What NOT to do at a live show!
Okay so I'm out Saturday night for some fun (which included great vodka drinks!), hanging out with friends and listening to live music. A band took the stage and played some cover tunes. Not terribly exciting but what caught my attention towards the end of their set was the singer holding up a lyric sheet.
Huh?
It wasn't off to the side or on a stand. She was holding it up in front of her face while singing Brandi Carlile's, "The Story"! To a packed house no doubt. (Thanks L for letting me use your camera phone to capture this!)
I was horrified. I was let down. Why on earth would anyone do this?!
Okay so I have to rant here. Please bear with me. I'm not going to name names or tell you where this occurred. But it's a lesson I feel compelled to point out so you can learn from this.
Professionalism is so very important in this business. You never know who is in the audience. Would you play a set of your songs if you were not prepared? I hope not! I have seen alarming results when indie artists fail to know their songs inside and out before performing them on stage. And this particular artist was no novice. She plays out regularly.
Be prepared. Be smart. You never know who will be in the audience. It might be me with a camera phone!
Rock on,
Madalyn Sklar
IndieMusicCoach.com
~providing one-on-one indie music consulting & coaching~
http://www.indiemusiccoach.com/
Huh?It wasn't off to the side or on a stand. She was holding it up in front of her face while singing Brandi Carlile's, "The Story"! To a packed house no doubt. (Thanks L for letting me use your camera phone to capture this!)
I was horrified. I was let down. Why on earth would anyone do this?!
Okay so I have to rant here. Please bear with me. I'm not going to name names or tell you where this occurred. But it's a lesson I feel compelled to point out so you can learn from this.
Professionalism is so very important in this business. You never know who is in the audience. Would you play a set of your songs if you were not prepared? I hope not! I have seen alarming results when indie artists fail to know their songs inside and out before performing them on stage. And this particular artist was no novice. She plays out regularly.
Be prepared. Be smart. You never know who will be in the audience. It might be me with a camera phone!
Rock on,
Madalyn Sklar
IndieMusicCoach.com
~providing one-on-one indie music consulting & coaching~
http://www.indiemusiccoach.com/
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Madalyn Sklar is a music business coach & consultant, blogger, social networks expert and author. She has spent over 12 years helping independent musicians and music business professionals achieve greater success. Her motto is: working smarter not harder. She also founded GoGirlsMusic.com, the oldest + largest online community of indie women musicians. 
Monika Herzig is a jazz pianist/ recording artist for Owl Studios and a full-time member of the Arts Administration Faculty at Indiana University. She has performed at many prestigious jazz clubs and festivals. 
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Wow, Madalyn! Great story and GREAT point. Lawyers don't show up to court without studying the case, musicians need to know their songs. :)
Posted by
Jana |
10:55 AM
Would have to wholeheartedly agree with ya!
Posted by
John |
11:21 AM
I wonder what she was thinking. Maybe someone paid her money as a joke to do that. ha ha.
cheat sheets are for open mic nights.
Posted by
margot |
10:17 PM