( Or , Help ! I Don ’ t Know What to Say !)
VOCALS
Micah Barnes is a singer , songwriter , and vocal and performance coach . He travels between Toronto , New York , and Los Angeles on a regular basis to work with clients and also offers private sessions online . His Singers Playground workshops , which he is coaching across Canada while on tour with his latest chart-topping CD , New York Stories , have helped thousands of artists deepen their skill sets as performers on both sides of the border . www . singersplayground . com .
By Micah Barnes
Talking Onstage
( Or , Help ! I Don ’ t Know What to Say !)
After all the practice we do to prepare the music , most of us are caught in a terrible bind when we hit the stage and suddenly have to talk to the audience between songs . As good as our musical performance may be , if our stagecraft doesn ’ t include preparation for the conversation with the audience , we have left a huge part of our performance up to chance . That usually leads to feeling awkward , saying stupid things we didn ’ t mean , long wandering intros that kill the vibe , etc . The worst is , “ This next song is called ‘ Blankety Blank .’ I hope you like it !” Although that ’ s where most of us go , it ’ s so cliché and in no way allows the audience to feel engaged or interested .
My first piece of advice is don ’ t leave the banter to chance .
You Are the Party Host This is your opportunity to let us into your world and tell us who you are as a person and as an artist . If you think of yourself as hosting your show the way you might host a party , it will help you make some decisions around what you choose to talk about .
Imagine yourself hosting an informal evening at your residence , greeting your guests at the door . What you say and your manner of speaking lets them know what to expect for the evening . If you take their coats , ask what they would like to drink , and offer a short tour , you are preparing them for a very different experience than if you tell them to throw their coats on the bed , grab a drink in the kitchen , and enjoy themselves . Your stage patter is going to let the audience know what kind of a party to expect .
Bring Them into Your World Everything you say reveals something about you . That ’ s why we go to see our heroes in concert . We are eager to know more about who they are and what makes them tick , so it ’ s good to give the audience a window into your world .
Yes , they will want to know about your day , or what your reality has been about before stepping on the stage . It will reveal more about who you are and why they might want to listen to your material .
Yes , they will want to know how you came to write a song or what you are trying to express and communicate in that piece of music . You are handing them a key to unlock the material when you explain your process .
Most importantly , be yourself . Who you really are is always going to be more interesting to the world than your idea of what might be entertaining or engaging .
My Stage Fright Shuts Me Up Most of us find that our nerves are most evident when we have to speak on stage . The best advice I can give is to make sure you plan out what you want to say so you have a basic road map of where you are going . Writing it out and rehearsing it in advance will give you confidence and provide a place of safety when your mind goes blank .
If writing out what you are going to say feels too scripted for you , at least plan what you want to cover in your intros ; otherwise , the possibility of talking too long – or not being able to talk at all because of nerves – can happen to the best of us !
Do I Need to Be Funny ?
No , you do not need to be funny , but a lot of us use humour to diffuse our nerves and that can end up being both entertaining for the audience and a release of some pressure for us . If humour works for you when you are nervous on a first date or at a party then it can work on stage , too .
Being awkward and shy or goofy and ridiculous is human and can work to our advantage when we aren ’ t feeling confident . The idea is to be as real as possible with your audience within the context of the performance . They will always be attracted to the truth more than your pretending not to be nervous or scared .
Keep Solving the Problem There are some ideas about how to approach talking on stage . Learning to be relaxed and confident as we talk to the audience is a process and we don ’ t get good at it all at once .
There is no right way to prepare for this , no hard and fast rules . I suggest seeing as many performances as you can while you are working out your stage banter . That will give you a lot of ideas about what works and what doesn ’ t and suggest new ways of communicating that you might not have thought of .
As you try different approaches , take note of what seems to work and listen to the feedback you get from the audience . They will tell you what ’ s working through their level of attention and engagement if you are receptive to their feedback , and isn ’ t that what communication is all about ?
32 • CANADIAN MUSICIAN