Do yo thang

October was a rough month for us. The rain and flooding throughout the Texas Hill Country led to a bunch of our gigs getting cancelled. But our last two gigs proved to be interesting - one in October, and then our last gig on Nov. 4.

The October gig was our monthly residency at HEB's Cafe Mueller. We had a good crowd that stayed with us for the whole show, and we even sold a few CDs. We were feeling pretty good until the buyer or one of those CDs felt the need to tell us not only what she liked, but what she also thought we should do to really be successful. She didn't corner Joe to tell him what she thought of his performance, but she took time to pull Johnny and I aside, separately, to let us know what she thought we could improve on. Boy, there's nothing more fun after a show than someone in the audience cornering you with "constructive criticism!"

She name-dropped the name of some country star that she's apparently connected with, to let us know that we should pay heed to her critiques. I didn't hear the name, and I have no idea what the connection was, but I wasn't going to worry much about it anyway. We had a music industry insider do something similar to us one time after a festival we played, and pretty much everything he told us to do was counter to who and what we are. So...thanks.

The main takeaway from Cafe Mueller lady was that she told us that either I needed to step it up and be a bigger presence on stage, or Johnny needed to dial it back. Apparently, we should be the same. Except, of course, that we are not. We are individuals - I am who I am, and Johnny is who Johnny is. So...thanks.

We were vindicated in our approach - i.e. being true to ourselves - at the gig we played this week. It was a private gig for a corporate meeting, and several hundred people from all over the world were there. After we were done playing, one of the waiters working the event asked if we had a CD he could buy, and while we were signing the CD for him, he told us how much he liked us - in particular, the fact that we're all so different. He said he liked that we each brought something unique to the mix, and he enjoyed what each of us brought.

Another one of the waiters came up while we were talking to the first guy, and he told us that they see a lot of bands at the venue where they work, and we were a real standout. That was really gratifying. Those guys didn't have to say those things. We didn't ask. They just felt strongly enough to seek us out and tell us.

On the way home, we talked about how much we appreciated that. We compared the lady's reaction at Cafe Mueller to the guys at the corporate gig, and it just confirmed what we've known all along. Don't try to be something, whatever that is, to fit some mold or some other person's preference or opinion.

If someone tells you to change who you are to fit some trend or because that's what you have to do if you want to "make it," ask yourself what it would be like if you DID make it, but you're stuck playing the part of someone you're not or doing something you don't really like (for instance, playing music you don't really like). Those are golden handcuffs. And that's assuming you could even keep it up. It's awfully hard to keep yourself stuffed into a box that doesn't fit.

Besides, following trends is a waste of time. By the time you master a new trend, it's usually on its way out. SET the trend. The people who set trends are usually just doin' their thang and not concerning themselves with the latest trend. And they're certainly not trying to fit someone else's mold. They're authentic.

So, do what you do. Be who you are. And play to the people who dig that. If you do that, you'll have success that you can actually enjoy.