Stage Presence 101

With Be On The Scenes Live music Showcase tonight, I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to discuss some useful tips i have heard on stage presence. 

All of the musicians performing tonight are professionals in the sense that they have performed live numerous times and have chosen to utilise every opportunity to perform for an audience. 

This blog is aimed at individuals who have all the talent in the world, but unsure of how to create that stage presence or for an individual who has never performed on a stage before. Remember having a great voice or song is not enough.

If you read a previous article/interview I did with record producer Stuart Epps you will know exactly what I am talking about when I say, ‘There is a difference between a musician and a performer.' A musician is someone who plays music and a performer is someone who ignites the stage.

I often read other blogs in my community and follow tips and tricks in the network, so when I came across industry expert Alex Boye from boy band Awesome, who went on to sell millions of CDs and knows a thing or two about connecting with an audience, I immediately wanted to share it with all our readers. 

There was a statement from Mac Evington in the USA that got me thinking. He said: ‘If you're making good music but don't look like you're having any fun with it, why should you expect the audience to enjoy watching it? They might as wellstay at home and listen to the mp3’

This couldn’t be more true. In order to engage your audience, you need to utilise your body. If you take a page out of any actor’s handbook you will find out about how to visualise and create the space around you. People don’t need to see to believe it, they need to feel.  For example, if you are one person on stage with the microphone and playing with a backup track, why not move around the stage to interact with the crowd, standing in the middle and maintaining eye contact is just not enough and remember to always keep your body open towards the audience.

Most people think that in order to be standing in the correct position of the stage, you need to be in the centre. What about stage left or stage right? What about the people you need to engage on either side?

This goes hand in hand with space creation and one does not have to be a dancer on stage to use this technique. Simply move around in a thought out yet not planned manner.  Have you ever watch how Mick Jagger swaggers across the stage left to right, right to left and sings to each group? It’s highly effective in allowing people to feel that you know they are there.

Alex points out an astonishing fact that 95% of artist’s revenue is made on stage performances alone and yet so much more time is spent on recording, writing and social media promotion. All of these are incredibly important, but how much time does one spend on rehearsing on stage?

At the end of the day, no one can give you stage presence, however, stage presence can be cultivated. The only thing that could change the way you or your band performs is one word and one word only that is Confidence.

Confidence can hide a multitude of sins on stage as well as discrepancies relating to singing off key or forgotten notes. If you have confidence, you don’t need anything else. 

If you are in London tonight, (28th June)  I suggest you make your way to the Archangel ( AAA) in High Street Kensington at 19;30 for a night of live music. 

Line up includes: Tom Lukas, Tony Goff, Becky Holloway and Sunrize.

I wish all our performers the best of luck and look forward to meeting everyone there. 

Romy

For more information, visit www.beonthescene.com/nextevent/ 

What the Goff? - By Romy Newman

"Close some doors so some will open,

change your course as some are broken,

trying to find another way,

to reach that long awaited day" - Snakes and Ladders

25 year old Tony Goff blasted onto the scene with the constant support from his fans and our audience, who mere seconds from announcing the winner of the Be On The Scene Music contest, were on the edge of their seats, waiting to see his name announced. And after weeks of hard work, dedication and pure willingness to go the extra mile and getting everyone he knew to support him, his song Snakes and Ladders saw him through, with over 3000 votes. 

On a Monday afternoon, I was pleased to spend some time with him discussing everything about Tony Goff, from early life to dreams and aspirations. Just like his music, he was perfectly cool and charming with the positive personality that shines through his music. We begin our interview:

BOTS: Tony, First off, big congratulations to you for winning our contest. It was great to listen to your music and seeing the progress you made in each round. Perhaps you could take me back to where it all began? You were very young when you first started playing music and have been in a few bands, since going solo. Talk me through the process of how and when you decided to go solo and why you chose a guitar?

TG: 'From about the age of 12- 13 I was more of a sports fanatic and unfortunately I injured myself and to pass my time the guitar felt right and from being in the band ‘The Spartans’, I got a bit of inspiration and I liked the way the guitar sounded and I went from there. At 13 I started playing guitar seriously then at the age of 15 I started singing.It wasn’t too good at the time, but it was great practice, a bit of fun and a big release for me. It is always great to get emotions out that way, it made sense to me.'

