How to sing through the nerves when your onstage?

[Guest Guest]

I get real nervous sometimes when I'm in front of people and my guitar playing doesn't affect me, It's just my vocals from where the nerves are making me lose my breath so it's hard to sing through them. Just wondering what some good tips would be to fight through those nerves and sound good onstage

[1001gear]

Oxycodone.

 

IOW The pressure is always there and you need to deal with the physiological response. The most observable to me being warbly tone and sharpnessand and or clunkiness, insincerity and other performance no nos. The most common remedy is ego and or soft pharmaceuticals - alcohol, pot etc. This helps musicians by amplifying the vibe and relevance of their stage time. Unfortunately there is no guarantee of quality.

 

The best way IMO is competence. Train until your technique is bulletproof. Deal with performance until the butterflies are irrelevant. Make music with your sensitivity.

[harrisonw]

Hey TeleSmasher, like 1001gear says, nerves are part of a performance. However, I totally disagree with him in using substances like Oxycodone. Leave performance drugs in the athletic arena. You don't need them to sing/play music!

 

And unless you're used to imbibing before a performance, don't do that either!

 

The BEST way is to practice hours and hours ... and hours. I had friends in undergrad who had major nerve problems so they would ask a few friends to listen in a private setting first. This helped them build a bridge from the practice room to the actual performance.

 

Whichever advice you choose to take, good luck!

[Chordptrn]

Oxycodone.

 

IOW The pressure is always there and you need to deal with the physiological response. The most observable to me being warbly tone and sharpnessand and or clunkiness, insincerity and other performance no nos. The most common remedy is ego and or soft pharmaceuticals - alcohol, pot etc. This helps musicians by amplifying the vibe and relevance of their stage time. Unfortunately there is no guarantee of quality.

 

The best way IMO is competence. Train until your technique is bulletproof. Deal with performance until the butterflies are irrelevant. Make music with your sensitivity.

 

Alcohol and "soft" pharmaceuticals lol

[1001gear]

Kidding of course. I'm drug free. No ATM - alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana. I've had pain killers for medical reasons and the float you get is just about nerve proof. Why H is so popular probably.. I think a lot of touring bands get involved because of the drudgery and monotony of the road and having to appear fresh every show. Anyway, just pointing out that it is done and an inexorable element of this culture. I do strongly recommend you do life on the natch regardless.

[Heidi Oxiner]

The best thing you can do to fight nerves is practice. I find I am always more nervous if I am not well rehearsed before a performance. When you know your stuff you can almost go on auto pilot so when the nerves if any kick in you can deal with it and relax. Sometimes your body has some different ideas and crazy stuff can start happening like your knee caps start jumping around and it can affect how your voice sounds. In these moments I do nothing but focus on my technique, trouble spots up ahead, and portraying the feeling of the song to the audience. When you focus on these things that you can control you forget about the fear of what you can't control. Allow yourself to get lost in the moment of the song. Let go of the things you worry about feel the music. Once you have connected with that, it is as if no one else is in the room, even if you are making direct eye contact.

 

First times are always the worst. Your first time in front of people. Your first time with 50 people. Your first time at a huge venue with 1000 people. ETC. Nerves never go away. There will always be something bigger and better for you to strive for and each step will bring on a new wave of butterflies. These feelings can boost your performance, make you super human for awhile if you learn to harness it. Know your body. Don't drink 4 Red Bulls before a show if you know it will make it worse. I personally won't eat within 4 hours of a show. Water is the best for you voice and your body. This also is a learning process and with experience you will know what you need to do to take control of the reins of fear and use it to your benefit.

[Guest Guest]

Gear I completely understand bro. In the past I have taken oxycontin and benzodiazepines to relax me in front of people to sing, but I kind of got a problem and had to stop them so now I'm doing it without them. But I understand completely I was an addict , but will always be an addict so If I ever made it where I had to be fresh for every show every night, and I got paid good then I would probably head for the pharmacueticals to calm the nerves, but for now I have to do it without them, but a lot of people do that to calm the nerves though, whether it be drinking or drugging, that's the RockStar lifestyle and I would live it to the fullest.

Harrison I understand what you mean by playing in front of a few family members or friends, I can play in front of some family members and some friends and then theres just those times when like a new guitar buddy I just meet wants to play and I'm so nervous I can barely sing you know. I do play in front of my family or with my wifes brother (who plays drums) we actually just jammed at my place last weekend and he brought his drums down, so it's great getting to get some practice with the drums cause I think a song sounds so much better with a good beat behind it, but im going off track. Like I said I can play in front of some family members and some friends, but it's when I get on stage in front of people with all eyes on me that's when the breathing starts heavying and it totally screws up my singing, and breathing while singing. It's just something Im going to have to deal with until I get use to playing on a stage.

