I'm a musician. Can I write off payments for a piano I financed in 2016, but began using for business in 2019?

[LeonardS]

No, you can not write off your payments from 2016 through 2018 because you did not use the piano for business purposes.  

This link The Musician's Guide to Taxes: Top Tax Deductions has information for musicians that you may find useful.

[Carl]

No, what you paid for the piano is never deductible under any circumstance. If you are self employed and the piano is used in the production of income (and I doubt it is) and report your musical business income on SCH C, then the piano is a business asset that gets depreciated (not deducted) over time. Depreciation is never a permanent deduction. Depreciation is recaptured and taxed in the year you dispose of the business asset. So while it can be depreciated if used in the production of business income (and I seriously doubt it is) you will at some point be recapturing that depreciation and paying taxes on it in the year you sell or otherwise dispose of the piano.

[singah22]

Hi @LeonardS 

Thanks for including the link to The Musician's Guide. I am receiving mixed messages about the "Musical Events" topic, however. I have been seeing that only 50% of business meals can be written off while at an event, but not the cost of any ticket to the event. If event ticketing can be written off, what category should it be under? 

Many thanks!

[RobertG]

You should enter them under 'Other miscellaneous expenses' on Schedule C.

Deductions often overlooked by musicians are the costs of such things as tickets, transportation, and parking, incurred when you attend other musicians' performances. You attend these performances in order to enjoy them, but also to learn about musical trends, which makes them deductible.  The Musician's Guide to Taxes: Top Tax Deductions

@singah22