i think the beauty of the current generation breaking 'the myth of the band leader' is that anyone can try their hand at following their dreams without being tied to (and essentially bound by) any old structural rules and regulations. it WON'T work out for everyone. that is just the nature of the entertainment industry but at that point the artist would have only themselves and their decisions to blame. i don't think artists should necessarily be encouraged to leave any cushy positions with an established group or band but anyone who feels like they can do better by themselves rather than take orders and still be in the background should do whatever moves them. in the end all regrets belong to them no matter what they decide. they have to be able to sleep at night and look themselves in the mirror. it gets hard to do that when you do the 'safe' thing rather than what your heart tells you to do.