'Going from a band to a solo artist was a big and shocking move and after being together for four years, one tends to get comfortable and secure. The band meant a lot to me and when it ended I just had to look at the positives. I had to keep on writing and I wanted to meet new musicians and that’s why I decided to do a new project.  It was such a big move, but an enjoyable experience too and that’s why I decided to record with a full band again.'

BOTS: You write your own songs, so take me through the process of the writing and what you draw inspiration from.

TG: 'I still haven’t figured it out, I can’t just say: right, I’m going to sit down with a pen a paper and start scribbling out a song, it does just happen and it is very much situational. So whatever negative or positive thing that happens in my day, influences what I write about. It takes a while. I wrote a tune a few weeks ago as I was feeling a bit stressed, but this is how things go for me really.'

BOTS: A particular song stands out called Snakes And Ladders that have an amazing collection of metaphors that create a vivid and visual depiction of life. Tell me about what was going on there.

TG: 'Well I work in a bar and it was a situation that got me. It wasn’t negative, rather comical, so I thought of it as passing time and it took me about 20-25min to write it down. I liked the idea of life being like a board game. It was an idea and I thought I could have a bit of fun with it.'

BOTS: Through fate we met, but tell me about the process of being approached on the internet to entering the competition and eventually taking the crown, so to speak.

TG: 'Well, as a musician you get approached quite a bit for these kinds of things, and you develop an ear or an eye for which ones are beneficial and which ones are genuine. You guys were very genuine on your approach and you were very helpful in explaining what it was. All in all it was great fun to be a part of the contest and get to hear all the other great artists. It’s a lot of work being in these competitions, but if you are willing to put the work in, it really pays off in the end. You can’t just sit back and wait for things to happen. It’s a lot of self- promotion. Friends and family are the best and having a strong support system is also very important.'

BOTS: What do you think are the biggest challenges you have faced being an artist and what goals have you set for yourself?

TG: 'Well, being a musician is a challenge itself and getting the exposure that you need is the challenge but, through all the steps and obstacles I’ve learnt so much and met great people along the way. It’s Important to know that if you keep pushing, more doors open for you. Obviously I’m trying to get some backing for the album from investors or anything that can help me break into the market. I do believe I have loads of talent, but the hardest part is just getting it out there. Having the time and finances to help promote yourself is important, and to get ahead, you just have keep at it.'

'Goals I have set for the end of the year would be to get the release clean and polished. It should be out by late September. I would like a few of my music videos to be backed and I would love to hear more feedback on my work and perhaps be on the bill for a few major festivals next year. That’s the aim.'

'In saying this, I’m not going to sit back and say, this is what I definitely going to happen, but I am just going to keep on working hard to achieve that. Take it as far as I can, that’s the objective.'

BOTS: Talk me through the process and style of the way you have presented your music videos. Two in particular, Snakes and ladders and Signs are done on a small HD camera. Was it intentional as you want to showcase your more organic homegrown style, or ….

TG: 'Well first off I wouldn’t be able to do it without the dedicated team behind me and everyone was doing non paid work. I paid for decent logos and what not, but the video was taken out of Mikey Lynches own time, purely as he believes in me and what I am trying to achieve. He managed to get me a studio to shoot the video and shoots all the videos. There had been a few people that have helped me along the way such as Oscar Pelaez who has helped me a lot with backing and put me in front of the right people. Laura Maguire put me in touch with you and helps me secure gigs in Liverpool.'

BOTS: If I had to open up your laptop and go through your music playlists, what would I find?

TG: 'You could find stuff dating back to when I was 14/15, I really have to update my playlists as I have a lot of music. I love indie stuff and I used to be into more heavy stuff, so you would probably find a bit more heavy rock now, but that’s not what I am really into at the moment. I’m into more acoustic and electro swing. I have a wide range of music and I like it all. My favourites at the moment are Paulo Ntuni and Parov Stellar Band.'

BOTS: Touching on that subject, you maintain a good image online, most comments and posts are very clean and you seem to have a good handle on that. Is this difficult to maintain being in the music industry where people can be very brutal and harsh as they can hide behind a computer screen?

