Top 8 Tips For Performing Live Shows
Don’t Worry!!!!
I’d like to start with this because I heard it from a very reliable source.
Chris Brown still gets butterflies before he performs. And he has done 1,000s of shows and is at the VERY upper echelon level of the industry. It just shows you that having butterflies is a natural thing. Don’t let that anxiety slow you down
Let’s get started on those Top 8 tips
1) Get into character
You are an artist, you aren’t YOU anymore. Let the artist you want these people to see, start acting and be confident and something to be remembered.
Don’t worry what the people are thinking, they are just thinking they want to be entertained, so fucking entertain them.
2) Get the crowd involved
It may be YOUR live set, but it is THEIR money they spent to come see a show. Get them involved, ask them to do things, ask them to scream, put their hands up, bob their heads, jump with you, anything that makes them a part of the stage with you not separated in the crowd.
Even people in the back feel like they are in the very front of the crowd when they are performing the actions everyone else is. Then everyone is joined as a group, as a team, as a collective fan base and they move and feel your music more!
This is the single most important key to a show performance. Crowd Control.
3) Crack jokes with the crowd
When I am on stage, I try to be as funny as I possibly can. You are there to entertain these people! Chances are, they came for you. Make them smile at every opportunity you get.
I open with jokes about the city, someone in the crowd to be playful and engaging, myself, my clothes, my shoes, just anything that lets them know you are human and you’re not JUST There to perform music, but you are there to connect with them.
Make sure you are looking at fans and interacting with them, They are there for you.
Look people in the eyes, Smile with them as you say your best lyric lines, put your hands out and shake peoples hands during the set.
4) Record yourself to get better
So you can see what you like about yourself during the performance and what you can do better.
I have footage of me recording before all of my live shows in a garage. Jumping around during the winter cold as fuck just practicing 4-5 times a day getting ready for my shows.
Recording yourself practicing and then doing the performance allows you to realize things you didn’t like and help you fix them.
5) Be nice to the sound guy
The sound guy can make or break your show at the touch of a button. So make sure you are abnormally nice to this guy before your show starts. He will try even harder to make sure you sound right.
If you’re an ass, he might not try so hard to fix your sound 😉
6) Be on time for your show AND Sound Check
If you’re a professional or want to be taken serious like a professional, than you better be on time. Show the venue you respect them so they can respect you.
7) Stand out because you are YOU
Make sure that you are not just like every other artist that steps on that stage. Be prepared to make sure that the crowd will remember you when they leave because you were so different from any other artist they have ever seen.
8) Interact with fans after the show
You NEED to make sure that you show the people you appreciate them. Shake hands and kiss babies after every show.
You don’t become president if you don’t go to every city in America and shake people’s hands and tell them what you stand for. This is no different.
You need to attache to these people and give them even more reason to love your music because they love you
– NovAK