My partner is determined to have a singing career but he can't sing. Should I tell him or let him keep thinking he can make it in the business?
She bangs, she bangs. Oh, baby, when she moves, she moves. I’m having American Idol flashbacks with William Hung. Sometimes the incredibly bad singers can be the most entertaining ones. Although, where is he now? But you could also get a kick out of telling people your partner is Hung.
How serious is the dream? When you say career, is this like, YouTube “famous” or world tours opening for big-name musical acts? I think the music industry has changed enough that most people still need to have a regular job while making music a hobby on the sidelines. If he’s quit his job and going all in on music, then that’s a deeper conversation to have. But there are plenty of people who make terrible social media content and manage to find a following.
Unless you’re somehow connected to the dream – like expected to sing back-up or something – what does it really matter? There’s no harm in letting the music be a hobby and if money and fame come along with it, so be it. On the flip side, if he’s making videos on YouTube and they’re getting dozens of views instead of millions, then no harm no foul. The audience is telling him they’re not interested.
The good thing is reality checks are easy to come by on social media. Sure, you’ll have the usual applause from friends and family but when you open the comments section to the outside world, he’ll get the honest feedback he deserves -- not that he wants, that he deserves. Fortunately, people are critical and won’t hold back if they don’t know someone. If they like his music, they’ll tell him. If they don’t, they’ll tell him 10 times over. Content creators generally know what they’re getting into and are fully aware of how the mob will respond, good or bad.
Unless he’s dropping everything and buying a one-way ticket to Nashville and never coming back because the music is in him, I’m not sure this is really a problem. You can praise his efforts without giving false hope.