How do you elevate your success to a new level?
Your first thoughts may be to make more cover versions of your favorite songs and upload them to YouTube. Maybe you’ll think about starting a blog and engaging in heavy social media promotion. Maybe you’re even think about booking international gigs.
There’s nothing wrong with any of that.
But the best way to achieve more of what you want in your career is to improve your life stage performance skills.
And, honestly, you can spend the rest of your life improving your performance skills.
You don’t just go through some course, complete it and say “Okay; now I’m a great live performer.” No. You start working on these skills and you never stop, so long as you intend to keep your career alive.
But you must start somewhere. Here are seven essential tactics that will help you become a better live stage performer.
Prepare for the Event
Great live performances don’t happen by accident. Maybe this is just a gig at a local nightclub. Maybe you booked a performance abroad. Whatever the case is, you must prepare well for the event, so everything will run smoothly.
As soon as you book the gig, you should check out the venue and plan how you’re going to organize the stage. How many mics and lines do you need for the show?
If you have a manager to take care of these things, you can leave everything to them and just show up.
But any serious musician will still check up on the progress. Any failure will affect your performance. What if the mic doesn’t work? What if the sound is bad? What if the promotional materials are not being distributed well?
Speaking of promotional materials, you must work on them, too.
Consider relying on an assignment writing service, which can produce blog posts, email newsletters, and social media posts to introduce this event to your target audience. If no one shows up, you can’t have a successful live performance.
Practice, Practice, Practice!
Have you ever experienced stage fright? Does the thought of performing in front of an audience gives you the chills? That’s something must to fix. The audience will notice even the most minuscule presence of stage fright. It will show through your performance.
So, how do you fix this?
It all starts with boosting your self-confidence. The more faith you have in yourself, the less frightened you’ll be.
Start each day with positive affirmations. Tell yourself you’re good enough and believe it. Practice your music throughout the day, so you’ll leave no space for mistakes.
Stage fright comes from the fear of being judged. But when you train yourself so well that the possibility of error is minimal, you’ll start replacing that fear with self-confidence.
Keep a Positive Attitude
When you play, it’s not just about the music. You may be the best musician of our day, but your audience won’t notice you if you lack that X factor. Charisma!
During live performances, the audience is focused not only on what they hear, but on what they see as well.
Your first thought will be: “Maybe I should start working out?” That would be a good idea. You’ll improve your appearance, but being physically fit also leads to better stage stamina.
Your stage presence, however, is about something more than sound and looks. It’s about the way you act. It’s about your personality. It’s what Freddie Mercury had on top of that surreal voice.
So, how do you cultivate charisma? Focus on your sound and appearance during rehearsals. You’ll show your true personality only when you allow yourself to express raw emotion.
Meditate Before Performing
No matter how much you work on your self-confidence, your nerves will still get shaky before a live performance. It’s normal. But you mustn’t allow this inner unbalance to affect your show.
Try meditation. Many musicians practice meditation every day. It helps them find inner peace and it even boosts their creativity. But most of all, meditation helps them calm down and focus before performing.
Oh, and if you think you can replace meditation with a few drinks, don’t even think about it. Alcohol won’t make you less nervous. It just makes you numb and unaware of your surroundings. That’s not the best state to be in during live performances.
Warm Up!
What if you go on stage and your funny voice decides to show up? That may happen if you don’t warm up.
A soundcheck is part of this process. It’s not a luxury, but a necessity. Arrange a soundcheck before the show starts, so you can ensure everything is well.
If You Make a Mistake, Don’t Let it Ruin You
You better accept mistakes as a possibility. You make them during rehearsals, so it’s possible for you or someone in the band to make them during the live event. It’s okay. You just have to learn how to overcome these mistakes and keep on performing.
Never stop the performance just because you forgot the lyrics or you accidentally started another verse. Just get yourself together and carry on!
Practice, Practice, Practice… in Front of an Audience
Wait; didn’t we already cover the practice, practice, practice tip? We were talking about a different kind of practice then – the one you cover before the live event. This time, we’re talking about approaching live events as you would approach practice.
The more you practice, the better you get at rehearsals, right? Well it’s the same thing with live performances. Maybe you’re not perfect. So, what? No one is!
You just need to keep showing up and doing what you do best. You’ll be getting better with each live performance you get under your belt.
Over to You
Live performance takes a lot of skill and courage. But you already have some of that and you can build on that foundation. Just stay committed and practice more!
- 7 Essential Tactics for Better Live Stage Performance - April 30, 2019