[WRGKMC]

Dealing with jitters is two fold. Its both mental and a physical thing you have to learn how control both. Best thing you can do for the physical is to work out an exercise. Musical practice can be part of that but its never enough. You need to jog or do reps where you burn some major calories to keep you're entire being in shape, not just your musical skills. Being in good physical shape will allow you to physically control how quickly and intensely that that adrenalin kicks in and still be able to perform with its side effects going on. Instead of it crippling you, you can endure its effects and work through the performance at the same time its going on till the effects subside.

 

The adrenalin rush you get when you perform is in response to fear. Why fear? Because you're facing the unknown in a situation where you may not have full control. This is the same fear primitive man experienced when he heard a thunder clap or wild animal roar and was woken up and made alert to danger by this involuntary chemical change.

 

The thing is the mind does have the ability to control the adrenalin glands. In fact, as a performer he learns how to turn them on at will. Again, this comes back to working out and being in good shape. What makes a runner kick in at the end of a race to win? Its his ability to turn that adrenalin gland on and get the energy he needs to endure the physical pain and fatigue. Adrenalin can be turned on by thoughts of fear but it can also be turned on using several other mental switches.

 

Positive thought can push the same buttons. If you're in good physical shape you can experience the effects of adrenalin and learn where those buttons are. When you attempt to throttle its effects back, you blind your inner eye to where the source of adrenalin comes from and have no control over its effects. This hormone does dissipate quickly but it is very powerful and leaves long lasting memories of its effects.

 

Why do people faint? Its because the adrenalin rush was too great for their mental endurance. What are people told when they feel woozy like that? They are told to breathe deeply. Why? because it puts them back in tune with what's going on inside their body and pay less attention to what's going on around them.

 

The term Inner Strength is given to those who have a good deal of control over these kinds of buttons. They know how to turn them on just by thinking certain thoughts. They also know how to prevent them from being turned on and retain inner peace, and they know how to throttle them back quicker and recover quickly.

 

How do you develop this skill is the big question. I can tell you this, it doesn't come from the music. The music is for the fans consumption, not yours. I'll say that again. What you project as a performer is designed to turn your fans adrenalin glands on. You're not there to display the effects it has on you. If you are, you may as well put that mic down and have a seat in the audience because you haven't learned self control well enough to project that energy and are letting it control you instead of controlling the sound for others to experience.

 

Techniques for learning how to develop the skill? Man there are allot of them that can work to varying degrees. You can invent many on the spot. The key is to have a clear mind so you can counter the fears as they occur. That adrenalin rush doesn't happen instantly. You make it happen and you can prevent or at least throttle it if you are wise enough to think ahead.

 

Here's some examples. Are the people in that audience there to kill you or are they there to love what you do? That one question should dissipate a good 50% of your fear if you come to terms with it. Force and counter force of thoughts will null fear. Its the only protection we have and its all about balance. The last thing you want to do is make the situation worse by using artificial means of control like alcohol or drugs.

 

Try another. Are you there to make people as miserable as you are or are you there to make the audience as happy as you are? You'd obviously want the second, which means you have to have an abundance of happiness to give away. How do you get that? By first being thankful have an audience in the first place, then giving them a display of your emotions through your music. Doesn't just have to be happiness. A show takes an audience on an emotional journey. Along that journey they can experience Joy, Love, Sorrow, Anger, Remorse. The key to a show is taking the audience through these emotions then leaving them with a song or two that makes them feel great.

 

Using the same example, this is what you shouldn't think. Is the audience there to make you miserable or are they there to make you happy. This is a trap and it comes from your own selfish thought patterns. If you have a lustful negative thought process going on you will invent your own failures. If you think the audience is there to make you miserable, they will. If you think they are there to make you happy, you aren't a musician, you are a parasite living off the emotions of others. You've lost the skill to be a giver and should sit your ass back down in that audience, because you don't have what it takes to be part of the team of band members.

 

Again, there are many ways of controlling this adrenalin. Some turn to religion of one sort or another. All have varying degrees of success but none will have lasting effects. Protection is not and should not be permanent. Its something that has to be there as a living thing every time you walk up on stage. Without it, its no longer a challenge and you have no fun in life.