#56 Theresa Wolters | MusiCares, Music Industry Health, and Why Support Can’t Wait
Mar 31, 2026
When people talk about careers in music, they usually talk about the dream. They talk about the show, the adrenaline, the travel, the chance to be part of something people will remember forever.
In this episode of The Giggs Podcast, Nikki Sanz sits down with Theresa Wolters, Executive Director of MusiCares, to talk about the part of the industry that gets talked about far less: what happens when the work dries up, the bills hit at once, or someone on the road needs real help fast.
This conversation lives in the behind-the-scenes reality of touring and freelance music work. It covers emergency financial relief, therapy support, medical care, substance use treatment, and the hard truth that too many music professionals are still trying to build long-term careers without long-term safety nets.
Highlights — What You’ll Learn
Why MusiCares exists and how it supports music professionals day to day
What the Wellness in Music Survey is revealing about stress, health, and finances
Why preventive care access is a major issue across the music industry
How MusiCares handles both immediate disaster response and long-term recovery
What Theresa learned coming from global health into the music world
Why better support systems are essential if people are going to stay in music for the long haul
A safety net for the people behind the music
Theresa explains MusiCares in direct terms. The organization exists because if the industry wants to celebrate and sustain music, it has to take care of the people who bring it to life. On a practical level, that means stepping in when music professionals are facing medical issues, loss of work, natural disasters, mental health struggles, or substance use needs.
Nikki brings it home with her own story. Early in building Giggs, she says MusiCares helped her with two months of rent and ten therapy sessions at a moment when she deeply needed both. That framing gives the whole episode its emotional center. This is not abstract support. It is rent. It is therapy. It is staying afloat long enough to keep going.
“If we want to foster and celebrate and sustain music, we need to take care of all of the people who play a role in bringing it to life.”
Theresa also makes an important point about shame. In an industry where so many workers are self-employed, she wants asking for help to feel normal, not like a personal failure. That matters because many people do not have HR, employer benefits, or a stable next paycheck waiting in the background.
The music industry still runs on risk
One of the strongest threads in the episode is sustainability. Nikki describes the reality a lot of freelancers and touring workers know well: you get the gig, you finish the gig, and then you hope the next one comes in time. Sometimes it does. Sometimes it does not. MusiCares often steps in to cover that gap with help for rent, mortgage, utilities, car payments, medical bills, therapy, and more.
The bigger issue is that this instability is often treated as normal. Theresa says the data shows just how fragile that can become when it intersects with health.
In the conversation, she shares that about 35% of people working in music have been diagnosed with a chronic condition, about 15% do not have health insurance, and among those who do, fewer than 20% get it through their employer. She frames that as bigger than a wellness issue. For many people, it is a career sustainability issue.
“Their ability to stay in an industry depends on their ability to stay healthy.”
The question is not just whether people are stressed. It is whether they can realistically afford to remain in the business they love.
The data is finally catching up to what people have lived
Theresa says one of the first shocks of joining MusiCares was how little data existed on the health and well-being of people in music. That gap matters. If the industry wants to solve problems, it has to be able to name them clearly and measure them honestly.
That is where the Wellness in Music Survey comes in. Theresa describes it as a key tool for understanding the health, financial well-being, and mental health of the music community.
MusiCares uses the findings to guide programming, inform the broader industry, and give the public a clearer picture of what music workers are actually facing. She says the survey tracks around 70 to 80 indicators and has started becoming a resource mainstream outlets use to talk about the music industry.
Some of the findings she shares are stark. Preventive health care access is lower in music than in the general U.S. population. Preventive cancer screenings sit at 30%, and only one in four people in music get annual hearing screenings. On stress, Theresa says about 70% of people in the industry experience moderate to very high stress every day or several days a week. Among those under high stress, 40% say finances are the reason.
That last point matters because it pushes the conversation deeper. If financial instability is driving mental health strain, then better support cannot stop at awareness campaigns. It has to address root causes.
Disaster relief is both immediate and long term
The episode also gives a concrete look at what disaster relief means inside the music world. Theresa says MusiCares has provided more than $135 million in direct support, including rent, medical bills, therapy, substance use treatment, and disaster relief. She describes that number as real cash going directly into the hands and accounts of people in the industry.
When Nikki asks about the Los Angeles fires, Theresa walks through how MusiCares responded. She says the fires began on January 7, and the organization launched its response on January 8. That first phase included emergency financial assistance and grocery cards for people who had to evacuate, lost gigs, or were otherwise affected. After that initial 6-to-8-week response, MusiCares shifted into longer-term recovery, helping people rebuild homes, studios, finances, and mental health.
“Let’s solve the problem that you came to MusiCares for, to start with.”
That same philosophy shapes how they help individuals. Theresa says they do not want people sent on a wild goose chase. First, solve the urgent problem. Then build aftercare, referrals, and longer-term support.
Change is happening, but not fast enough
Theresa sounds hopeful, but not naive. She says she has seen real change in the last three to five years in how the industry talks about well-being. She points to visionaries and collaborators helping move things forward, while also acknowledging there is still a long way to go. Her most striking line may be that the industry is at least beginning to move away from treating people as entirely disposable.
By the end of the conversation, the message is clear. Passion has kept this industry running for a long time. Passion alone is not enough to sustain the people inside it.
If you work in music, support someone who does, or care about the future of the live event world, this episode is worth your time. Listen to The Giggs Podcast, follow the show, and join the live event industry career platform at Giggs.
