As you say, categorising doesn't help. But it's not a new phenomenon. Mozart had to deal with the differences (or lack of) between music hall and opera. And the categories of church music and lay music has been with us for many centuries.

And whether you make any money at it is entirely irrelevant as this marginalises the independently wealthy (17 century string players were largely amateurs and the wind players were largely pros) and stigmatises the poor (poor musicians are oft regarded as beggars).

However, traditions are their own defining categories.