The Importance of Confidence - 2/22/10
By: Eric Hill
OK, so that seems to be a pretty obvious thing right? Most musicians have confidence, but when you’re just starting out, confidence can be a fleeting thing. I’ve been playing and recording music for more than 25 years, but every once in a while, I’ll have that moment of uncertainty before a gig. Nervousness and anxiety around public performance is natural and should be thought of as such. Questions about whether you’re good enough when you’re just getting started is normal. More often than not the answer could be that you aren’t and that’s ok at first. You won’t be the best right from the start, you have to put your time in.
But one thing that you do have right from the start is a unique ability to express yourself. This is what you should work toward cultivating. As you begin your journey into a career in music, take into account that there’s much more to building confidence than thousands and thousands of hours of practice and how hot you look in the mirror. Of course, that’s a great thing to have under your belt and I’m jealous about the whole ‘looking hot’ thing, but what’s just as important is finding your voice. By ‘finding your voice’ I mean, to figure out who you are as an artist and a person. Set short term goals that you can work towards achieving. Small successes at the beginning work wonders for one’s confidence. If you’re a songwriter, when you write your song, even if it’s the first thing you ever put serious effort into, try to make it the exact version that you hear in your head. Don’t get caught up in what’s the latest hit or trend in music these days. That stuff changes from year to year. Stay true to yourself. The time to ‘make it’ is not now, you need to find your voice, create a style that reflects who you are as an artist. When that starts to happen, your confidence will start to build.
When you have confidence in the songs that you create, performing these songs will be much easier, because YOU think they’re great. If you have any doubts about the songs you write, that will show when you perform. But a confident artist can captivate an audience. As I’ve said, it’s ok to be nervous, but when you know that the songs you are performing are exactly how you want them to be, your confidence will shine through. This also helps when it’s time to go through the gauntlet of rejection that we all have to go through to get to where we want to be.
Lastly, there is a difference between being confident and being arrogant. I know a lot of artists that think the only way you’re going to make it in this industry, is to be arrogant. I don’t believe this at all. Professionalism is not dead in the industry, and if you’re good at what you do and are persistent, the sky is the limit for you. If you ever feel a little full of yourself just remember, that as amazing as you are, there is somebody out there that is better than you are. The important lesson here is that they may be better than you and some may not be, but no one can do music exactly like you can. Always remember to work on and maintain your individuality in your writing. Put some effort into your craft and make sure to make yourself happy first with the music that you create, and you can do anything you want, and do it confidently.
Eric Hill BIOGRAPHY
Eric Hill is a musician that has been part of the musical community in Chicago for over 25 years. He plays drums, guitar, bass guitar and keyboards. He’s been in several bands here in Chicago, primarily as a drummer.
He is well versed in many styles of music including Rock, Punk, Metal, Funk and Jazz. He records under the name LIFEAFTERSIX, which has released 9 CDs since 2001. His music has been played on the radio locally and streamed on the internet. Eric Majored in Theater/Music at Columbia College and has Received an Excellence in Journalism from The University of Illinois.
Most recently, Eric has focused more on helping younger artists realize their potential in music. “There is nothing like watching a young musician start to figure out what they can do. After a class or two, you can sense their excitement and it’s very cool to be around and ultimately very rewarding for me as well.”
Eric works from his modest home studio and also records bands live for CDs and DVDs. “This is a very exciting time. With all that is possible with the new technology, you’re only limited by your imagination. How cool is that?”