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Alex Mills Song & Critique Review Video

It’s rehearsal, Tom says, so you poke around and try things out and see if you can take something that’s already pretty sweet, and make it even sweeter. And because it’s rehearsal, if something doesn’t work well — you don’t have to do it that way! Alex Mills, a Barbados artist, made a splash at […]

Multiple Lead Singers: Welch Brothers Makeover

Distraction, misdirection, shiny objects… it’s easy to lose focus on what’s important. So imagine your poor audience watching your show, never having seen you before, trying to figure out what’s going on. It can be tough for audiences to know what to pay attention to (they’re not musicians, after all) — so you need to […]

The Remedy: A Closing Moment Video Makeover

I like these guys and this song, ‘cuz well, I’m a sucker for a little southern rock! Because the songs starts ‘down’ and builds (Tom’s song rating might place it at a level 2, building to a level 4), I think it works great as a Closing Moment. You’ll see why as we get into […]

Donna Clark & Grant Harrison Song & Critique Review Video

Practice in “performance mode,”!  This will help you vocally as well as visually and musically. Singer Donna Clark drove in from Virginia with a dream in her heart and the desire to fight through her stage fright.  Although she had signed up to do a showcase piece, it wasn’t until she was at Bootcamp that […]

Joy Chadwell Song & Critique Review Video

You might say someone is in the groove or in the pocket when you’re referring to playing tight rhythmically. But you also need to be in the pocket when you’re talking about your style onstage! In this Bootcamp showcase, singer Joy Chadwell was looking and sounding a little unsure of exactly what style this song […]

Your Appeal When You Aren’t Playing Music

As an artist associated with a charity, you are typically going out to play a concert when you do your appeals. Whether it’s a full concert set, or even just a short 15-20 minute show, most of you wrap a song around your appeal. However, there are times when you have the opportunity to speak […]

Solveig and Stevie Song & Critique Review Video

With this folk pop song, Tom shows how an intro can be taken out of time to create some variation in the tempo of a song. He also talks about relationships between the singers and players onstage, movement, and non-verbal cues. Having the courage to take risks in your rehearsal means greater development as a […]

Tom Answers Your Questions: Tour Support Training

You probably have questions about the Tour Support Program, your appeal, and more. I want to answer them! Because if I can help you with what you do for your charity, you’ll get better response from your audiences, and (bottom line) more children will be sponsored. To get the ball rolling, I had a few […]

Jackson Thatcher Song & Critique Review Video

Most performers don’t realize their audience doesn’t know or understand everything they are doing or saying. When Jackson Thatcher performed at a Tom Jackson Bootcamp showcase recently, he assumed the audience knew who Jason Scheff was (bassist & singer for the band Chicago). So when speaking to your audience, Tom says, explain, make it interesting, […]

Emily Heggan Song & Critique Review Video

In this song, Tom demonstrates with an artist how the wrong song ending can leave your audience wondering whether or not they should applaud, and how the right song ending can set you up for a great reaction from the people watching you. Also, note the industry panel’s comments about getting input for your songs […]