From Lorde to Katy Perry, every top performer has been a victim to stage fright. Almost every artist, in their career, has experienced this feeling to a varied extent. Though it might seem like you are the only one going through the ordeal, it is, in fact, quite a normal thing to experience. Even the most confident looking rap artists, such as Omen44, face a certain level of anxiety and nervousness.
Yoshihisa Watanabe, aka Omen44, can easily relate that giving a rap performance is no cakewalk. Trying to remember the lyrics, maintaining one’s pace, and being cognizant of the rap beats came through consistent practice to Yoshihisa. The international level American Japanese artist is well known in the underground hip hop culture, and a lot of that success owes to his inevitable confidence and presence on stage. When he ventured into the American underground music scene he discovered that not many Japanese artists were gaining traction with the audience. Yoshihisa with his rap skills and charm has set about to change that. In order to reach the status of being collab worthy with Nipps (Buddha Brand) and French artist Kyo Itachi, Yoshihisa had to work immensely on his stage presence along with his art. You can be infused to the brim with talent, but if you do not have the confidence to show to off you cannot prevail.
So how do you reach the level of Zen, that the minute you get on that stage the feeling of numbness, increased heart rate, excessive sweating, and muscle contractions all die down? Even though stage fright normally lasts a few minutes, the impact of it is so severe that the person might feel the tendency to pass out. However, you can manage to not let this stage fright rule over you and come out on top.
The key to a successful performance is confidence
You can assume your performance hindered the minute a hint of self-doubt crosses your mind. You will have to work hard to keep all the pangs of self-doubt out of your mind for the sake of your sanity and performance.
Practice is the antidote of doubt
An old rule but a golden one. Practicing your song will help you keep the lyrics and beat in mind, so much so that it will become akin to forming a habit. You have to feed yourself the song to such an incredible extent that you are only able to spew out premium level lyrics the second you open your mouth.
Having fun is important
You need to remember that rapping is not your duty but in fact, something you are passionate about. If you belong to the rapping category then worrying about your performance will not exactly get you places. Your audience is there to have fun and that will start with you. A jovial body language during your performance will wash over your audience and they will sway with you.