TG: 'Well, sending the wrong message out can make or break your career. In terms of positivity that will come through the music. I don’t really write sad, down tempo songs. I don’t want to sell myself like that, or to go on the path of being the next Ben Howard. There have been some critics, mainly telling me that the sound quality isn’t good on a particular song, but that’s not negative is it? That can only help me improve. Keep in mind when I am filming my videos on a small HD camera with no other equipment especially outside where I can’t control traffic or background noises, what is one to expect?  I don’t really get anyone saying horrible stuff and even if they don’t like my style of music, they generally say ‘well you gave it a go’

BOTS: In a previous interview you mentioned the meaning behind your titled EP Butterflies and compromises, is all about relationships. What songs can we expect to hear on your EP and what are the release dates?

TG: 'Well the single ‘snakes and ladders' will be released in July, single signs in August and the full EP in Late September

Songs that have been chosen are Snakes and ladders, Signs, the self-titled Butterflies And Compromises and False Delights for now, there might be a fifth so keep posted.'

BOTS:  How have you found the recording process?

TG: 'It has been a pricey affair, but I’ve met some amazing producers and I am going to be recording at fortress studios where ‘Young Guns’ recorded their first album and ‘You Me At Six'. But regardless of financials, I’ve learnt so much from the producers. The songs are sounding very tight and crisp. The recording is a complete package and the people I have been working with know how to make a song sell-able and fit for the market. I really enjoy recording there.

The EP is going to sound amazing. It is a lot of work and I’m really excited about it, but that has also meant I have missed out on a lot of social engagements and time with my friends, but if you want to make it, you do what you got to do. I’ve tried to release so many EPs/albums in the past without success, but I just had to learn from my mistakes and save the pennies and the pounds! I am always going to play my music so everything and every day is a learning curve. This is all I want to do. Music is my main passion and my first choice. I’m a realist at the end of the day and I will work to the bone to get this right.'

In the corner I notice Jackson Stockbridge, a guitarist for Tony. I asked him his thoughts on working with him and the outcome of the contest.

TG: 'I was really pleased for him. I’ve been working with tony for a long time and have learnt so much from him and I knew he would do well in the competition as he put so much work into it. So much stuff is going really well for him.'

BOTS: Tony, you beat a lot of people and took the ‘crown’ with over 3000 votes, how do you feel about that?

TG: 'Well obviously I am really pleased and I realized that I am really good at self-promoting. If I wasn’t a musician I think I would be a promoter.'

 Jackson- 'No one works harder than Tony'

Tony- 'I believe that if you help people out, they are always willing to help you. Over the past 13 years of playing music, I have met the most incredible people that have lent a helping hand when I have needed it.'

BOTS: You have been getting a lot of interest for air play and feature slots on radio shows, such as Radio Prudhoe and now BBC in July, how did you get the radio shows interested in playing your music?

TG: 'I always submit my music but then again a lot of the presenters have just generally been supporting me from the very start and the other bands I have played in, so that is lucky. And the gentleman from Radio Prudhoe has introduced us to a lot of good people who are great at supporting us. You also have really supportive people that submit on your behalf.  You have to grow your support network.'

Our interview has come to an end and a full band practice is about to go underway, so time for one quick last question…

If you could go back in time and visit your 15 year old self. What advice would you give?

TG: 'Have a plan B!  Music is lovely and fun but you have to take it seriously.'

Tony Goff is designed and destined for success. There’s no doubt that he has his head and dream in the clouds, but feet firmly on the ground.  I am so grateful for the time spent doing this interview and I look forward to seeing him create a stir in the music scene and hear the crowds chanting his name.

Presenter Ross Fiddes revisited.

A few days ago, I was going through Be On The Scenes Blogs and I stumbled across my very first Blog entry. It was my favourite children’s presenter and Be On The Scene Member Ross Fiddes. I was lucky enough to interview him back in February, which can be found here.  (http://beonthesceneuk.blogspot.co.uk/2013/02/ross-fiddes-around-world-in-20-plates.html 

I decided to check back and find out what Ross has been up to, as when we last spoke,  he was about to go into the creative process for a new episode of his cooking show, aptly named, 'Around the world in 20 plates.' The show is aimed at children and intended to educate them on different cuisines from around the world.  

