Tasha Layton came to national attention on American Idol (Season 9) when selected by the judges to go to Hollywood. Tasha then toured as a backing vocalist with Katy Perry.
This article comes from The Ultimate Guide to Singing, the most comprehensive book on the market for covering on all aspects of singing.
- Take lessons. Refine your skills — the best way to be discovered is to be good.
- Know the timeline. Make sure that you pay attention to when you actually need to audition; many shows are cast and filmed far in advance.
- Repertoire. Learn as many songs as possible from different genres and perform these as much as you can. Shows may give you a list of songs from which you have to choose (this has to do with rights). The more songs you know, the more likely you’ll be comfortable when they hand you their list.
- Record. I initially wanted to record for creativity’s sake and to produce a “reel” to hand to vocal contractors. Through recording, I identified my strengths and weaknesses. When you watch a show like American Idol it’s clear that some people don’t come across the way they think they are coming across — recording is a great way to sort out this issue.
- 100% Kindness. You never know who is watching. Be kind, don’t put others down and always project positive energy. I have a friend who was performing a very small show in a restaurant and it would have been easy for them to think, “I don’t have to do my best.” It turns out that there was a huge music critic in the audience. In the reality TV experience, the cameras are on you all the time.
Tasha Layton is a Nashville based singer-songwriter. She came to national attention on American Idol (Season 9) when selected by the judges to go to Hollywood. Tasha toured as a backing vocalist with Katy Perry and was an active session and touring singer in Los Angeles for over 10 years. She teaches voice and theology at Trevecca University. http://www.tashalayton.com
