Paul McCartney Reveals What He Tells Himself to Cure His Stage Fright
Even legendary musical artists get nervous before going out on stage. Paul McCartney has performed for millions worldwide but still had to overcome stage fright like almost everybody else. To counter his nerves, McCartney told himself something that helped cure his stage fright later in his career.
Paul McCartney believed audiences initially hated him
While Paul McCartney exhibits confidence on stage, he initially had nerves, especially in the early days of The Beatles. In an interview with the Fly on the Wall podcast with Dana Carvey and David Spade, the “Maybe I’m Amazed” singer said his nerves came from believing that the audience hated him and he had to win over the crowd with his performance.
“When we first started, I used to get really very nervous,” McCartney said. “I was trying to think why because, you know, we were quite popular in the beginning even. My thought was, I’d look at the audience and think, ‘They all hate me. So, I’ve got to do something good to make them like me.’ That was where my nerves came from. They’re all looking at me like, ‘What’s he got?’”
Paul McCartney cured his stage fright with one revelation
Later in his career, Paul realized that these people paid for tickets to see him perform. He is starting with an advantage because they all love him and are excited to see him. He said his nerves went away after this revelation because he could focus on giving the crowd an excellent show.
“Over the years, I suddenly realized at one point, ‘Wait a minute. They’ve all paid to come and see me. So they probably like me,’” McCartney shared. “And once I realized that they probably like me, I really relaxed. So, yeah, I’m quite relaxed now, and if I do some new stuff or try a trick, I’m relaxed enough to do it.”
McCartney loves to embrace the crowd
McCartney is one of the most famous and beloved artists around the world. Even at 80, the former Beatle continues to sell out shows worldwide. He told the podcast that he likes to stand on stage, doing nothing, simply basking in the audience’s embrace whenever he performs somewhere new.
“What I started doing a couple of years ago was…coming to an audience that really loves you, for instance, if you haven’t been there before, which I love, when you go to a town where you’ve never been because they’re more excited, I would feel this energy coming off of them, ‘Oh god, this is so great,’” he explained. “So I started off than saying, ‘Just a minute. You know what, this is all so cool. I’m gonna take a minute to take all of this in for myself.’ Then, I walk off the microphone and just sort of stand there…I love it. It’s a great thing with the audience.”
McCartney acknowledges that it’s rather vain to stand on a stage and have a crowd cheer for him, but he also knows that the people paid to come to see him. He’s confident he can stand on stage and do nothing, and people will still applaud.
