Everything You Need To Know About Your First Gig

It can be one of the more nerve-wracking sides of the whole game, but performing is essential for anyone who wants to get ahead. As a musician, there is little use in keeping your music all to yourself. So performing at a gig will inevitably come along at some point. Of course, everyone gets nervous about their very first gig. That much is completely natural. However, that doesn’t mean that you have to worry needlessly about it. There are some basic things you need to do to prepare for your first gig. Once you have those down, it is likely that you will feel much better about the whole things. With that in mind, take a look at this short post on everything you need to know about doing your first gig. Bear these in mind when you are getting ready.

Prepare

It is essential that you prepare for the performance as fully as possible. There are many different sides to this, and you should try to encapsulate them all. The first and most obvious thing to say is that you should rehearse your music as well as you can. The last thing you want is to make any huge mistakes when you are up on stage. More to the point, rehearsing allows you to feel as confident as possible when you get up on stage. That is no bad thing. Preparation also implies ensuring that your equipment is in order and that you have a way of safely transferring it to the venue.

Speak

One of the biggest mistakes that performers routinely make is that they only play their music. If you want to provide a better all-round experience for your audience, you need to speak to them too. This doesn’t have to be excessive - it shouldn’t be - but you should say a word or two every now and then between songs. This helps to keep a rhythm going in the show, as well as giving you a chance for a breather.

Offer Merchandise

It is likely that you want your audience to go away from the performance wanting to look you up. To achieve this, there are numerous things you can do. Of course, the most important is that you perform well in the first place. Wowing the audience is a must. However, you could also consider using merchandise to give them a way to remember you. It doesn’t matter what kind of product the merchandise is, so long as it is memorable. If you use a service like iMerch, you can probably get a good amount of goods for your money.

When You Make A Mistake

Let’s face it - mistakes happen. They happen to the best performers in the world, so they are probably going to happen to you. The best piece of advice when it comes to mistakes is to try not to make them too obvious. If you can learn to glide through your mistakes, then your audience might not even notice half the time. This takes some practice, but it can really save your skin.