Since then, Ross has a great new show reel and has completed the 6th episode for the cooking show which is Kenyan Themed. Ross is Charming, Vivacious and Charismatic and in this show, it is evident. It’s wonderful to see the development from the very first episode. Ross has also been active in some great activities such as the You Generation Presenter Competition, Wheelchair Rugby League World Cup 2013, being shortlisted for Blue Peter and in addition to presenting; he is also a runner for CBBC. There’s no doubt that this is one busy individual. 

Let’s show our fellow member, friend and presenter the support he deserves and visit his profile on www.beonthescene.com. or you can also view all his videos including Show reels, episodes from 'Around The World in 20 Plates' and all the other activitys Ross got involved with via his social media pages: 

Twitter @RossFiddes

Facebook: www.facebook.com/RossFiddesTV

YouTube: www.youtube.com/rossfiddes

Consistency and the Creative

Would you buy a car online without seeing pictures or taking it for a test drive and base your decision purely on word of mouth? The answer would be no

The same standards apply for musicians and other creatives that have chosen to go through online platforms to get their name out there and to sell their work. At the end of the day, how can we find you?

In keeping with the previous discussion in an article from Erica Sharlette, the BOTS team thought it would be a perfect time to elaborate on a topic that most times is ignored.

Consistency is key and with today’s platforms such as the familiar Facebook, Reverbnation, Sound Cloud, iTunes, band camp and personal websites to name but a few, it is easy to get lost in the world wide web of social communications. The big question is... how would an interested party find your work online and how would it be simple and less time consuming for them? We unfortunately live in a world, where it takes a person a mere 10 seconds to be engaged before they lose interest.  

To set the scene: you have just come off stage after a killer performance and someone who could potentially  change the course of your life, approaches you and asks, ‘where can I find your work?’, 80% of the time you will let them know of at least 3 different places with 3 different variations of your name, while they are standing there trying to remember it. The second thing would be, if you have a name that is common online, how do they know it is you, without spending more than 5 min looking?

The answer is simple, yet we find it on a daily basis, that artists are trying to sell their work without a clear indication of how to find them. For instance, I was putting together our monthly newsletter and was looking for new talent to be put forward. This was a great opportunity as it is a unique crowd, great exposure and no effort on the said person’s behalf. One of the biggest challenges was finding the correct version of the said persons name. for example; The name Steven can be spelled in a number of ways, from Stephen to Stephan. This could also be dependent of the availability of the username. Imagine that I was a record producer or an agent that was attracted to your page only to try and google all musicians that go by the name of Steven in London. It is an absolute nightmare.  

.

At the moment as  Be On The Scene is a small but growing community, you are guaranteed to be found and be truly the only one  – for example with the name Romy Newman. A Google search alone tells me there are 27,000 other Romy Newman’s out there, but only one of them is me. I refer back to the previous mention of having the correct spelling or name variations can be detrimental. I'm not implying that you cannot be apart of all the social media channels as it is imperative to have a strong online presence, however, having a direct point of contact that helps channel people to the correct pages. For example, your Be On The Scene Profile acts as a funnel and directs all interested parties to all your other websites, regardless of which ones you choose.

I hope that this has encouraged all to start rethinking your online approach and should you need any help with how to manage your social media or your online presence, feel free to drop me an email at romy@beonthescene.com

                                      Good Luck!

                                          Romy

BOTS partners with delicatessen cafe in Putney for Art Exhibitions

In the view of helping new artists get their work exhibited, we have started to partner with cafes and restaurants across London. These venues have kindly accepted to display paintings and photographs from our Members on their walls.

Our first official partner is Cafe Matteo in Putney (236 Upper Richmond Road, London SW15 6SG) who will start exhibiting painting work from our Member Clare Law as early as next month. On top of enjoying a coffee and slice of cake you will be able to discover Clare Law's fantastic pieces.

 
Several other venues have already given us their verbal agreement and we are signing partnership with them very soon.

All exhibitions will be announced on our website in the art section so keep an eye out and go discover amazing new artists. If you are looking to redecorate your home it is also a perfect way to purchase authentic art work.

