Performance Techniques - Decide What Kind of Music You Should Be Singing and Stick With It

Many of you will remember Jim Nabors, who played a tv character named Gomer Pyle. Gomer was a good-natured, simple-minded country boy who became nationally popular on the Andy Griffith Show, and later on other Gomer Pyle shows.What many of his fans didn't know was that Jim Nabors was a terrific singer with an amazing voice, range and quality. He released several albums which contained beautiful renditions of songs like "The Impossible Dream" and "The Holy City".His albums flopped. They didn't sell, even though Jim had a massive fan base as Gomer Pyle. Why did that happen? What did he do wrong?Jim Nabors failed to understand that the public wouldn't accept their dumb little friend, Gomer, as a guy with a beautiful classical sounding voice. The contrast was just too great. In their minds Gomer just wouldn't sing that way. It went against his established image. Imagine Jim Carey releasing an album of Italian Arias. Jim has a very nice voice, but hearing him singing serious opera would totally go against our image of Jim. When Jim Carey does sing, he keeps it within the confines of the character we all know and love, even if he's playing a serious dramatic role.There are a few exceptions to this. Rod Stewart has achieved new fame by recording old standards. Barbara Streisand has released albums of rock music and Italian arias. But they were already well-established artists before they ventured into new genres. And they always returned to their musical roots.So what does this have to do with you? As yo u develop as a singer, it's important that you begin to find the right genre of music (country, pop, rock, etc.) that you love to sing, and do well with. As you establish a reputation, either with a band or in the karaoke club, remain true to your style and genre. Experiment with different types of music at home, but when you perform, maintain some consistency. Understand what the crowd likes about you and your singing, and give them more of that.Jim Nabors found out the hard way that people want their entertainers to be consistent. They depend on it. If you are just developing your style and moving into a specific genre of music it's all right to experiment, but be aware that eventually you need to settle and stay there.