Persona and performance are often the same thing.
‪alice cooper welcome to my nightmare‬‏ - YouTube
‪alice cooper welcome to my nightmare‬‏ - YouTube
Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
Join free Log in
Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.
Stage Persona
- Thread starter xxfaux_punkxx
- Start date
- Jun 3, 2009
- 3,330
- 398
- Disclosures
- Bassgearu, Music Industry Consulting and Sales. Tech 21, NBE Corp, Sonosphere.
Alice Cooper (which of course was the name of the band and became the front man) is a complete persona. Have you ever met him in person? With the exception fo his hair he could pass for a number of conservative businessmen I know.
Here's a new one for all of you. I dated Calista Flockhart decades ago. That character Ally McBeal? 180 degrees different then Calista live and not acting. She by herself is a wallflower, not very vocal, almost shy, reserved. (And, I admit, booooorrrring, which is why I broke it off - Harrison Ford? Cabinet maker with a similar personality, they are near perfect for each other.)
Persona is not essential but it clearly does assist in getting you noticed or making a name for yourself. The only problem is that whenever you are in public you have to make sure that you keep the persona up. I'm not talking about when you are out to dinner with a date or family, but if you go to a club or another public function where there are other musicians or possibly fans you have to be whomever you become, to a degree.
Gene Simmons, as we have all seen on TV, is publicly an arse. In his heart he really does have a soft spot and is probably a very conservative dad. But you never see him out different then the image we have in our heads of him, only slightly subdued at best. Which of course is why his relationship is falling as he never learned how to turn the persona off when he is at home, something very successful performers can do.
I say, go for it. I have a persona, actually three. I am also a syndicated sports writer, and I'm a different dude when I am in a press box then when I'm on stage or in the studio or when I'm at home with my main squeeze Suzanne.
Here's a new one for all of you. I dated Calista Flockhart decades ago. That character Ally McBeal? 180 degrees different then Calista live and not acting. She by herself is a wallflower, not very vocal, almost shy, reserved. (And, I admit, booooorrrring, which is why I broke it off - Harrison Ford? Cabinet maker with a similar personality, they are near perfect for each other.)
Persona is not essential but it clearly does assist in getting you noticed or making a name for yourself. The only problem is that whenever you are in public you have to make sure that you keep the persona up. I'm not talking about when you are out to dinner with a date or family, but if you go to a club or another public function where there are other musicians or possibly fans you have to be whomever you become, to a degree.
Gene Simmons, as we have all seen on TV, is publicly an arse. In his heart he really does have a soft spot and is probably a very conservative dad. But you never see him out different then the image we have in our heads of him, only slightly subdued at best. Which of course is why his relationship is falling as he never learned how to turn the persona off when he is at home, something very successful performers can do.
I say, go for it. I have a persona, actually three. I am also a syndicated sports writer, and I'm a different dude when I am in a press box then when I'm on stage or in the studio or when I'm at home with my main squeeze Suzanne.
I've met him, and this is very true.
Why didn't you feed her something?
- Jun 3, 2009
- 3,330
- 398
- Disclosures
- Bassgearu, Music Industry Consulting and Sales. Tech 21, NBE Corp, Sonosphere.
I've met him, and this is very true.
Why didn't you feed her something?
When I dated her she was still young. And she actually ate, and had the "Freshman 15". She really hit her best look in the first season of Ally Mc and now frightens the crap out of me. I ran into her in LA last year and couldn't stop staring at how her spine almost sticks thru her skin. Shame.
the guys with no stage persona say its not important, and the guys that have one say it is important. if you want one, craft one, invent one, and be one.
You want to be entertaining, but you don't want to be gimmicky. Your music should speak through you whether you move to every beat, or just stand there like a tree.
Personally, I can't hold still when I'm playing with my band. I move around and smile at the crowd, and really get my body pulsating with the drums. It helps me fall into the groove, musically, and I think it makes our band more entertaining to watch. Plus our singer dances around like a goof, and our drummer is always bobbing and moving. Our guitarist kind of just stands there, but that's his thing...he's a little awkward.
you definitely don't want to come off as "trying too hard" though. that's the line you shouldn't cross.
Personally, I can't hold still when I'm playing with my band. I move around and smile at the crowd, and really get my body pulsating with the drums. It helps me fall into the groove, musically, and I think it makes our band more entertaining to watch. Plus our singer dances around like a goof, and our drummer is always bobbing and moving. Our guitarist kind of just stands there, but that's his thing...he's a little awkward.
you definitely don't want to come off as "trying too hard" though. that's the line you shouldn't cross.
and do on stage, should be a reflection of your music. Every musician, whether intentional or not, has a stage persona. You ignore the audience and focus on your music, while wearing what ever you threw on that morning, that's your stage persona. You can TRY dressing like a lumberjack and playing Bartok, but I doubt the audience would buy that. Guys like Springsteen are blue collar, middle class, and their clothes and how they act on stage reflects that, no matter what their bank account says. I filled in for a band whose lead singer had a persona of a hard rockin' hard drinkin' man. He carried a bottle of Jack on stage with him and drank from it all night; the bottle was filled with ice tea. It was an act. A persona does not mean a flashy way of dressing, like Gaga or Elton John. Jim Croce had a stage persona. SRV, too. Miles Davis. Stanley Clark. Every musician that gets up in front of an audience needs to vid him or herself to see what they look like to the audience. You can even play up your weak points to your advantage, maybe wear different clothes, move more or less, but recognize what you do on stage and work it up. Use what you look like and do to communicate your music to the audience.
