Chiang Mai vs. Bangkok: A Tale of Two Stages
So ... I went to this event tonight. A hip-hop open mic. And I live-looped a non-hip-hop song. Not exactly what the crowd expected—but I’ve done the reverse before: hip hop at metal shows. I don’t mind going against the grain.
This was my second time bringing the Push 3 Standalone on stage, and let’s just say ... it didn’t go great. I’d rate the performance a 2 out of 10—compared to what I know I can do without it. Still, I’m experimenting. Throwing stuff at the wall. Sometimes it sticks. Sometimes it slides off in slow motion while the crowd stares blankly.
Nonetheless, when I was watching this group perform with their DJ behind them, I got the idea that I could learn from him. In essence, even though my performance wasn’t a highlight for me, I still wanted to take something away from the night—to learn from the experience, even if that learning happened outside of my own set and inside someone else’s. So I politely asked the DJ mid-set if I could shadow him and his work, and he was more than happy to let me be a fly on the wall. I feel like I learned a lot. I’m so used to being on my own on stage, and it was refreshing to get a new perspective on what’s possible and where I could take my craft if I decide to move in that direction. There’s still a mountain to climb—but I’m lacing up.
One final note. Taking on the Push 3 Standalone live looping station with me on stage has reminded me of a peculiar detail when I was learning to sing as a performance art outside of just Karaoke. Traveling to different destinations and interacting with communities I don't know, I can divide the stage setups into 3 categories:
You plug the mic in and speak through the mic and the people behind the sound system have done such a good job with it from start to finish that you literally can't not sound good. Right out of the gate, your voice is awesome through those systems.
You don't sound particularly great, but they can make some tweaks and get it where it needs to be. This usually means they've done enough to give you a starting point, but adjustments will have to be made on the fly. Eventually your voice when singing through these systems will be where it needs to be or somewhere close or not somewhere close but not in a bad way either.
You have the sound systems where no matter what you do, showing up as an outsider, your voice will NOT sound good through those systems. Either they can't or won't make the tweaks and if they do make tweaks, there is nothing they can do for it to sound good. That essentially means it is all on you to just get by as best you can and move on to the next show.
All of this to say I noticed a difference in the sound quality between using my Push 3 for the first time in Bangkok and using my Push 3 for the second time in Chiang Mai. The first one, the sound was totally butter. No adjustments needed to be made. It was perfect per se but I immediately knew that the sound was enough. This second one reflects the second category where the sound quality didn't match where I needed it to be but adjustments could be made. Having this model from when I was first learning to really perform on stage back to back performances week after week has given me the sound set to notice for when trying something new with this Push 3 Standalone.
I get that it's not going to be perfect, but I also get that each stage I perform on is not going to be perfect and the sound that comes out won’t always fit the sound that I have in my head. I roll with it. Do whatever I need to do to make it work. And I keep going—taking the next step with confidence. Even if my performing isn’t entirely where I need it to be, it can definitely get there. And I’m doing everything I can to make that happen.