Thanks for supporting us!

Rich.
richard@beOnTheScene.com

A Day with Erica Sharlette

Winter 2010 saw the birth of EricaSharlette Promotion Ltd. and a result of a growing demand for a full service provision from the company’s namesake.

Taking time out of her ever increasing and manic schedule, Erica met with me in a vibrant Tottenham court road restaurant on a wet Tuesday afternoon. Upon arrival, despite having attended a previous interview and fighting her way across Town, she arrived looking calm and collected. Having handed her a hot chocolate, which she describes as her nectar, we begin our conversation.

Erica began her career as an event PA where she joined the full work force in 1999 and started working for the Foreign & Commonwealth Office of FCO. Her job was more on the admin side and after a few years she started a role in marketing and a bit of PA work where she got an idea of what she wanted to do.

‘I got into an events PA role when I was doing a temp contract for a charity sector and I got a three day temp role sorting out admin, going away on events and that was my first proper taste of what I wanted to do.’

Unfortunately for Erica, as soon as she was able to get into the events side of things. Tragedy struck and she had to have double knee surgery and learn to walk again. Erica was unable to work full time after that. She decided to go into the part time sector, but it wasn’t along the lines of event organization, it was more of Policy & Communications PA work. Purely by chance, Erica saw a Tweet from a friend advertising a job in Fashion and a Web and Graphic Design and got in touch with her and started working on her non paid work day. Then a call came through from an online magazine.  

 ‘I got on the radar of a webzine, who was monitoring my work. They rang me up one day and asked what exactly I was doing? They proceeded to ask me if I had considered to CRM (Client Relationship Management) I hadn’t but they were looking for someone so I decided to give it ago and they gave me a bit of a trial.’

The magazine editor told Erica that she was going to go to New York two weeks later for four days and that Erica needed to set up interviews and meetings with Artists and showcase what she could do, by the time the Editor got back. If Erica was able to pull it off, she would have the job.

‘I put the phone down and lost my natural born mind. Immediately I sat down and had a think about it and how I go about it. I started booking in all these meetings and Lekhem got in touch with me and said that he was interested. I listened to his (Lekhem) mix tape and completely fell in love with it. Unfortunately it turned out he wasn’t going to be able to do anything for that particular type of job I had been assigned, but, in the meantime-and as we built up a really good report just talking to each other and staying in touch- we connected instantly. I wanted to work with him. He had really good qualities and sounds, but just no direction of where to go with it.’

Erica started to help Lekhem and the magazine. At this time she was also working with Sherii Ven Dyer, helping with the web design and fashion job, doing the part time office work and by some inner goddess strength she was a part time carer for her mother who sadly became ill when Erica was just 15 years old.

Erica had the opportunity to do an events review as the person who was meant to do the write up was unable to make it as they did not live in London. Having never written a review before, she hesitated but in the end she received great praise and feedback and was asked to take on more.

‘The only problem was that the editor didn’t like my writing so he wanted me to change my style. I tried to take myself out of it, which essentially is what he wanted.  I remember now to this day he said, “When I read about an event, I want to read the facts; what actually happened. I don't want to read about the chair in the corner with the flowers on it, and how the lights hit them.”

After much debate about going into too much detail in her writing, Erica was brought on as a concert promoter for the only European date booked by Leela James, a Neo Soul songstress, but she was unsure of how she would fit all the other commitments in. She decided to leave the magazine and focus solely on what is now ES Promotion.   

After a friendly exchange of words and being in awe of how she managed to juggle her life we moved on to the advice section.

BOTS: What do you believe are the fundamental steps of developing your brand as an artist?

‘First thing I would say is that you have to build a solid foundation and streamline it, you can’t have 20 different user names and different accounts, people won’t remember that. If you are an artist and you get off stage and someone asks you where they can get all your information from or where they can find you, you have to make it easy for them. I always prefer having one website where they can get everything from. However, that’s not how social media feeds work today. You have to be on all of them, provided they are tailored to that specific avenue you are going down on. You have to make sure people can find you.’

‘You must also have examples of your work online. It might seem so obvious, but if you are a musician or any other creative you need to have your music online.  You would be so surprised at how many times I run into that.’

