The Open Mic Circuit
Every town and city has them - a cafe on a Tuesday night with a microphone and a guitar amp, some local haunt where folks in town get up to share tidbits of their work with strangers. They can be discovered online through a quick google search or through a flyer posted on a coffee shop’s community board. Today, we’re talking about why you might want to jump into your town’s local open mic scene.
The open mic archetype is fairly straightforward: a guitar or piano wielding troubadour songwriter bearing their heart on stage. If you see your artist project in this vein then you should definitely step out of the shadows and onto the stage. The Open Mic scene in your town can give you early experience in stagecraft and allow you an audience who can give you positive (or negative) feedback around your songs. In these ways, the open mic scene can help you elevate your craft.
For the songwriter hoping to acquire more sessions and cuts with artists attending open mics can introduce you to new talent. Sharing songs on stage will help prove your talent to the onlookers. This gives you a solid in when beginning conversations with fellow artists and songwriters you might want to work with. The Open Mic circuit is also a solid hunting ground for producers looking for new talent. You can easily approach folks in these settings and embark on new writing relationships.
Indeed, the majority of audience building these days is done on the internet through vehicles like TikTok and Spotify. That said, artists who tend to break in this manner lack a certain je ne sais quoi when you see their performances. Sure, they’ve spent time on their song craft and ability to emote through the screen but they have not put as much energy into stagecraft. You can circumvent this by engaging in your open mic scene and developing skills that others don’t have. In this way, you might be able to pull ahead of your peers.
Learning how to sing live, connecting with other artists/songwriters/producer types, and getting feedback on your songs are all possible at your local open mic. Networking and skill building are inevitable in this scene especially if you’re new to pursuing music professionally. Go google some open mics today and make them a part of your weekly schedule.
