Reykjavík Grapevine - jun. 2023, Side 11

11
WORDS Sóley Þöll Bjarnadóttir
IMAGE Art Bicnick
A pril 29th, Prikið.
Prikið, where everybody knows your
name. My venue for the night. “Bar-
tender – get me a Red Bull, a glass
of water and one coffee.” Staying
hydrated is key.
The place is packed with tourists
and regulars. I really can’t start my
night without having a chat with
Helgi first.
When my set starts I bring out some
classics and mix in local hip hop art-
ists. Throwing in a little Beyonce or
Britney here and there always gets
people on the dance floor pretty
quickly. A guy approaches and starts
scrolling through his Spotify playlist
to show me five different songs to
play. I give him the thumbs up while
not paying him any attention. People
are dancing, making out. Some are
fighting. A classic Saturday night.
The lights turn on and I choose my
closing song carefully. I decided on
“Gloria” by Laura Branigan. You can
never go wrong with that.
I say my goodbyes, go buy a frozen
pizza and head home. Another
successful night over.
What Happened Last Night? A Night
At Prikið
One DJ’s account of a night on the town
Side Hustle Of The Issue The Weekend
Musician
Modelling and music to make ends meet
WORDS Iryna Zubenko &
Sébastien Nouat
IMAGE Art Bicnick
Prices in Reykjavík
are rising as you read this, post-
pandemic layoffs persist and AI is
threatening to take over everybody’s
job. Today’s generation isn’t worried
about affording a house; we’re just
happy if our expenses don’t surpass
our income. Everyone is hustling.
Here’s how one Reykjavíking makes
a few more krónur.
Sébastien Nouat, 31, Software
Engineer
I occupy my weekdays working on
software to tame 3D models of
buildings and run sound simulations
in them. From 2019 to 2021, I did the
un-rewarding task of being an
extra: you are mostly paid for
waiting for your time to dimly shine
in the background of a production
and the odds are that you’ll be cut
out. In a similar vein of being in
front of observers, I modelled for
drawing classes; holding a pose
for 10 minutes is surprisingly a very
satisfying effort.
But my favourite side hustle is
music: musicals like Hedwig and the
Angry Inch or live soundtracks with
my project Wazy Lizard for yoga and
improvised dance classes. When I
say improvised, I mean it – once the
dancers took over, beating their feet
and clapping their hands. I had no
choice but to listen and watch.
The best thing about my side hustle
is the interaction between the music,
the teacher and the attendees: we all
affect each other and take the lead
in shaping the general movement,
like a multi-organism. What I like less
is carrying all the instruments and
gear – though the excitement grows
as soon as I start setting it up.
DOES AND DON’TS
The first step to side-hustling as
a musician is to decide it’s good
enough and go for it! People will
only invite you to play if they see you
or hear of you doing it, so you just
have to get the ball rolling and talk
to people. That’s how I shifted from
solo improvisation sessions to doing
soundtracks for classes. As for the
modelling hustle, I can tell you one
thing not to do: send a photo of
yourself with a bare torso to all the
main colleges in Reykjavík saying
that you are available as a model for
drawing classes. Just don’t!
MONEY-SAVING TRICK
It’s hard to count how much money
I have saved by “learning” to dance
sober, but since then, parties down-
town have never been an expense
for me!
Want to share how you’re making
ends meet? Email us at grapevine@
grapevine.is with the subject line
“Side Hustle.” We’ll happily keep
your identity anonymous.