‘The response I have gotten from an artists has been that they don’t like to put themselves out there like that, so my question is, well how am I going to find you or buy your product if you are not online?’

‘Now days with people being able to download your work for free, I completely understand reluctance, as it is your work of art. But saying to me that you are an artist, but you don't want to make yourself that readily accessible to people online, doesn't make sense to me. I think that you are in the wrong industry then and you’re not looking at the bigger picture’

‘You should always present your best side. Don’t tell people what you can’t do. You always have to find a way to turn a negative into a positive. That’s not just with marketing that question always comes up, what are your best qualities and what are the worst?  Well I find that if you make them one and the same, but show how you can resolve the issue, that shows that you are a problem solver.’

What advantages do people get from a company like yours and what makes you stand out?

‘Well it’s just me, you get one to one, I repel cookie cutter types, and I never do the same for one person. There will be the same foundation but I always make sure I tailor specifically to the individual’s needs. I look into their personality and find the unique selling point. I think that’s why it’s great joining a company like Be On The Scene. By having a social network that is targeted towards a specific industry you are able to make it interpersonal. Trying to stick in a niche and find people that operate in the same field rather than trying to go the independent way. Personal is always best.

'Be very careful of how you present yourself on social networks. If you want to be on a site like Facebook, for personal reasons and for professional reasons, have separate accounts. One has to remember that you are a brand. You are representing your brand on these social media feeds and if you need to vent- and we are all guilty of this- it doesn’t give a good image to your brand unless it is directly linked to what you are representing. What you say and where you say it can get to the wrong people and it could destroy any potential opportunities. People buy people. Keep personal, but keep a portion of your personal issues out of your unleashing. You need to be willing to accept that when you enter the industry a bit of your personal life does disappear.’

“People are willing to pay for sanity; they are not paying for madness”

The bottom line is that you need to be careful at what you portray. In this day and age where social media rules, it is hard to differentiate what is personal and what is too personal. You need be able to separate the two. The life of the performer and the everyday.

‘An Artist has to be able to accept help and lose any arrogance they might have. Some believe that they are talented and that is all they need. To give you a perfect example of the iconic legend, Stevie Wonder who is an amazing Artist. However, he still has singing lessons. If he can be humble enough to still want to sit down and take guidance from anyone at all, then upcoming artists need to lose the arrogance, be honest and admit defeat. They also have to have enough courage to admit what they can, and what they can't do. If you are honest with people about your strengths and weaknesses, they will know how best to help you. That act alone goes back to what I was saying earlier about turning negatives into positives, because candor and humility will never go out of fashion. If you are honest with people about your strengths and weakness they will know how they can help you.’

As an artist promotion company, we cannot stress enough how important is it to be known as reliable in the industry. What are your thoughts or views on this?

‘It is critical to be reliable. I come from the mode of thought that you go, rather than you not go; at least you are showing your commitment and tenacity...Sure you have days where everything goes wrong and there is nothing anyone can do, but it's how you handle the bumps in the road that matter. Either your efforts or your nonchalance will be remembered come the end of the day, but you have a say in the impression you leave behind. When it comes to selecting people for events and putting them forward for work, you have an idea of their track record and if being unreliable is one of them, well you can tarnish your own future work opportunities...You don't know how fast word of mouth travels, only that you'll never be fast enough to catch it."

“Everything that you do is an audition for something else”

What is your take on musicians or other performers working for free? Others think it might be exploitation of talent, and then others believe that in order to get something you need to give something. What do you believe?

‘Working for free can be more important than the paid work. This is for everyone, not just artist. The commitment you show and the dedication you give to doing free work shows more of the person you can be when getting paid to do a job. If you give 2000% when you work and not being paid, it says a lot of your character.’

‘To tell you a great story, I had a friend who once did an internship for the directors of the entire Step Up films, and she was working for free. She turned up, did what she had to do, ran around doing everything for everyone and at one point a director turned to her and said, “there’s my chair, go and sit in it, you’re making me tired.” He mentioned that he had noticed everything she was doing that day and it was exhausting to watch. To make a long story short, she ended up a few years later, being hired by them for a music video. At the time, they didn’t know this and only during the final cut, she told them the story and they were like “You, we remember you!”  

what I am trying to get at is you have to be willing to do more for your free work as it will benefit you in the long run.  9/10 times nothing will come of it other than experience, but you never know who was watching you. They might take you on. It might not be the next job or the job after that, but for the most part, people remember those who make a real effort.’

