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June 24, 2009
What People Really Want from a Musician - Honesty
If you are (or want to be) a musician, how can you give the public what they want? What do they want? I've got some ideas!
Honesty
This is an important one for singer / songwriters. Before you can really move ahead with your music, you need to answer this question for yourself: “Who am I?”
A pitfall that younger musicians often fall prey to is trying to be “someone else.” Back in the eighties, many young female singers wanted to be “the next Madonna.” In the music business you often see a new artist touted as “the next so and so.” Anyone out there old enough to remember when Bruce Springsteen was publicized as “the next Dylan?” Only when he progressed beyond that label did he become “The Boss.” How did he do it? He was honest about who he was. He didn't consciously try to be the next Dylan.
Nowadays, there seems to be a specific style of singing that goes over big on “American Idol,” so countless young singers strive mightily to emulate that style. In so doing, they end up sounding very much like each other, with wildly varying degrees of ability.
Finding out “who you are” as a musician and staying true to that person, is not an easy task. Sometimes you can't completely define yourself, and who you are evolves over time. Sometimes you make a conscious effort to change, as you find yourself unhappy with certain aspects of the person you have become.
The main point here is not to try and be like someone just because they are popular the moment. Most of the mature musicians I know have pretty much figured out who they are and what they are about, and they are “comfortable in their own skin.”
Posted by leonolguin at June 24, 2009 04:16 PM
Comments
Did you and Seth Godin collaborate today? His blog today was called "Find Your Own Voice."
http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2009/06/find-your-voice.html
Posted by: Charley at June 24, 2009 07:48 PM