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Steve Dawson, a solo artist and vocalist with the rock/pop band Dolly Varden, has come a long way since those early college days spent playing in small bars and restaurants.

"Next week I start a 10-day East Coast tour with Dolly Varden," he says. The band will perform in cities such as New York, Boston and Cleveland.

But on this day, Dawson has a songwriter coming over for a recording session from noon until three. Then it's off to a folk music school to teach songwriting. "Every day is pretty different depending on which of the three roles I'm playing," he says.

While Dawson has steadily been chipping away at his music career for about 20 years, his love of music has always been there.

"My earliest, best memories are of listening to my parents' Beatle records or sitting in the back of the car listening to whatever my dad had on the radio," he says. "I never get bored of music because it is so vast and all-encompassing and appeals to the heart and mind."

But for Dawson, one of the hardest parts of pursuing a music career has been the uncertainty of it all. "No one will ever care about your music or career as much as you do," he says. "You have to be the energy behind it growing and getting better."

According to Connor McGuire, the music industry is a tough place because there are countless others trying to achieve that same success. McGuire is an emerging singer and songwriter.

"Everyone seems to have a band and the whole industry is designed to knock you down," he says. "It's designed like that for a reason, and it's so that people who aren't 100 percent serious about it don't go very far."

Like Dawson, McGuire has been getting his start by playing at bars, coffee shops and other local venues. This has steadily led to playing in front of larger audiences, most recently a crowd of 6,000.

"When you actually do get on stage after practicing for so long and advertising a show and dealing with all the promoters and stuff, it's just so exhilarating," says McGuire. "It's really an amazing experience to be able to get people moving and get people interested."

"You've really got to pay your dues in this business," says Sarah Morrison. Morrison is a professional singer who has worked on shows such as music-related reality television shows.She has also shared the stage with the likes of Alanis Morrisette and Chantal Kreviazuk.

"Overnight success is almost never going to happen," says McGuire. He adds that keeping motivated and marketing yourself to promoters is very beneficial.

"People should put the idea of being 'discovered' out of their minds," says Dawson. "It doesn't happen anymore and it barely ever did. Hard work and practice are what it takes, along with a lot of luck and being in the right places at the right time."

"I always suggest volunteering your services to get people to hear you," says Morrison. "If you're good, that will always turn into work."

When Morrison was starting out in the business, she performed every chance she got, paid or not, in order to gain experience and build connections.

"I did a lot of competitions and local community shows and charity events," she says.

This eventually helped her land her first big gig working at a major theme park. There she had the opportunity to sing and dance in the park's shows. While Morrison says that there are no guarantees in this business, finding work as a singer can be very rewarding.

"I consider myself to be very fortunate to be able to make a living as a working musician," she says. On top of performing, Morrison does vocal coaching, production, musical direction for live events and videos, and so much more.

"I wear lots of hats so every day is different... every event and project is different," she says. This constantly gives her opportunities to learn and meet new people.

"There is also a huge opportunity for growth which can expand into other opportunities like producing, writing, arranging, musical direction," she says. "Plus, I always think it's easier to be successful doing something you love, no matter what it is."

"One of the biggest things that I've learned about being a musician is that even if you play a show and there are two people there, one of those people could be the person that makes your career," says McGuire. "You have to do every single show you can, and do it as if there were thousands of people there."

He adds that this really pays off in the end, even you feel a little ridiculous doing it.

Dawson says that someone hoping to pursue a career in music should only do it if they feel like it's the only career they could ever devote their life to. And if they find another occupation that could make them even remotely happy, they should go for that instead.

"I would only encourage someone to pursue music as a profession if they were completely obsessed with music and had no other choice," says Dawson. "If you have no choice, then you have to pursue it with everything you've got and expect nothing in return besides the tiny satisfaction that you are trying to make the world a better place through your art. The satisfactions are not monetary, but when you do find satisfaction, it is life affirming and real."

Dawson recalls that one of the most exciting milestones in his career was performing in Great Britain and France. "I remember waking up in Paris and looking out through this beautiful hotel window at the city and thinking, 'singing has brought me here.'"