This week Susanna is in New Orleans for Mardi Gras so we caught up with a friend of hers, Max, who is a full time professional gig musician playing upright bass with different groups and at different venues across the city. As he explains, he and his peers are holdouts, operating as part of a cash-based industry in an increasingly cashless economy. He’s also self-employed, earning uncertain income that fluctuates according to erratic impacts to demand, such as covid. We talk to him about how he secures gigs, navigates a unique compensation structure, and how he approaches things like healthcare and taxes.