Ten Big Mistakes Most Singers Make

 

TEN BIG MISTAKES MOST SINGERS MAKE!

This is for anybody out there who is about to start gigging and think they are ready to hit the circuit. This is also for you seasoned pros out there who believe you have got things perfect and know what you are doing. You are an in demand star! Well for both please STOP and read this. There are some facts below that singers of any kind need to know about. For you newbies just starting out, please take note so you can be brilliant moving forward because right now you still aren't ready. As for you experienced singers, take a look and see if you have any bad habits you never knew about! Is it time you reviewed your performances and changed it up? Scroll down to find out the ten biggest mistakes!

 

My Voice is pretty good so they will love me.

WRONG! Just having a pretty good voice will not cut it. Ok your friend may have told you that you sounded great down the Karaoke last Saturday and you should gig, but its not as easy as that. Many of the singers out there today have worked very hard and learned many lessons. Spent time putting a good show together, worked out what works with an audience and what doesn't. What with the fact they have travelled miles and probably visited some pretty grotty venues, they have to earned the right to be good enough to gig. Right now you newbies haven' eanred anything! Spend time putting a good show together, practice the songs that work and hear them all back. Above all think of the audiences you will have. Maybe do a few cheaper practice gigs for friends and local events first,  before you put your show out. Believe us and you will learn, A room full of paying customers expecting a good night, and will not "love" you with just a pretty good voice!

 

Don't Bother To Practice. 

Yes it is still unbelievable that so many singers just dont bother to practice. It doesn't matter if you are a new singer just starting out or a seasoned pro, you need to practice. There are so many singers out there who just think they will be pitch perfect in every single gig, already totally oblivious to their awful bad habits. Your voice needs at least thirty minutes work out every day to remain in top working order, also practice gives you the chance to try new and clever things with songs!  So if you don't bother to practice, maybe you should get someone to record you at  gig and see if you have got to complacent. New or seasoned singers, get your practice in or you may start to learn about the term "Paid off"

 

Eating a big meal before a gig

Sounds silly but this is a no no. You would think you would need plenty of energy and a good meal before a gig? Yes this is right in principle, but eat one at least three hours before your gig. Food normally takes at least two hours to fully digest and a big meal can still sit in your stomach. A full tummy can lead to less breathing capacity, and control from your diaphragm. So think twice before you stop off for the service station junk food meal on route to a gig. Besides, it always tastes better at 1:30am on the way home anyway!

 

Drink the wrong things

Just like your big meal there are certain things you should avoid before singing. Anything dairy based such as milk and those milkshake drink things you find in those plastic bottles. Dairy can actually cause a fur lining on your throat and vocal chords, which can lead to you not hitting those notes as well. Other things such as Coffee, Tea or cream teas......who has a cream tea before a gig anyway? Things such as citrus and carbonated drinks can also cause indigestion and put too much gas in your stomach. This can also effect your singing. Hard as it is, try to avoid alcohol. OK we all need a little tipple at a gig just before we sing, usually to calm the nerves. For some it is a seasoned habit. But alcolhol can actually numb your vocal chords which will  cause loss of vocal control. Too much alcohol can cause loss of full control in fact!  Don't become the drunk singer enjoying their own show more than the audience. So in a nutshell, that leaves just water for you I'm affraid.

 

Imitating the voice of an artist
No no no, this is so cabaret and you aren't on "Stars in their eyes" We have all heard them and you have probably done it before at on time or another. Maybe you do it without realising? The music starts, the audience know the song, they expect you to do it, and then you do. Watch out for all the people you are singing for, roll their eyes as they start to hear Cher, Neil Diamond, or Mariah Carey etc. This is so old school and just not enjoyed. What would amaze your audience more is, if you put your own twist on the song, made it your own or maybe even found a different version backing track of the song! So all new artists just starting out, you may think this is acceptable and a timeless thing to do. NO it's now 2016!

 

I love that song and Artist, and so will the audience!

Ok so the whole reason you started singing was because you nailed a Britney Song when you were younger. The Karaoke bar went wild and your moment was born. Britney has to go in your set because you perform "Hit me Baby" so well. Infact Britney's back catalogue of songs will work in your set. It will go down so well!...No it wont. When you are out gigging you need to be able to cater for the audience, and what they enjoy. Work out a good songs will cater for everybody the moment you enter that room. What is a good idea, is to contact the venue and find out more a few days before your gig. Also you should be ready to change it up if things dont seem to be working so well, or even if you are requested on the spot. If you are good enough you will get repeat bookings at a same venue many times. You will learn and what works there and what they enjoy. But remember no one wants to hear you singing the songs of your life all night long. Cater for your crowd and they will love you even more!  

 

People either have it or they don't when they are born!

