Hitting the stage .....Any Last Words?

[velascorp]

Hi All.
Talking to my nephew , who is in college now , the conversation of "nerves" right before one goes on stage to play came up.
He is my brother's son and has been playing next to his father since he could hit a drum. He point blankly said "never"....... as it has always been a part of his life .
He then asked me . My answer was I sometimes still feel the anxiety , but hope to welcome it. I try to flip it and make it work for me.
I then told him, "On bigger gigs right before my foot his the stage, I repeat the Kevin McAllister line form the movie Home Alone , right before the bad guys come.

"This is it... don't get scared now." .... then I try to "wreck the house". (He liked this)

Wondering,.... does anyone else have a quick , pep talk , or mantra or saying before going on to the stage or venue? I or some of us could use it. THX MV

 

[LBS-bass]

"Where'd I put that Xanax?"

OK, that's a joke. I don't do Xanax or anything else like that. What I do is remind myself that the sun won't rise or set based on what I play or anything else that happens at that show over those next few hours and that I'm there to have fun. Mistakes will be made, they always are, but when it's all over people will only remember whether they had a good time or not. So my job is to enjoy myself and carry that out to the audience, no matter what happens.

 

[McG]

Wondering,.... does anyone else have a quick , pep talk , or mantra or saying before going on to the stage or venue?

Since I've never experienced anxiety or any form of stage fright I've never needed to worry about it.

However, if I DID need a pre gig mantra it would be: "I'm just the bass player. Nobody will notice me."

Seriously, the advice I give nervous types is to just have fun. Mistakes vanish like a fart in the wind so don't dwell on them.

 

[bound'n'blocked]

I don't really get nervous, but I do get anxious, like "c'mon man, let's get this thing started!". I used to get nervous to the point of puking sometimes. But now, I look at it like, I'm the one up here doing it, and if anyone who would say anything could do a better job, they wouldn't be out there watching. That usually works for me.

I do get a little nervous if another bass player I know is out there, but we are usually pretty supportive of each other.

BnB

 

[MrLenny1]

Have a beer.
Have fun.

 

[LBS-bass]

I don't really get nervous, but I do get anxious, like "c'mon man, let's get this thing started!". I used to get nervous to the point of puking sometimes. But now, I look at it like, I'm the one up here doing it, and if anyone who would say anything could do a better job, they wouldn't be out there watching. That usually works for me.

I do get a little nervous if another bass player I know is out there, but we are usually pretty supportive of each other.

BnB

The only times I experience any anxiety anymore are when I'm playing with good people I haven't played with much and I think they're going to realize halfway through our set that I'm really just a two-bit hack. Or something like that. But I do always have a little extra adrenaline thing going on the day of a show. It serves me well once I get up there but can make me a little crazy until the time comes.

 

[alembicguy]

Did you pee?

 

[delta7fred]

Did you pee?

The older you get the more important this is!

Edit - I really should read what I typed before posting it.

 

[2saddleslab]

No specific words but I sure am addicted to the feeling that runs thru my body when stepping on stage.

 

[bound'n'blocked]

No specific words but I sure am addicted to the feeling that runs thru my body when stepping on stage.

When I worked production for shows years ago, I loved that moment when the lights go down and the crowd goes crazy just before the start of the show. It was an amazing feeling knowing you helped make that reaction happen. Same with playing...

BnB

 

[fhm555]

An old man told me long ago that a stage is just a piece of wood. No need to be afraid of an old piece of wood. I’m too busy watching my bandmates for cues to be worried about those folks out there in the dark.

 

[JGbassman]

I don’t get stage fright or anxiety, but on the big shows with pros I would always tell myself, “kill it tonight and smile, you are only as good as your last show.”

 

[burgerdj]

I always get a mild case of the butterflies. I try to own it, use it to focus and remind myself that very few people get to do anything as awesome as play music for an audience. Butterflies flutter away shortly after downbeat. I’ve learned to hydrate well the night before a gig as it seems to keep my hands from nervous cramping.

 

[morgansterne]

Jake Gyllenhaal said to his sister Maggie, who was about to perform in a musical for the first time, "why do we do this? Part of why we do this is FOR the terror."

My high school friend who is a stage actor in Phoenix commented, "if you don't feel the terror it's often a sign that you didn't do your homework."

 

[buldog5151bass]

I just tell myself there is no way I could be better prepared, and I do what I prepared.

 

[ahc]

 

[mcarp555]

When I played live, I used to channel any nerves into excitement. Once you get to a point where you've made every flub possible on a stage, it's difficult to get worried anymore.

 

[Biggbass]

Just say Samuel L Jackson's line from Jurrasic Park,
"Hold on to your butts!"
down a shot of Tequila
and get to rockin!

 

[neo 7]

I feel it. I embrace it. I turn it into energy.

I remind myself that when it comes to the arts, it always the misfits that shine the brightest.

 

[JW56789]

IF you're going to hit the stage, spin around first and land on your back, a bass in the rib cage HURTS.

(I know, but I just couldn't let it pass by . . . . . .)

I've never been nervous on stage as far as playing, but fights, knives, and guns did get my attention at times. But then, there's no business like show business. Coulda been a plumber, but no . . . . . .