Nor should he. In addition to his musical accomplishments, he has become an instructor in his own right. He teaches Latin rhythms to middle school and high school students in South Jersey for the New Jersey Council on the Arts and to 25 children at the Perkins Center for the Arts in Moorestown. He's also been invited to Australia in June to give workshops in African-Caribbean music at the University of Melbourne. Working with children and seeing his daughter's face in each of them is what keeps him going, he says.
Life can be very ironic.
I lost my daughter in a tragic car accident and now, more than ever, I'm working with more and more kids. To pay the bills, Simon still works hard upwards of 50 hours a week, he says. He tries to practice alone at least two hours a day and even sound- proofed his basement so his practices either with other band members or solo wouldn't bother his neighbors. I can practice at 3 in the morning or 3 in the afternoon and not bother anyone. One glimpse at his basement paints a clear picture of what Marlon Simon does for a living.