The struggles of working as a musician during the pandemic Governor Abbott’s order to open state offers hope The struggles of working as a musician during the pandemic By Michael Grace | March 5, 2021 at 6:20 PM CST - Updated March 5 at 7:05 PM NOCONA, Texas (TNN) - For Nocona-based musician Gerald English, the pandemic didn’t just strip him of his passion for performing for crowds, it also stripped him of his livelihood. “I was substitute teaching and I was doing music and graphics and all of the sudden the subbing was gone, the schools were down and closed and the music was gone,” said English. “Financially, it was the end of the road right there.”