*sigh*
My stage persona was "guy in funny hat who trips over his cable and knocks mic stands over"
My stage persona was "guy in funny hat who trips over his cable and knocks mic stands over"
Well put. You don't have to be over-the-top to have a persona, though that may be your approach. But you do have to give the audience something as a handle on what they're seeing.
Developing a stage persona is an essential element but not all of us are destined to be the front or focal point for the bands we are in. As bass players most often we are going to be sidemen so it's important to be able to blend while still being an individual. It pays to study what bass players and other musicians have done in the past and also understand your personality and role in any situation.
Bass Players vary greatly in their stage persona: John Entwistle, Sting with Police and after, Flea, Geddy, Timmy C, Les Claypool, Sid to Stanley Clarke, Jaco and the list goes on Dusty Hill, Gene Simmons, Paul McCartney, John Paul Jones, Verdine White and on and on. Each has a unique stage persona that is sometimes an extension of their private self or a complete creation to deal with the stage.
Bass Players vary greatly in their stage persona: John Entwistle, Sting with Police and after, Flea, Geddy, Timmy C, Les Claypool, Sid to Stanley Clarke, Jaco and the list goes on Dusty Hill, Gene Simmons, Paul McCartney, John Paul Jones, Verdine White and on and on. Each has a unique stage persona that is sometimes an extension of their private self or a complete creation to deal with the stage.
Imo, it's irrelevant. How many albums have you bought because they had a good stage image? Music is not a visual thing. Entertainment is, but music isn't.
How many bands are making a living selling albums anymore?
People go to shows for the performance, not to just listen to the music.
I'm not saying that every band has to do something big and over the top. Clutch puts on an amazing live show, and they are just a bunch of dudes on stage.
‪CLUTCH live 9:30 Club 5/11/07 Mr. Flannery / Burning Beard‬‏ - YouTube
What is music if it isn't entertainment? And if live music doesn't promise more than a record why would anyone go to see it?
lots of bands making a living selling albums, just turn on the radio 
it is less now because people can buy one song instead of having to buy the whole album, and the free stuff on the computer. john entwistle had great persona, he pioneered it. on the other end of the spectrum is gene from kiss. you can be anyone in between.
it is less now because people can buy one song instead of having to buy the whole album, and the free stuff on the computer. john entwistle had great persona, he pioneered it. on the other end of the spectrum is gene from kiss. you can be anyone in between.
It's a part of entertainment, but it's strictly an audible one. People go to shows to see how it's done, yes, but who would go to see a band who dressed outrageously but couldn't play well? The closest example I can think of would be maybe the New York Dolls, but I don't think it applies there because they had a unique vision at the time and were pioneers of a genre and their music did kick ass, as crude as it was.
- Mar 13, 2008
- 18,894
- 142,206
- Disclosures
- Endorsing Artist Mike Lull T Bass pickups, The Bass Shop, Seattle WA.
The music should rightfully comes first, if it isn't good anything else won't matter for long.
It's foremost to be genuine, something that's forced just isn't going to feel right or come across to your audience. Rock and Roll has long included fashion and image as an integral part - The Rolling Stones, David Bowie, The Ramones, Duran Duran.....whatever they put forth an image as part of their sucess - being recognizable in the music business only makes you more sucessful, even at the local level.
In my band persona and image are important, I dress up for a show (but I dress that way often for other occasions too) and our audience appreciates it - As a bassist I don't take a back seat to anyone in the band ( we're all important, the sum being greater than the individuals) and when the song calls on me I take center stage I'm proud to go swing the bat!
Again tho, the music came first, we wouldn't be a band at all if the music was bad.
It's foremost to be genuine, something that's forced just isn't going to feel right or come across to your audience. Rock and Roll has long included fashion and image as an integral part - The Rolling Stones, David Bowie, The Ramones, Duran Duran.....whatever they put forth an image as part of their sucess - being recognizable in the music business only makes you more sucessful, even at the local level.
In my band persona and image are important, I dress up for a show (but I dress that way often for other occasions too) and our audience appreciates it - As a bassist I don't take a back seat to anyone in the band ( we're all important, the sum being greater than the individuals) and when the song calls on me I take center stage I'm proud to go swing the bat!
Again tho, the music came first, we wouldn't be a band at all if the music was bad.
Well, music can be a method of communication, too - whether we're talking church music, socialist punk, or pop songs that let 12-year-olds know that their first broken heart is perfectly normal. But in all those cases, the communication is more effective when people are more interested in you, so your persona is still important.
