being in the talent industry with no talent!

I love being in an industry full of talented people. Everyday, I am impressed by my peers who have voices of angels, kill it on a guitar, or can put together any sort of production. Honestly, I live in envy. I have been deemed by my father as one of the world's worst singers- it's okay dad you are right. In fact, he is not the only one who believes this. Corey Smith, who currently holds my title of most times seen in a live performance (6 times so far), would agree to the fullest extent. Each time I have seen him, I believe we have made eye contact while he laughed at me for how horrendously and loudly I sing along. Unfortunately, I have been gifted with an insane memory for songs and an insane lack of necessary performance skills.

I began thinking about this a couple weeks ago when I picked up my very old, very out of tune guitar that lives in the corner of my room. I pick it up every so often to prove to myself I can sort of still strum a few basic chords. This time, I opened the chord progressions for "Spring Into Summer", a current favorite. I haven't even attempted to read a tab sheet since 7th grade guitar class. I sat in my living room with no one home and giggled at myself, probably a bit embarrassed by the fact that I will never have the sweet voice of Lizzy McAlpine. I feared that I was genuinely talentless.

Well, crap. I guess there goes my chance in the music business. No one will want me to manage their band if I can't mix their next record, too!

This is not the first time this thought has run through my mind. I have never been the funniest, most athletic, or best at anything in most rooms I have been in. This is the sort of talent I envy, one where you can reap the benefits of your talent in a more physical manner. For someone to tell you how musically talented you are, or end up with a record deal. To run a 5k and beat your PR, or win an Olympic gold medal. To tell a joke and make the room laugh, or perform on SNL. No matter to what degree this version of talent extends, it is more visible to others.

This sounds a little dramatic, and it probably is, but it does actually bother me when someone asks "What's your hidden talent?" and the best I can come up with is "Um, I am kind of artsy sometimes?" (this is actually true and I have to start giving myself more credit for it). I have plenty of amazing qualities that I have been blessed with. I am a great leader, which requires an abundance of traits in itself. I am smart, I attend a great university and make good grades. However, I have never considered these "talents" of mine. They are just things I do, they are not extraordinary.

Okay, boohoo. This is where Kendall has to get over herself. Girl, who cares?

Let's prompt the question, does it matter if I "talentless"? The obvious and quick answer is no. The longer answer is no, but you have got to find what you have to offer. I have talked to countless industry people who are in the positions they hold because they "tried the music thing, didn't work out, now I am doing this." They have titles as industry professionals because of who they met while on tour, or recording, or trying to, and pivoted to something else for longevity. There is nothing wrong with this, I admire it. This will never be the position I find myself in, however.

To remind myself that I will have a career, even if I can not rip the solo to "Free Bird", I think of the first industry professional I ever looked up to. This guy is absolutely insane. He knows more about the state of the music business than I think most record label presidents do. He genuinely helps artists grow and is able to maintain personal relationships with them. He does it all. He is already making it big, but I will not be surprised if this guy is the face of the industry one day. But man, he can not sing worth anything. I remember seeing a video of him goofing off, playing guitar and singing with an artist that I liked who he was also supporting at the time. It is awful. The confidence was there, but he was not getting on a stage anywhere anytime soon. My spirits immediately lift.

Being surrounded by people who can take multiple paths in the music industry may never be easier. I may always be jealous of talented people. But, I have learned enough self awareness and confidence to know what I am good at. One of these is helping others. I do not care in what capacity, I really just love the feeling of being helpful. I have learned how much this clicks with the music industry. For every person who has musical talent but also knows the business, there are five other talented people who do not know squat about the business. And I get the incredible opportunity to help these people advance their careers and see the outcomes of the seeds that I planted in them. For every rockstar, there is a team who helped them do it. That Grammy or platinum record didn't come from an artist alone, it's a shared trophy and the visual reward I have been searching for so long. Maybe it'll look like I have some talent!

And to wrap this up, I would like to leave everyone with a fun fact. Going back to that Corey Smith thing. In 2020, he released a live album from a Buckhead Theatre show that I happened to be in attendance of. In the recording of "Every Dawg", you can pretty distinctly hear my screaming and hollering from the front row, especially if you know my voice and concert habits well. I like to point this out just in case Corey ever wanted to give me royalties from the back up singing on that track.