Ditched my dream of being a musician after bombing an open mic in Austin

I was 22 and thought I had the whole singer-songwriter thing figured out. Practiced for weeks, drove 3 hours to Austin, and got on stage at this little dive bar on 6th Street. First chord I hit, my guitar string snapped and I just froze, like a total deer in the headlights. I mumbled through half a song before walking off, and that was it, I never picked up a guitar again. Anyone else have a moment where one bad night killed a whole dream?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_elliot2d ago

One bad open mic ain't a real reason to quit, that's just giving up.

kimr742d ago

Oh man, I gotta push back on that. I've seen way too many people burn out hard because they kept forcing themselves through something that wasn't working. One bad open mic could be a sign of bigger issues, like anxiety, bad fit, or just hating the scene. Sometimes quitting isn't giving up, it's realizing you're wasting energy on something that doesn't serve you. I'd rather see someone step back and regroup than keep hitting a wall until they hate themselves. Not every bad night is a lesson, sometimes it's just a bad night that deserves to be left behind.

grays132d ago

@the_elliot says one bad open mic ain't a real reason to quit, but my guitar string snapping at the worst possible moment felt like the universe personally telling me to give up. I get what @kimr74 is saying though, sometimes quitting clears the way for something better. For me it was just pure embarrassment, like I could feel every single person in that bar watching me fall apart in real time. I swear my hands still get clammy thinking about that night, and it was 15 years ago. Now I just stick to singing in the shower where nobody has to hear my cracked voice.