Drinks are finished and our hour is up. The time spent with Erica Sharlette has made me realize that we do have good hearted people in the industry who look to help others and how important it is to have these people on your side. From her infectious laugh right down to her witty metaphors, Erica Sharlotte is someone that should be on your speed dial.

Remember, creativity belongs to those than can create, not to people who think they can make money from being created, for it is change that we live for, it is change that we wake up for and it is change that makes life meaningful to all of us.

The End.

By Romy Newman

Open Casting Call Makeup Tricks

Today  i am going to try something a bit different and we are going to go through a few make up tips from industry professionals in relation to an open casting call for models.

As most of you are aware, open casting calls are just that. it is open to everybody signed or not. usually they have hundreds of hopefuls that attend with the idea of catching the Booker's eye.

In this blog, I am going to give you a few tips and tricks that you can implement when going to your open casting call

Now we all want to look our very best and cover up all the imperfections we may have when attending the casting, but did you know, this wont allow the Booker to see what they are working with? follow these simple steps and get even closer to booking your next job!

First off,  you want to come in looking almost like a blank canvas, you want to have a fresh face so they can see what they have to work with, this can be achieved with a simple nude look

Go with light foundation if you are a girl, if you have loads of foundation on, they not sure what you are hiding and might feel it will be more work trying to discover it, than choosing the next girl that appears fresh.

 Do not wear concealer to cover up freckles or character marks as you will look too perfect and again, they wont know what you are hiding and how  they will be able to develop you.who knows, that blemish could be your best selling point.

Accentuate your eyes,  but don't go for smokey or bold colours. Instead use a light mascara and nude colours. by all means use lash defining mascara and anything that will enhance your natural look, but whatever you do, do not go in with over done evening wear make up, no matter how beautiful you think it looks.

When using blushers/bronzers- again, keep it light, young and fresh.

In relation to eyebrows, do not go with the trendy dramatic look, instead fill them in but keep it natural

Keep away from self tanners and anything that makes you look orange. none of us want to look pasty, but go for a colour that makes you look as if you stepped off the beach and are sun kissed rather than you having stepped out of the Tan Can.

False Eyelashes are a definite no go and eyeliner should be kept to the bare minimum. The aim for the open casting calls is to find someone fresh and vibrant, not to find someone who is glammed up to the nines.

Remember ladies, less is more and save the full works for a night out with your friends and keep your professional look separate form your everyday look.

I look forward to seeing you, gracing the pages of magazines!

Go Get 'Em!

Romy

Worth repeating- A documentary on songwriting.

Worth Repeating is a documentary with Nashville songwriters Steve Moakler and Stephanie Lambring that talks about their process of writing songs and doing it for a living. 

Life is a constant stream of inspiration and material. Songs come about when you are sure of something or unsure of anything. its a grey area. when you write songs, its a picture in your head of what you want to say and then its put into words. 

I spoke to someone a while back on their process of writing, she turned to me and said, very seriously... 'My songwriting is therapy, instead of paying someone to listen to my problems, they are paying to hear it.' 
I was quite taken aback by this, but then it occurred to me how true this is. People look to songs to provide clarity, to feel and hear someone else is or has gone through something similar. 

so, how do you start writing songs/melodies or lyrics? There is a blog from Sharon Goldman that i have been following for a while now and in one post she talks about working with songwriting prompts and deadlines. The aim of prompts is provide you with a bit of inspiration, be it a word, phrase or colour. 

In a nutshell, prompts are good because: 

1. Inevitably inspire some kind of idea or reaction — if you allow your mind to wander for a bit.

2. Differ for everyone — each songwriter is going to come up with something different, often drastically so. It’s fun to see what comes up!

3. Are easy to come up with — just open the dictionary or thesaurus and randomly point to a word; look at your favourite daily newspaper headlines; or scroll through a beautiful photo site.

