Liz Loughrey- PRESHOW RITUALS

In this Preshow Rituals segment, the soul artist, Liz Loughrey, shares what she does before every show. You can check out her rituals, after the break.

My pre-show ritual starts with as much rest as I can get. Coffee is, unfortunately, my last resort because it dries out my voice, so actual sleep is key! I don’t know about you but when I wake up my voice sounds like it didn’t get the memo.. so I’ll do a 10-minute vocal exercise to get everything working properly. I don’t mess when it comes to the vocal chords. I avoid dairy (almond milk saves lives), drink lots of tea with honey, and use a steam inhaler once or twice a day. There’s nothing worse than getting off a dry airplane and trying to sing a few hours later… that’s where steaming makes a huge difference for me.

It’s impossible to avoid the stress of multitasking and last minute adjustments, but thankfully I’ve got a great team and an amazing band that make the process pretty easy and that allows me to get focused on my performance. I’m always over-analyzing the setlist and thinking through the flow in my head. That helps me get in the zone, but my favorite show moments are when the good vibes take over and things don’t go according to plan anyway.

I try to keep my pre-show vocal warm ups on the lighter side to save my power for the show. If I’m lucky, my vocal coach & voice doctor Brandon Brophy (Singer’s Edge) might be in town to come backstage and work my voice in whatever areas are needed.

When it’s time to hit the stage, my band and I get pumped with a little speech. Usually a few hype words from my guitarist Adrian X, although my bass player Alex is definitely in the running after his speech at our last show. The band hits the stage a bit before I do which gives me some time to get centered.

Immediately before I hit the stage I say a prayer of gratitude for the opportunity I’ve been given to impact people through music. It’s all about bringing people together and that’s what I hope to make people feel, and remember when they leave my show.

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