15 Minutes of Fame

Everyone has heard the expression “15 minutes of fame.”  It’s what you do with it afterwards, I feel, that’s just as, if not more, important.

As a glass half-full guy, I like to take the high road here.

In this day and age of so many performance reality shows, there is a lot of attention paid to performers who have gotten on “The Voice” or “American Idol” or “America’s Got Talent,” to name just three.  A similar conversation is had about those who get opportunities to open up for headline artists.

It’s how you use these highlights after the fact that is key.

Do I feel it’s an advantage to be able to say you were on one of those shows?  Absolutely.  Or to say that you opened up for insert-big-name-here?  Yes I do.

Does it begin and end there, though?  No way.

Remember that even the runners-up on those shows aren’t even guaranteed a recording contract, so to think that simply appearing on one of them is your golden ticket is like a sports team acquiring a marquee player in the off-season and starting to print playoff tickets before the first game is even played.  I promise, there’s optimism ahead in this blog, but, now remember that if all you did was audition for one of those shows, meaning, you didn’t even get on TV, never mind survive the many rounds of cuts, you’re just one in more than 50 thousand.

But definitely use your contacts from your time on those shows to stay in the loop on what’s working and get connected to new people in the business.  And by all means highlight in your promotional materials that you were on the show, although be wary of the shelf life.

And be honest in what you’re saying too.  If you opened up for a big name artist, say that you did just that.  Don’t say that you “shared the stage” with them unless you were actually out there performing with them.  Remember, as much as you’ll gain credibility if bookers hear that you were good enough to open up for a major headliner, you’ll lose credibility if you try to pass yourself off as something that you’re not.  Did you perform a duo with Darius Rucker?  I didn’t think so, which is where it’s honest and still commendable to say that you opened up for him.

Show people that you’re busy and that you’re staying active.  That’s one of the quickest ways to quiet the critics who want to say that you haven’t gone anywhere since appearing on “Idol” or “The Voice” or “AGT.”  Demonstrate that you used that experience to launch yourself to a sustainable career that shows the promise of lasting much longer than those 15 minutes.