Being a rock star may seem like a blast, but there are drawbacks to being a musician for a living. Disturbed and Fight or Flight guitarist Dan Donegan went in depth over the weekend about some of the sacrifices that come with being a musician, encouraging fans to support the bands they love and keep the music alive for future generations. However, he did have to follow-up with a further explanation after some fans thought he had no right to complain while making a living as a musician.

In a lengthy post, Donegan, who not only is a rocker but a father, started by getting a little emotional about seeing his kids off to school before he leaves for a tour. The guitarist used that as a springboard to speak about the sacrifices that musicians make. His post can be read here:

Something a lot of people don't realize about musicians/crew is most of us are father's/husbands too & it never gets easy to leave our families behind! Not easy seeing my kids off to school yesterday and seeing them cry cuz' I have to tour.It is a great life to travel & play music but it can also be very lonely. I'm NOT in anyway complaining about the life I have cuz I'm very fortunate & blessed. Just saying most of you who may enjoy a break from your kids, you get to return home from work & tuck them in bed every night. We drive further away to the next state. Our wives have got to be the strongest people I know, to have to handle all duties with the kids, school, home, bills & also being lonely. Yes it can be glamorous but there's a price to pay! I've missed weddings, funerals, birthdays (including my son's first b-day), kids school events, etc...There's lots of great bands busting their asses that are happy just to make enough money to have gas to get to the next city. They put blood, sweat & tears into giving you their music or a show to help
you feel good too! Do me a favor and it doesn't need to be my band (Fight or Flight/Disturbed) but if you hear about a new band, go buy their CD, knowing that all the sacrifices I've mentioned, that they are going thru similar things and missing their families too! We in Disturbed appreciate you the fans who have given us a career & have become our extended family & you know what, when we are away from you, we miss you too! So that being said, we have every intention of returning someday as Disturbed & seeing all your faces again. All bands do what they can to find balance for our love of music & family. Songs help people heal so find a new band, buy a cd/ download it & help spread the word. Keep rock/metal alive. Enjoy your weekend! Much love & respect- Dan Donegan

After his initial post, the Facebook discussion went another direction with Donegan feeling he needed to clarify his remarks. In another lengthy post, he added:

Let me be clear about my previous post! Most of you get it & unfortunately there's always a few missing the point! This is not a sob story! This is not comparing who makes a bigger sacrifice. Obviously anyone who knows us knows our support to the troops and how hard it is for them & what they do. I also know truck drivers have it hard being away from family. The list can go on with many occupations. The point is that even though you may view us as rich rock stars living the dream that there is a human side to us that is our kids, family & friends. We post important things about our personal lives and share with you cause you are important to us. A lot of you enjoy that we take the time to talk to you as friends. It's not always gonna be about music. I'm sharing a human feeling of how hard it can be to leave our families to go tour. That's not complaining about what we do it's just showing that our lives as glamorous as it can be at times will always need some balance between work & family. I am also trying to make the point that bands go out and work hard & most with not much to show for it but their love for music is what keeps them going. We all need music because we all find songs that have been therapeutic. I was trying to shed light on the human element of us all that when all musicians walk out the door to bring you music, a lot of us leave our crying kids & wives that have to be without their father for sometime. Yes it's our choice & music helps keep us sane. I could not live or function without family or music. This is not a pity party. It's just reminding you that we all are alike and all of us make sacrifices in life. I'm asking you to find some new band and remember that they are giving you everything they got trying to make enough to go to the next stop. They to make those same sacrifices. So go out and buy another band's cd, go to a small venue & discover someone new. Share your comments about some new bands you discovered early & spread the word & keep metal & rock alive! Much respect-Dan Donegan

For those interested, Fight or Flight are hitting the road this month for several pre-Thanksgiving dates. See their full itinerary here.

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