A few months ago or so, I got a message from a friend saying he was hosting a date on Levi the Poet's "Don't Sink" tour in Beaumont and that he wanted my band to open for him. As a spoken word artist, I have always admired Levi. He's one of the reasons I started writing in the first place. So, I discussed it with the band and we decided it was an opportunity we had to take, no matter how unprepared we were to go through with it.
While we were setting up, Levi came in to greet us and check out the venue. We were in a closed down bar that was on the second story of a beautiful, vintage-looking building. The room was completely quiet as we set up. Levi had planned to set up his projector and test out his audio/video track from his MacBook for his set. He was traveling alone so my boyfriend was his only sound tech helping him.
Before our set, Levi brewed everyone attending the show some coffee and we chatted in a small, quiet room that had no AC whatsoever. It was an awkward, stuffy, uncomfortable time for us, but everything changed when we began to play. I'd like to say that we were brilliant, that we sounded beautiful and that Levi cried tears of joy for he had been inspired by our musical talent. I'd like to say that the microphone didn't keep cutting out at random times, or that Levi's projector wasn't left on and shining "Levi's MacBook Pro" on our faces.
Unfortunately, Levi did not cry but instead apologized for leaving his projector on. Also, we sucked.
But, it was completely okay. We enjoyed ourselves anyways. In fact, I got to see this type of art on a completely different level than I had before. Levi began to speak about why this type of art is important, and what its function is in the body of Christ. This was when I could swear Levi read my mind.
"If you tell people flat out "Jesus loves you", then that doesn't really affect them in any way, because those words have no meaning. But, if you place a narrative around it, add a story or give reason behind those words, then that's when you affect them."
He used our band's lyrics and a few other artists' as an example, which made me grateful that I had taken the opportunity to play the show in the first place. Those words alone help me cope with failure, knowing that I had attempted to achieve the same goal as my artistic role model. It helps to know that I was a part of something that could potentially affect someone's life just as other artists have affected mine. Plus, I had a huge burrito afterwards, which also helped me cope with our sucky performance.
There are many times in my life where I doubt the path I'm taking. Many times, too often, I see myself worrying about money, status and my desires. But, when you meet people like this, or hear words like I did, that's when you begin to think "Yes, this is it. This is what I need". I hope that everybody, someday, has that same experience.
