Rockin' an Open Mic - Part 2

By Barbara Cloyd

I am such a huge fan of open mics.  I have had the great pleasure of hosting one at the Bluebird Cafe in Nashville TN for over 20 years. Garth Brooks, Kenny Chesney and Dierks Bentley  all played it when they were new in town, along with many writers who have gone on to have big hits on the charts. I love it that at our club where we regularly feature some of the best writers in the world - like Michael McDonald, Richard Marx, Craig Wiseman, Jeffrey Steele and Don Schlitz - still, anyone who wants can get up on a Monday night to play one or two of their original songs.

There are basically two reasons to play an open mic. One is for the pure joy of expressing yourself and sharing your music with other people. Over the years I have heard some truly amazing performers whose music will never make it into music stores or onto the radio. I have heard some not-so-great people who still moved me because they had just the message I needed at the time or because they poured so much feeling into their performance.

The other reason to play an open mic is to advance your career in music.  If you want to get known you have to be heard.  It is rare to find people from the industry with the power to cut your songs or sign you to a deal at an open mic – they are too busy and generally only to listen to people who come highly recommended.  But to get those recommendations you need to meet people who know people who know people, and open mics are a great place to start.

Whatever your reasons, you will have more fun and accomplish your goals better if you do well. So here are a few tips from someone who has seen it all.

5.      Look your best.

Wear clothes that are flattering and tend to your grooming – it is show biz and the visual is all part of the overall experience for your audience. But do not overdress for the room you are in. The stage clothes you might wear for a concert in front of thousands may look silly in a coffeehouse or local bar.

6.      Be confident but humble.

If you are nervous and afraid, act as if you are comfortable and confident. It will put your audience at ease, and it might even help you feel that way. Do not apologize for anything you are going to do - if you need to apologize for it, do not do it.  Do not say anything negative about your song or your performance.  If you do not tell the audience that your voice is not in good shape or that you are not a very good guitar player, they might not know any better and they might just go ahead and enjoy what you do!

But do not go overboard and broadcast how great you think you are.  I find that when people drop names or brag about their accomplishments it tends to alienate people.  While you are performing if you really want to impress the audience, do not think about impressing them.  Instead, focus on the song. Tell your listeners the story that is in the lyrics and let yourself truly feel the emotion of the song.  Being vulnerable and real is what wins over the crowd.

7. Support the venue

The venue owners who give us a place to share our music may do it out of great love, but they still have bills to pay.  The support they need is money in the cash register.  Don’t go out to eat and then go to the club to play – buy dinner there.  Skip your morning Starbuck so you can buy a drink or two that night.  If you are a starving artist with no cash to contribute, invite your friends and fans to come to the show.  Advertise the venue on your website or Myspace page.  Email other musicians you know who might enjoy playing the open mic.  If the night is profitable, it will continue and you will keep having a place to play.

If you follow these suggestions it can help you have a positive experience playing the open mics.  If you are in Nashville and you have original material, come see me at the Bluebird on a Monday. You can read the sign-up procedure on the “Bluebird” page of www.barbaracloyd.com

ABOUT BARBARA CLOYD 

After a few years playing cover songs in clubs in her hometown of St. Louis, Barbara moved to Nashville to pursue a career writing songs for the commercial Country market.  Her biggest success as a writer came with the Lorrie Morgan hit, “I Guess You Had To Be There.”

Barbara has been hosting the open mic and booking shows at The Bluebird Café, Nashville’s premier songwriter venue, since 1986.

She has also become one of Nashvilles most respected teachers of songwriting, Her website, www.barbaracloyd.com, contains a wealth of information about the business of songwriting. She helps writers develop the craft and commercial potential of their songs through individual critiques and consultations, classes and workshops.  Her Play for Publisher workshop series has helped open doors for many talented songwriters. (Applications are open now through Sept 10^th for the one coming up in October see www.barbaracloyd.com for details.)

Barbara’s latest creation designed to help developing songwriters is www.cowriterconnection.com, an inexpensive and user friendly website for finding other songwriters to collaborate with.