What rubbish and you would have heard many people tell you this before, but it is simply untrue and don't listen to these people. Entertainers fall into many catagories. We will try and explain. You may have a fantatsic singer who is amazing, but when it comes to standing up in a room they are a blank canvas and no substance to back up their voice. They just cant do it for toffee, so were they born with it really? Then there are those people who have something vocally, but it just needs developing. A good coach or vocal trainer can help find the voice with in, also they can read blogs like these and learn even more. Some people who are blessed with a good voice have no confidence what so ever, so sadly may never sing live. Then there are those people who really really can't sing, but want to gig so bad. In this scenario, you would like to think friends and family would try to put them off and maybe work backstage in th eindustry. Yes that sounds harsh, but they have a passion for something.. The desire to get up and entertain people, but no voice to back it up. Were they born with it?. Entertainment is a choice and a skill, it can be brought out in someone or just a passion to do anything, that other people will enjoy!

 

You don't get to know your voice enough

Silly as it sounds you need to build a good relationship with your own voice and treat it well. You need to know 100 percent what you can and cant sing. Those songs that you can perform so easily and make you sound brilliant. They roll out of you like velvet because you and your voice get on so well.  Yes always try new things but dont push it and know when to stop. Remember your voice is the instrument tool of your trade and you need to look after it. Once you wreck it, you can't get another one from some online music store. You wouldn't try and bang a screw in with a hammer would you, well some of us would. What is meant by that is don't listen to the man that comes up to you at the end of the night and says "Do you know you could do Bon Jovi really well" and then try it when you get home. This man is drunk anyway and has failed to notice he has been listenin to a quality femle Jazz singer all night!

 

Sing in the car on the way to a gig.
This actually one of the worse things you can do. So many singers have not given themselves enough time to warm up before they leave for a gig. But hey you have a thirty minute car journey. If you sing along to songs that will do. Please don't do this, a huge mistake. How can we explain it? Before you perform you need to warm up, regardless of where it is. You wouldnt see an athlete just doing what they do without warming up would you? Indoor events, outdoor events, they warm up. It doesn't matter if you are singing your first song in the car or first song in front of that microphone, you are still singing for the first time. You haven't warmed up have you and you could do some damage to your voice. What with the fact you may tire your vocal chords out before you even get to the gig. So if you do this please rethink now. Maybe just those sound and mouth shapes excercises in the car on the way? Yes other drivers may look at you strangely, but you are going to work and this is important!

 

If I gig long enough I will get signed and discovered. 

No you wont. If you have been waiting years and years and still haven't been signed, there will be a reason for this. Nothing in life will ever fall into your lap. Do you really think Simon Cowell has sent his scouts out to see you, just because someone saw your promo picture on the toilet door of the working mens club? You need to knock on as many doors as you can, send e-mails, letters, demos, soundfiles and get busy. Get yourself a good website and start hitting every social media channel you can. Everybody else does and you need to keep up. Soundcloud, Youtube, Itunes, Facebook but to name a few. Above all never give up. Please be aware, there is a high chance that you will never have a UK number one hit single anyway, or ever make it big. Harsh reality, but if you don't try what chance do you have? If you want to be that on person that gets lucky and spotted online, you have to do something so much more than nothing and hoping!

 

Things Entertainers Do Straight After Gigs

 

You have packed your final bit of kit into your vehicle, collected your money and said thank you to the venue. Your audience has started stumbling out, probably to their homes just down the road. But for you, the end of gig ritual which probably involves a dark motorway is still to come. Known fact, you are never now ready for bed? You should be exhausted with it being the early hours of the next morning and for all the work you have done? But for some reason us entertainers need a few more hours to unwind or do some things we haven't had the chance to do, because you were gigging in the first place ! So here are some of the things we do during that secret, and interesting time of setting off and actually going to bed! How many of you can ever admitt to unwinding with number 12?

 

1) INSTANTLY START DISCUSSING YOUR AUDIENCE TONIGHT

"God did you see what she was wearing" "Did you see that drunk guy sat there all night, probably been there since the afternoon?" "They were a really nice crowd weren't they, I'd sing here again" "How old do you reckon she was?" "What a joke, there's no way I'm coming back there again!" "Did you see the old style raffle tumbler in our changing cupboard?" "That bloke at the front was pissing me off looking at me!" "That was a really nice venue wasn't it, what a character that steward is" Just some of these I'm sure you have said once your vehicle doors are closed and locked!

 

2) THE LOCAL 24 hour GARAGE

You have got back in your vehicle ready for the trip home and to your horror, the bag of sweets you had on route is now empty. How will you possibly cope getting home now? Luckily the little village you are in has a 24 hour garage down the road, so this place is a must pull in. For some reason you get some more petrol too, begrudgingly using the money you have just been paid and even though you know you have enough fuel to get home anyway. That fear of breaking down on the M5 is always there!

 

3) THE LOCAL TAKE AWAY

You smelt in on arrival and the smell is even stronger now in the early hours. That's right, the Kebab and chip shop opposite the venue you have just performed at. You know full well Entertainers always get the munchies after gigs, its the law. Besides you have already been discussing your orders during the interval of your gig! There is just something so great about sitting in your vehicle and eating a take away, even though you know you vehicle will stink in the morning!

