If you want to give your best singing performance, you need to know how to behave, so here are a few live performance tips to help you out:
The Practice Run
Make sure you've rehearsed with the band. Before you go on stage, have a minimum of one dress rehearsal. When you do your final dress rehearsal, sing from memory.
Choosing your outfit
The outfit you choose to wear for the live performance can make or break the show. Get used to your outfit before you step on stage. It is important to ensure that you are able to move comfortably in your outfit.
Walking across the stage
Practice walking to the place you'll stand on the stage. Knowing how to walk across a stage and land in place isn't as easy as it sounds. When you walk across the stage, you want to stop in place, but at the same time you need to have good posture when you do so. Find your alignment, walk across the room and maintain that posture.
Turn the speaker away from you
Singing with a band can be really cool, but the first time can be a bit confusing. You're going to have some trouble hearing yourself if the speakers are turned away. Ask if it's possible to have a speaker turned toward you. Remember that bands often play pretty loud, and turning the speaker towards yourself can be distracting if you have a huge wall of sound coming at you. If there is an instrument that plays the melody line, make sure you learn to pick it out.
Smile
Make sure you smile as you go on stage. A smile will make you appear to be confident, which will boost your performance. Even if you are nervous, you need to make the smile look authentic.
Acknowledgment of the audience
When you are singing, you might not know when it's time to pay attention to the audience. Singers can't always sing intimate songs in an intimate locale, but you can imagine yourself in a cozy locale if this helps you with your performance. To get a feel for whether to include the audience as part of your song, watch and learn from the seasoned pros.
Be prepared for distractions
Unlike in rehearsal, a live performance can have plenty of distractions. People can do many things in an audience, such as coughing or even leaving early. Most people are ignorant as to how this can distract a performer, and because you are the performer you are expected to be professional about it. That being said, it would be wise to stage a few distractions as you practice at home. The best way to ignore distractions is to have friends distract you and see how lo you can ignore it.
Watch those hands
If you're not sure what to do with your hands during your live singing performance, putting your hands down at your sides is safest. It may not be the most interesting place for them but you're probably better off erring on the side of calm and still. You can gesture if you want, just make sure your gesture is complete. If you need another option, then you can clasp your hands to the front of you.
I hope these performance tips were helpful to you. To perfect your singing skills for the big occasion, I recommend Brett Mannings Singing Success. And if you want to know the best way to make your mark on the music industry, to ensure you get plenty of gigs lined up, check out Social Bandmaker.
