It’s been said that the second most common fear behind the fear of dying is public speaking.
SCARY! If you’re a karaoke enthusiast, chances are that you’ve already conquered your fear of stage fright, but in case you’re an aspiring karaoke beginner looking to take the stage for the first time, here are some tips that can help you overcome your fears of performing in front of an audience.
1. If you fail to prepare, prepare to fail. The more that you practice your karaoke routine (or any performance), the less anxious you’ll feel when you take the stage. You’ll also avoid that blackout feeling of forgetting the words if you’ve memorized the lyrics and practiced them over and over.
2. Think about the real reason you’re doing karaoke—to have fun! Stop visualizing failure or what could go wrong, and focus instead on how much fun you’re about to have! The audience loves you!
3. Take a deep breath. Breathing helps to calm your nerves and mentally prepare you for your big performance. It will also help to steady your voice.
4. Eat right and avoid caffeine. Eat a banana! It’s the perfect snack to fill you up and give you energy without making you feel too full. Don’t have access to a banana? Chew on some chewing gum. This will actually relax the muscles in your jaw and face and help you warm up for your song. Lastly, unless you’re a caffeine addict, avoid coffee for the day. Too much caffeine can lead to high blood pressure and heightened anxiety.
5. Establish contact with your audience even before you take the stage. Smile, make eye contact, wave or speak directly to someone in the audience right before you start. This will help you to realize that they’re there to support and encourage you vs. judging you (Unless you’re actually being judged in a karaoke competition…then they are there to judge you!).
6. Realize it’s OK to make mistakes. No one is perfect and feeling anxious is totally normal. When you take some pressure off yourself, you can relax and have fun and your performance will be that much better.
We hope these tips help you overcome your fear of stage fright! Let us know how you deal with pre-karaoke nerves so we can share your tips with our Karaoke Community!
