How Having an Unprofessional Attitude Can Destroy You Music Career.

One of my closest friends was commenting the other day on a band he had seen live, who had a melt down on stage because of one thing or another, it seemed like someone made a mistake during the performance and the singer got quite upset about it, and the tension was noticeable and it made the crowd noticeably uncomfortable. He also remarked that he was watching a performance of Zeppelin in which Jimmy Page botched a solo, and the rest of the band, kept going as if nothing went wrong, maintaining momentum. This brings me to the subject of today’s article: band etiquette.

I remember a performance in my last band. Everything was going great and the crowd was eating from the palm of our collective hand but  towards the end of the performance, the guitar player lost his cool. He sat down because he didn't get his solo when he wanted to so he stopped playing. He took our momentum and just killed it. It was embarrassing. A real professional would have adapted and went with it, and took his lead break when the window was available.

The front man turned and stared chiding him for quitting, creating further tension in the band. People stared to leave. Then the drummer just stopped, I got pissed and that was the end of the show. Not a very good impression to leave on an audience that up until that point was really into it. After the gig there was a big fight and the guitarist nearly walked home.  The band very nearly broke up that night. Needless to say I was quite upset at him, mostly because he could air until the end to air his frustrations and instead chose to let everyone else know how he felt. In my opinion, those are the actions of a child and completely unprofessional.

For me, nothing signals the fact that I am in the wrong band like lousy stage etiquette. Meaning that if you have an issue with someone in the band, you do not share it with the audience. For one thing it makes the audience feel uneasy, much like being a kid and watching your parents have a big blow out. It also makes you look like a complete dick, and people will not support you if they don’t like you. People don’t come to see your band to feel uneasy or be privy to your inner problems; they go to shows to forget their problems. If they believe that there’s a good chance they will simply witness another meltdown, they won’t come out to see you. They don’t want to spend good money just to watch a meltdown.

As I mentioned before, having public blowout like that is also very embarrassing to your fellow band mates. Nothing says I disrespect your presence like insulting their performance on stage, in front of the fans or airing some repressed personal grudge in front of your audience. As professionals we are expected to carry on, and save grievances for after the performance. Plus, it shows a certain respect for your band mates. If you do not show respect to those with whom you perform, they will not want to be a part of your group and you may push away some cherished talent simply because you cannot control yourself. Don’t be that guy, or girl for that matter.

Yet another good reason to avoid public displays of dickkishness is that if an industry professional is interested in you, they want to be sure they can rely on your professional attitude. They will not back you if you are prone to outburst on stage. They may wish to put good money behind you but if you have a history of turning good shows into bad simply because you cannot handle someone’s mistakes or because you simply have to let your dismay be known to everyone, well they don’t want to work with you.

Part of being a professional is maintaining a cool and collected presence while e in the public eye. It is simply a show of respect for your audience and shows that you care about your career more than any single perceived slight. It’s bad enough to deal with a prima donna, but to deal with a performer who simply makes others feel bad or ruins the experience for the audience is simply unfair to both the audience who has paid good money (hopefully) and insulting to the band mates and professionals you work with. The bottom line is that I you wish to surround yourself with good people and good talent; you need a good attitude and be a person people want to associate with. If you can’t do this, you will have a miserable career indeed.