4. Combined with a hard deadline, give you a no-fail framework and formula for finishing a new song!

With the foundation of direction, and a bit of a push, you are not limited to what you want to write about or what you can or cant do. These Prompts are not restricted to songwriters but can be used for all creative writing fields. 

What is your process of songwriting? share some of your thoughts and ideas with me and get a chance to feature on this blog! 

'til then


Romy 

Steal like an artist

                                                              “Do good work and put it where people can see it.

Austin Kleon's takes to the TEDx stage to talk about things he wished he had heard when he was just starting out in the Art World as well as creativity and visual thinking. 

Austin is a writer and an artist. he is the creator of  Newspaper Blackout which is also a published book which is a collection of poetry made by redacting newspaper articles with a permanent market thus leaving you with a piece of poetry or a haiku.

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The word steal seems awfully harsh, but what Austin is trying to say is that on a daily basis, we are inspired. Artist are collectors, they collect ideas. Whether your idea is inspired by a sheet of music, or by something that happened a hundred years ago. it will never be original. - Harsh reality. Don't get discouraged, all creative work builds on what became before. Every new idea is a remix of one or two things previous ideas. 

Instead of getting discouraged and thinking that nothing you do is original, rather embrace the things you can use for inspiration. expose yourself to the best possible things and artist and use it to drive your work forward.

 Picasso once said, "Good artist copy, Great artist steal."

For more on Austin Kleon, Visit his website on www.newspaperblackout.com

Romy

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A dancers Show-reel

World of Dance presents Ashely Friend in a modern/contemporary style of dance with a urban twist
Filmed by Justin Carrillo and Rod Jonas. Edited by Jordan Abrantes

This is a perfect example of how dancers and contemporary artists are able to submit beautiful audition tapes with little means. As long as you have your choreography perfected, your chosen space and the help of friends or members of your community, you could create not only a show-reel, but a short film without words. 


Good Luck. 


Romy 

Weekly Open Mic Nights @ Zebrano, Soho

 
As you know we are always working hard to bring our Members maximum exposure and opportunities to be on stage. Completing our offering to our music Members, we are pleased to be able to announce the start of our Weekly Open Mic Nights!

Every Tuesdays from July 2nd, we will be taking the stage from 7pm at Zebrano, 18 Greek Street, Soho, London W1D 4DS and we will be offering musicians and singers an opportunity to perform and increase their audience and fan base.

 

Entrance is free and open to everyone, BOTS Member or not. Whether you are an artist, coming to discover new talents or simply want to enjoy a great night out, we welcome you to join our Zebrano Open Mic Nights every Tuesdays!

We will also offer artists the opportunity to get their set recorded (audio and video) so that they can build their promotional materials.

These nights will be hosted by Tom Lukas (http://www.tomlukas.com). Tom is an emerging singer/song writer and producer, originally from Cardiff and now living in London. Along with hosting open mic nights Tom continues to gig and kicked off his move playing at the London 2012 Paralympics!

Please join us in thanking Zebrano (http://zebranobars.com) for giving us access to their stage and go visit this amazing venue in the heart of Soho!

Feel free to contact me if you have any questions regarding these nights, and to book your slot in advance please contact us at openmicnights@beonthescene.com or visit our booking page: http://www.beOnTheScene.com/openmic/

Thanks for supporting us!

Rich.
richard@beonthescene.com

The art of creativity by Taika Waititi

                   
                                           'In this day and age, you need to have lots of tools'


New Zealand born Taika Waititi is an Actor, Visual Artist, Writer and director whose most recent films include Boy, which has appeared in numerous festivals including the Sundance and Berlin Film festivals. Taika was nominated for an Academy Award for his film Two Cars, One night. in this clip,  He discusses how creativity has helped him to express his ideas and led him to where he is today.

Excluding genetics and heritage, Taiker goes onto explain how many factors in your life can shape your decision in what do do with your life. although, why do you need to stick to one thing? if you can paint, dance, act or write, try do a bit of everything. 

Can Art save the world? no, you need world peace, can art cure impoverished communities? no, you need food. but if art can spark an idea in someone else, you are a successful artist. 

Art is about perspective


I hope you can take something for this. 



Romy