The one where I did an impromptu live stream

Last Sunday I'd planned to go to an open mic in Camden with a friend - but we discovered a couple of days before that it was cancelled (the host had Covid). I had a back-up plan - and emailed the host on Saturday to ask for a slot. I thought that would be completely fine, as open mic nights typically accept walk-ins on the night, and it wasn't very central. Frustratingly though, on Sunday afternoon I heard back that it had been fully booked since mid-week! So it must be a popular one. I'll find out in a couple of days' time as I've booked for this week instead.

I was a bit stuck though last Sunday. I'd done two open mics in the week so far, so I needed this third one. I particularly wanted to achieve my target so it wouldn't be the second week in a row of only fitting in two. So I called on my trusty friend google to help me track down another Sunday open mic which had slots free, and which I hadn't been to before in my challenge. But Google let me down! (To be fair, there may have been some failure on the part of the "user" - but I'd checked out all the avenues I could think of and come up with no joy.)

So it was time to either admit defeat, or get creative. I'd considered the creative approach the week before, when I'd arrived at a supposed open mic to find the venue closed - I seriously considered getting my guitar out anyway and busking the songs I'd prepared to some bemused passers-by. But decided that was going a little too far - so admitted defeat - but this week, I was determined to bite the bullet and do something akin to an open mic one way or another. As I pondered my options, an uncomfortable idea started worming its way into my head. What about doing an online live stream? Uncomfortable, because the best way to get an audience would be to share an open invite on social media. And part of the point of this open mic was to just go out and play and not worry about being perfect - so I would get better and not let fear get in the way - and that was easier in front of strangers. So the idea of inviting all and sundry felt a bit daunting! That said, it was already Sunday afternoon and would only be a few hours' notice so was unlikely to get too many people. So that became the plan. If you've read my last post, you might think crazy plans have become the norm for me on Sundays - good job I have my slot confirmed for a normal open mic this coming Sunday!

I wasn't really sure of my options to live stream. I considered Facebook but had never done it before, and wasn't quite sure how it would work - and imagined an unlikely worst case scenario where it notified all 800 of my Facebook friends when I kicked off. I remembered that Google meet has the option to live stream - but it turned out to need you to sign in. That led me to think of a zoom call as my best bet though. I kinda wanted to know who was watching and see their reactions - which would also be more like an open mic. A live stream would mean broadcasting out into the abyss (much like this blog! I can see how many people are reading but not who, so only find that out if people tell me! Yes, feel free to take this as a 'subtle' hint to let me know if you've read and enjoyed this one ;)). For the pedants amongst you, switching to zoom meant technically the title and top picture are a misnomer. But I'd already mentally picked the meme for this post out of my brain's extensive 'meme library' and wanted to use it :). 

Anyway, with four hours to go, out went this post - and with it any hope of a gentle retreat from this particular cliff edge.

Gradually, comments trickled in with quite a few people saying they'd come 😳. That's when the nerves started to kick in. I wondered how I'd feel at the start while people were joining - given the chances of it being a fairly eclectic mix of people who mostly wouldn't know each other, an awkward silence punctuated by me trying to make small talk might not be the best start. So I made a 'landing page' slide and teed up a few songs on soundcloud :). 

Then we were off! A confusing start when I first joined a bit early to one other participant, a mystery person whose name I didn't recognise who had her camera off. Who the hell was Catherine Smith? How far had my post reached?! Happily, her camera came on to reveal my dear friend Cassie - oops, guess I've never thought about what Cassie's short for! 🤣. About a dozen people came in total - wonderful people from different areas of my life some of whom I hadn't seen for years, showing up to support me at just a few hours' notice. And lots of people who couldn't make it - or didn't see the post in time - who let me know they'd have liked to join if they'd had more notice. It was humbling and lovely!

I'm not going to say much about my performance - instead I'll let a picture tell a thousand words! I recorded the zoom, thought about uploading it to YouTube, but decided against it. I'd like to keep my live performances "live" for now! BUT the zoom recording did give me plenty of choice of stills for this blog post. Watching it back and looking for options, my vain side wanted to pick a decent 'normal' picture - but my silly side kept piping up about sharing the comedy value of the weirder faces I was pulling. As a compromise, thought I'd make a glorious montage! I've allowed my vain side one picture. But I kinda prefer my silly side, so she can have two :). That's my favourite grimace in the middle (there were some good ones to choose from!), and my favourite piece of manic grinning in between the songs, fuelled by a combination of being super-thrilled and highly embarrassed! Enjoy a little chuckle at my expense (hang on - with me, not at me - right? :))

Still three 'real' open mics behind schedule with the blog, and with more fast approaching, I'll make my next post a catch-up one, covering a few in one go to get back up to date. That'll mean restraining myself from all the tangents and detail - and just sharing the highlights - can I manage that??? We will find out :).