The Mark of Great Live Music Performance
If I were to be known in music for just one aspect of what I offer, I’d want to be known as a remarkable live performer. The main reason I was first drawn to music creation was because of the power in live expression of sounds and words. I was forever impacted by genuinely worshipping with church choirs as a kid, watching the spoken word open mics during high school, and scouring early YouTube for battle rap videos. As I transitioned into becoming a performer myself, I was most inspired by vintage footage of Jackie Wilson, Marvin Gaye, Tina Turner, Michael Jackson, Prince, Freddie Mercury, Heavy D, Big Daddy Kane, MC Hammer and many others of their ilk.
But in today’s music space, there is much to be desired from live performances.
Success in music today is not at all determined by a strong live show or gripping stage presence. Social media and technology have completely shifted the way listeners encounter artists. The music business is more like a song business. That is, focus is on the fleeting yet incredibly lucrative virality of singles and snippets in order to leverage marketing opportunities. Focus is not on artists and projects in order to establish memorable, long-lasting connections to listeners. So, if I'm honest, while I lament this reality I'm not surprised that performance isn't prioritized throughout the field.
How we perceive or experience a live performance may be influenced by social media followings, cultural status and song popularity. But, in my humble opinion, those factors don’t have anything to do with great live music performance. To me, for a music performance to be great, the audience must be moved. Moved to watch, moved to bop, moved to dance, moved to feel something. And for an audience to feel something, the performer must first feel something. Confidence, rootedness, purpose, flow, vibe. Something internal happens and the artist expresses and energy shifts and the room shakes. And then an artist can take a professional approach where, with training and discipline, they can tap into this feeling and repeat this process for each show.
A few years ago I was at a relief benefit concert sponsored by Roc Nation at Barclays Center in Brooklyn. NY. The show felt like the entire mainstream music industry descended upon New York City for this one-of-kind, one-night-only, coordinated-for-a-good-cause showcase. The bill included seasoned icons, well-established stars, and hot newcomers. Seriously, I’ve never seen anything like it. Jay Z + Beyoncé + Stevie Wonder + Fat Joe + J. Lo + what felt like 50 more notable artists. Sure, a lot of these performances were amazing, I was introduced to a slew of exciting artists, and the night, itself, was legendary. But I was particularly struck by what I’d call the most memorable performance of the evening.
“Ladies and gentlemen. Coming to the stage: Jacob Banks.”
It was almost like a collective “Who??” rose from the tens of thousands on hand in the arena. The lackluster response from the crowd did not deter Brother Jacob at all. With pregnant stillness, he strutted to his spot on the stage with enough confidence to pique the interest of the unfamiliar. He grounded himself. He cued the music. And then his voice, cryptically stirring, utterly captivated the audience. Usually in a room like this, for a not-yet-well-known artist, there’s a lingering, distracted buzz rife with boredom and disinterest. Not the case with Jacob Banks. During his performance there was enchantment-induced silence. He didn’t have pyrotechnics. Or back up dancers. Or a special light show. And he didn’t have a hit song. He had his voice. His music. And his energy. And that was all he needed to bring 15,000 people to a hushed halt, hanging on to each note. This is what it feels like to be moved.
Of course when you add the staging and the dancers and the frills on top of a great live music performer you get someone like Beyoncé or Kendrick Lamar - generational performers who put on incredible shows. But you don’t necessarily need to have a great live music performer to have a great show. I'd argue that we see great shows by not-great live music performers all the time and confuse the two. We see it at festivals, at industry award shows, and televised special events. It’s when you can scale it down to the bare bones. When you can move an audience with just your energy and presence. To make them feel something even when they’re unfamiliar with your music. That is the mark of great live music performance.
This is my internal rubric as a music artist. I hope you can make it to one of my shows to see if I’m living up to my own standards…
