Armchair quarterback: Voice edition
Ah, the armchair quarterback. We have them in every aspect of life, don’t we?
Certainly in the social media area, where we are behind the screen, we see it more and more. Even in real life, in the room where it happens, someone somewhere is armchair quarterbacking a singer.
How do I know? I have experienced it as a singer; I have watched it happen to singers; I have seen what it does to a singer & what it doesn’t do for a singer. Spoiler alert: neither is helpful.
So, what is an armchair quarterback as it pertains to the singer, on social media?
To me, and these are just my observations, armchair quarterbacking is someone with “supposed expertise” who has decided to criticize the singing of someone by comment or “reaction to video” by pointing out all the things that are “wrong”, without any positive ways of improving or changing or building or developing said “flaws”.
If you are going to comment on someone’s voice publicly, and you have a position of authority in some way or on some level, then get out of the armchair, get out of the quarterback position, and get back on the sidelines and teach or coach something positive, something constructive, something tangible.
If you have to tell me how important you are, or how much you know, and you cannot extend your so-called expertise to acknowledge a singer working toward something, then perhaps just keep scrolling. The amount of vulnerability and at the same time, GUTS, it takes to share your work in progress online, DESERVES some respect whether you agree or not to the singer’s approach, ability or execution.
Long before social media, back in the dinosaur era, this kind of armchair diagnosis was happening in the studio, and in the rehearsal room, during a masterclass, an audition, backstage after a performance - and it still does. We see it everywhere. Still.
I have no issue with constructive observation and criticism, as long as it has a tangible way to improve/change/adjust. If you don’t have the tools, knowledge, understanding to HELP, then you aren’t. Often, whether you mean to or not (and that’s a loaded statement isn’t it?), you are NOT helping. By criticizing without construction, you are making it about you. If you are commenting on a singer’s process in the studio, on the technical structure of their voice, on a clip online, then make it about THEM.
Most every singer, who has an artistic temperament is going to want fussy detail adjustments. However, what they want is HOW to change it; WHY they should change it; WHAT they need to do to get there.
If you don’t have that knowledge….take a seat back in that armchair and rethink your response. If you don’t have a way of constructively offering your expertise, then figure that out so you can.
Blanket statements are irrelevant to the artist. Specific nuance and how to achieve it, is everything.
Every artist, no matter their discipline, has or is developing their process. Those of us in positions of holding space for that development need to remember that each process is as unique as the artist standing in front of you.
If something isn’t working, figure out why. If you already know why, then share with that artist what they can try to do, in order to discover an easier path.
Ridicule, dismissive language, bullying, mind games - are criminal. Period. Full stop. They reveal more about the person speaking and doing them, than the artist they are chastising. Spoiler alert: it isn’t anything positive or productive. Stop it. Do something else.
If you have great ears - amazing! If we are going to hold space in the studio, from the podium, on the masterclass stage, in the rehearsal process, in an audition, we better! HOWEVER, do we know how to get across to an artist, what we want to change/develop/adjust? Our job is to stay present, and not to assume or become dismissive of the work an artist has brought with them. Perhaps they aren’t ready…yet. Maybe they never will be. Perhaps they haven’t found it yet…. Telling them that they haven’t is not our job. Our job is NOW. If that singer is given tools to find positive adjustment NOW, watch them make the adjustments now and moving forward to the best of their abilities.
If they are given nothing but negativity and no way out, watch them shrivel up, second guess themselves, and lose any sense of their artistic soul. And frankly, shame on you.
Every one of us is accountable for the artist’s well being. That doesn’t mean you blow sunshine up their ass. It doesn’t mean you tell them everything is perfect. It does mean, however, that you can acknowledge their work. That acknowledgement goes such a long way. It then means, that artist is open to adjustment and detail - because honestly? They want to be! No artist wants to be told they are fabulous with no notes! Every artist wants to develop, improve, find more, create more - from their technical physicality to their facility with language, style, musical acumen, dramatic intelligence, dramatic physicality and more.
Telling someone they are flat or sharp, that they are too short, too fat, too old, too young, have no top, have no bottom, have no resonance, have no technique - from the comfort of the armchair - is telling all of us what YOU don’t know; What YOU cannot explain; What YOU don’t have tools or vocabulary or true expertise in translating for that particular artist.
Getting out of the armchair position requires energy. It requires work. Isn’t that what we expect from our singers? Why wouldn’t we expect that from ourselves? It also requires some humility, some moments of saying “I don’t know”, some self-reflection on how to choose to speak or interpret. Saying “I don’t know but I am going to find out” is empowering for us and for the the singers in our care.
Singers, you need to find someone who is willing to acknowledge WHO you are and WHAT you need. Then you need to have someone to share with you the tools to find it. That doesn’t mean you leave a session thinking you are perfect and ready for the next big thing; it means you walk away EMPOWERED TO WORK ON YOUR CRAFT! That you are finding YOU and you have someone who recognizes that and is willing and ABLE to share tangible knowledge to help you develop even further.
Singers with other singers - release the armchair head games with each other. If you don’t like something, scroll on by, or acknowledge the willingness of that artist to share their work. Don’t go backstage after a performance. If you do, you KNOW the vulnerability of an artist after a performance!! YOU have been there! If you have nothing constructive to say, a simple “congrats” or “bravo” is enough. Or don’t go backstage. You can still be honest without being rude, petty or worse. Peer to peer or colleague to colleague is simple respect. Nothing more, nothing less.
If you cannot explain it, demonstrate it, or discuss it in language that the artist understands, then stop, and rethink your motives. Yes, it might take a minute more, but trust me, that artist is going to make so much more progress than criticizing or belittling them. I mean, duh, but seriously, it’s still being done.
If you choose to remain in your armchair, that’s fine. Your choice. Just be sure you remember where you are.
If you are a performer, read the comments with several grains of salt. Always consider the source. Don’t assume that criticism from someone who “looks important” actually matters, if they aren’t able and willing to share ways of adjustment. Again, they are telling you so much about themselves and revealing so much about what they are and who they are. Pay attention to that.
Finally, don’t armchair quarterback yourself. Learn how to objectively discern what you are doing. Know it isn’t about good/bad; right/wrong. It’s about what you are/where you are/what you are developing and exploring and working to achieve over the continuum. Nothing stays the same. Challenge yourself with that. It’s okay to celebrate the wins, no matter how big or small they are. They are wins. Period.
It’s never too late to make a change. It’s never too late to ask questions, to take a risk, to take agency. You are not being difficult! Ask the questions of the people you trust who will give you answers, and then give you tangible, on the field drills and cues to develop fully. Those of us who are truly about the why and how and the what, are not intimidated by the questions. We just want you to find the behavior and make it yours!
Sometimes, we have to be in the presence of an armchair quarterback. Recognize them. Acknowledge who they are. This allows a boundary in yourself to not let things shift you unintentionally. Just remember to lean into those who are not in the armchair. Don’t waste your energy even if you need to be in the presence of one. You have to learn to scroll on by too - literally and metaphorically.
Learn to respond as you would want to be responded to. Learn how to ask questions that are tangible. Learn to discern between the armchair and the action. Keep it clear. Keep it honest. Keep it tangible and always trust your gut. Oh, yes, and keep it kind. Keep it productive. Be a decent human. Your humanity informs your artistry. Lack of it does too…but that’s another blog….
with fondness & fierceness,
