guy who's been really successful doing that and can make $1,000+ per living room show. Also, meet as many people and artists as you can, always be willing to help another artist in some way in return for the same.

Yeah, as mentioned, there's also licensing songs, but don't get screwed by one of those fake agents or promoters who are really just leeches...and never pay someone to do what you can do yourself. Don't try to "make it," don't just search for easy-outs (like, don't make your goal getting "discovered" or famous...do you want to be recognized and adored or do you want to play music and keep playing it?)

If you do the cover band thing, get a good singer.

That's what 90% or more of them do not have.

And if that singer has tits, they don't have to be good ones, just there, be prepared to rake in the bucks.

Sexist, sad, and true.

Also, screw your boutique effects and toys, get a multifx unit, amp modeler, and the like, sound closeish to the record, and cut your loadin times by a huge margin.

I never had to go that route myself thankfully but I learned from friends who did.