 

4) DIDN'T WE SEE A MCDONALDS ON THE WAY?

Like the take away, this is another common stop off to deal with the munchies. They are everywhere and you spotted this one on the (A) road just after you came off of the motorway. In fact, you normally start looking out for the nearest one on route, before you have seen it. If you are performing at a venue you have done time and time again, you know exactly where McDonalds is. You even set off a little earlier to have your tea there before the gig. There is just something so peaceful about eating your burger, in your car discussing the gig you have just done.

 

5) THE FRIENDLY WARM FEELING OF THE SERVICE STATION

After arguements of if you actually need to stop off, or just head home; a service station is always a great option. That simple thing of needing the toilet, maybe a coffee, the station has something different from McDonalds or just for the sake of it because its there. Part of being an Entertainer is loving these places and knowing what service station holds what fast food establishment. KFC, Burger King, McDonalds etc, and if you are good, you should know them off by heart. ie We are performing there tonight, great KFC night! There is always one person who has to stay away from these unhealthy foods and get a wrap from the M&S express. Yeah, like eating a wrap at 1:30am isn't unhealthy? Stopping off at the services as a band can be great fun too. Why is it just when you are about to leave, your drummer is not finished in the arcade as he just knows the machine is going to drop? No it won't, it's 1:30am and it's been emptied!

 

6) BACK TO NATURE

You did say you should of stopped off at he service station, but no one wanted to on this occasion and now someone needs the loo. Why is it, someone is always bursting on the darkest stretch of road but you can never find a lay by? Or if you are on a motorway the urge kicks in after you have passed the last service station? Shouldn't of had that last drink before you left the venue and it's always the same person every blooody time. You really don't want to pull over when it's this dark with just your hazard lights as guidance towards the bush!

 

7) DROP OFF BEGINS

For bands there is usually a nominated driver, or its their van so they have to drive. The taxi drop off begins once you get back to your town. But you can't just say "Well done tonight see you next week" and drive away. You have to help them get their kit out and into their house before you can go. Nothing worse than when they have stupidly put their kit in first so it's now behind everything else!

 

8) GET YOUR OWN KIT IN

For the last Band member, solo act or DJ maybe, there is nothing more lovely than finally arriving home. Unfortunately there is just that last bit of hard work to do and that is unload your kit into your house. Even worse in the winter when it is now -6dg or pissing down with rain. For those of you who roll your vehicle into a secure garage and unload in the morning, more power you!

 

9) GET THE KETTLE ON

So British and so obvious, but you know who you are. That cup of tea or coffee is the best one you have made all day, even though it is now technically the next day. You deserve this one and it tastes so much better. Besides the sound of the kettle, helps get rid of that random airy silent noise you now have in your ears? Take it up to bed, enjoy its warm feeling and catch up with what you have missed on Facebook on your phone.

 

10) DID WE WIN?

At last you now have a signal and you can check your phone for tonights lottery results. For all you know you could have been made a millionair whilst on stage. You think of all the kit you could buy and your own entertainment venue you would build with your winnings. Have you won? Of course not, but wait there is always that colour raffle thing, why is it the kettle reaches boil when you are scrolling through your phone? Nope nothing, is this raffle thing even real anyway? After all, you never hear about any winners. What a waste of £2 and now you have to re-boil your kettle too. Total time waste!

 

11) CATCH UP TV!

You still aren't tired even though you really should go to bed now. But you know who you are and it's now time to eat the toast you have just made, or crack open the biscuits and watch tonights X-Factor, Britains Got Talent or The Voice. Or maybe just the results bit? This really is part of your after gig unwind and it gives you the chance to see who even you were better than tonight. Thank god you can now fast forward and cut out 25 minutes worth of adverts and get it watched quicker. But when these shows aren't on, just what do you do? For the guys, maybe a bit of Sky Sports, or the football highlights you have missed. In fact you don't even have to turn the TV on, just watch them on your phone. We say Sky Sports for the lads, but we are sure the TV Talent show results are just as important to you lads, as they are for any female entertainer!

 

12) GO TO BED!

We don't mean sleep, you know exactly what we mean! You gig with your partner and she looked just so stunning on stage tonight. You know exactly what you wanted to do when you got home didn't you? Just a shame you were stuck at the gig. Then there is the newest member of your band or group, they are pretty hot aren't they and you just had to invite them in to help you put the kettle on tonight didn't you. Or maybe you have both been the (will they, wont they) talk of the group for ages. You have been flirting for months and finally invited them back to practice some extra vocal breathing tecniques at 2:00am. But you still can't let the rest of the group know, might cause friction! Or maybe you are actually still in the same little town you were gigging in, in the first place and miles away from home. You certainly went down well with one member of the audience. Your journey home will start tomorrow morning and that McDonalds you spotted will be your breakfast stop off!