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!