Touring and Song Selection: A Musical Journey

When I first started touring, I didn't have much to work with.
I only had one record, so I just played that record. Then, when I made another record, I had two records.

• New Collaborations:
  When I made my second record, I was with a band called Frou Frou. We just played that record.

• The Growing Collection:
  With my third record, I then had:

  • One solo record
  • A Frou Frou record
  • My third record

At this point, I thought, "Oh, God, I've got all this stuff. How do I decide what to play?"

Finding the Right Balance

It felt kind of awkward throughout the tour, especially when I could sense the audience's reactions. Sometimes, you'd feel a slump, like "Oh, they didn't want to hear that one," or joy when they exclaimed, "Yay, we love this song."

• Feedback from the Audience:
  By the end of the tour, I figured out which songs got the "yay" response. However, it's also important to play songs that make you happy, because that's your show too!

Polling for Favorites

As I found it possible to crowdsource this information about what people like to hear on tour, I began doing polls.

• The Process:
  • I provide a list of a hundred songs and ask fans to tell me their favorites.
  • Then, I play the top songs in each city.

But I also make sure to play half of what I want to play.

• Song Breakdown:
  • Typically, I end up playing around 20 songs:
    • 10 songs they voted for
    • 5 songs I choose for myself

Interestingly, the song choices vary from city to city and around the world.

Global Influences

• For example, one song might have been featured in a Cornetto advert in Italy, while another might have appeared in The OC in the States but didn't reach China.
• A particular song may have been a hit in China because of a collaboration I did there.

Engaging the Fanbase

Using these tools that fans help build, or building your own, allows for great involvement.

• Setting the Stage:
  At the start of the concert, I often say:
  "You had the opportunity to vote, and if you didn't vote, then this is entirely your fault that I'm not playing the songs you wanted! I've done my best to be democratic about it, and this is what it's going to be."

This usually gets a good laugh, and everyone enjoys the experience!