If you were to try, along with lots of practice, could the "frontman" role be sort of learnt?
A very wide question I know, but I'm thinking of getting my singing up to scratch this year and was wondering whether I could try to join or start a group where I would be a singist - however I'm also thinking that being the mouthpiece of the group would be quite a responsibility and would need some attention too. Is it a case of confidence being key? Could I learn by watching my favourite frontmen and others that are acknowledged as good and acting it from there on?
Thinking it would be quite fun to be honest, I'm quite shy as a person but do enjoy being the opposite of that when performing
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Many years ago I moved from being guitarist/songwriter to frontman a few weeks before our first German tour when our singer decided to pack it in. My only previous singing experience had been as an unremarkable choirboy when I was about 10 years old. I survived.
I'm not sure that there's a huge amount to learn though. The main thing is to put your shyness and self-consciousness away for gigs and take on a different persona. Just be careful to tread the fine line between 'uninhibited' and 'obnoxious show-off'.
You need to get into the gig as strong as you can so if you are a confident singer start on a fairly demanding song, if you are a gobshite, say something first, if you want to warm up up, start on an instrumental. In my old band I always started on a strong instrumental, then some talk, then as easy song to sing and ended on the most demanding one.
Stick to your strengths and work on the weaknesses.
The front person role is equally varied. If it's music you want people to dance ( or mosh or frug or headbang) to then talk as little as possible anyway. Rehearse the set in order, only stop if there's a need to, play the music, look as excited by it as you want your audience to be ( they are looking to you for cues). If it's fifteen minute folk songs in Icelandic then your audience will probably appreciate a chat in between numbers. Dead air is the enemy. Clearly people change and develop as front persons and there usually a bit of stealing going on from their own favourite performers.
The issue tends to be do you treat every gig the same. Is it ' The Old Cow Hinckley rock and roll centre of the fucking universe, c'mon' or ' good evening ladies and gentlemen and welcome to this delightful venue, a there is a fine selection of traditional ales here at The Old Cow.' I'm okay with the former but I know it rankles some people.
Ian, our singist and front person, whom @thecolourbox has met as it happens, has stuff he has worked out or at least if he says or does something and it works he keeps it. To me he often talks too bloody much but generally it works and one audience doesn't know they are hearing the same bloody awful pun intro that another audience heard a week before.
So, err, yes I think you can learn it. However, the more your band ( or you as a solo performer) have your act together the less you need to worry about it.
My previous singer had a voice of an angel and very versatile but although a lovely person she just didn't have the personality / charisma that could get across to an audience.
What do I know anyway it's only my opinion