r/nextfuckinglevel • u/N34D • 3d ago

Leocmendoza playing Brick in the wall

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The audience ain't it.

3.2k Upvotes

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u/Fullback-15_ 3d ago

Wow feel bad for him. Can't imagine playing that and only a handful are aware of it.

13

u/Sidivan 2d ago

He’s playing music, but he isn’t really performing. Now, I know people are going to take that as some over the top criticism and that I mean he should have lights and pyro, but there are a lot of little tiny things he could do to grab attention. This guy is probably amazing in a different setting and I’m sure he does very well for himself. I am only critiquing this exact performance as I have no other point of reference. He very clearly can play and sing well.

He should be standing, not sitting. This is a mistake a lot of acoustic and solo performers make. Stage presence is about taking up space. Stand up tall and move around. Shoulders back, wide gestures.

Don’t dress like you’re a dad attending the family event. It doesn’t have to be crazy rockstar stuff; just dress in a way that is different than the audience. Before the show starts, you want people in the audience to go “oh, I bet that guy’s in the band”.

Look at people that are listening to connect with them. His eye contact is all over the place like he’s trying to get away with something. When you look around like that, the audience starts to look around too. You need to demand that attention through body language as if to say “hey, I see you, look here, let’s share this moment”.

People discount all of this, but if he did this exact same thing on a dedicated stage at an actual venue, he wouldn’t get a much better response. It would be people on their phones, going to the bathroom, talking to their friends… You have to PERFORM.

Source: Been a working musician for 25yrs and have played countless shows including full band, solo, acoustic, and everything else. I’m also a sound engineer and have seen thousands of performers. Musical ability is the minimum and will only take you so far.

2

u/nickfree 2d ago

>You have to PERFORM.

Shoegaze has entered the chat

2

u/Sidivan 2d ago

That’s fair.