If you’ve been watching American Idol like I have (it’s the farewell season – cut me some slack!), you might have seen Jennifer Lopez critique top five finalist Sonika Vaid for being a bit restrained. I was thinking about that because as a musician (yes, technically I am one), I’ve been given similar criticism. Mine is usually, “You need to smile more.”
Although it can sometimes get under my skin, I accept criticism because I like to learn and improve, but I want to clarify something about the “let it go” advice that both Sonika (who ironically sang Let It Go that night) and I get. While it is true that I should smile and that maybe Sonika should loosen up, it is not necessarily true that we should employ the same tactics to get us to achieve that goal. The reason is because the root causes are different. Maybe for her it’s social inhibition, shyness, or stage fright. But for me, it’s competency. It’s because I haven’t mastered the song to the degree I feel I need to. My brow is furrowed because I’m concentrating on not playing the wrong notes. Maybe for Sonika and others, they have the mastery, yet lack the confidence. If I were to “let go” and “loosen up,” what would happen is I would start playing the wrong notes.
Some might say it’s better to play the bad notes with a smile and I can see where you’re coming from. However, I can tell you that when I spent a bunch of money back in 2002 to see Blink 182 in concert and found out that despite the always-delightful harmonies on their recordings, none of them could sing on tune, I was pissed! I would rather they furrow their brow a little and sing on tune. A little less stage performance and a little more on-tune. Anyway….
The point of this post is this: if you’re trying to achieve something, master a craft, sport, or simply improve on something; take the criticism people give you, welcome the unsolicited advice, and accept that it may come from a person that has no clue about the intricacies of your mind and what’s going on up there when you’re performing. The person delivering the critique may be 100% correct about what you need to improve on, but they may be 100% wrong about what it takes to get there. You may be asking yourself, “how do I know if they’re wrong about their prescribed tactics?” Great question. It’s at this point that you have to know yourself and understand what’s causing that thing you need to improve on. If you’re not sure, then follow their advice and see where it takes you. That will help you learn.
What did I do when I was told I needed to smile more on stage? I didn’t practice smiling. I practiced the songs on the piano until I memorized them and was no longer depending upon reading a chord chart. Once I knew the music by heart, I was free! Free to look around, actually listen to what the band sounded like, and yes, (maybe) smile a little.
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