I performed a couple sets of music yesterday. Leading a group of mostly younger (read “20-somethings”) musicians. Four performances of about 30 minutes each. Couple, maybe 300 in each session. One of my friends saw a performance and asked me about my delivery of one of the songs and why I didn’t just “let loose.”

I actually thought I was giving a fairly impassioned delivery. Today, though, as I reflect more on it, I realize that maybe he saw something I didn’t.

Inhibition.

Sometimes it’s unconscious.

A fear to simply express that raw emotion. To feel. Really feel. To be me. Man, that is what the best music is able to do. It is so much more than technique or having a great voice – it is the ability to confidently deliver authentic emotions to your audience.

I have my excuses for yesterday. But I don’t want to use them.

I want to give an emotional delivery that moves people at the deepest level.

And I’m thankful for friends that will point things like that out to me.

Do you have people you can trust to be honest with you about your craft?

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