Musicians and Money

I book a small concert series - Cambridge Drive Concerts - and we've been blessed to present scores of amazing musicians, both touring folk and locals.  I'd be hard pressed to pick favorites.  We do our money more or less like a house concert, have no guarantee, and frankly the musicians don't walk away with very much.  We have a small but very appreciative listening audience, excellent equipment, and the sound is as good as you'll hear anywhere.  And I try to be as hospitable as I can.  All that said, I've had musicians with reputations who should never play a venue that small and others who simply could not afford to book our venue given the above parameters.  I certainly understand their position.  They are out there on the road sharing their music and trying to make a living.

On the other hand, I do struggle philosophically with the idea of being a "professional artist" or even owning one's "product" as a musician or painter or whatever.

Here's a TED talk by Amanda Palmer that addresses some of my struggles in an interesting way... What do you all think of what she has to say?