I started a Cover’s Experiment about a year ago.
The premise: I would film myself on my laptop, playing songs that inspired me and post them on youtube. Playing other people’s songs is something I love to do. I figured if I cranked out enough videos, something magical would happen.
It did. Very early on, in fact. My fourteenth video starred Eleanor by accident. She wandered into the shot of “Forget the Flowers” and made the performance magical.
I posted the video back in August. This week, the video was re-posted by some sites, including The San Francisco Globe. All of the sudden, my most-viewed video jumped from under a thousand to over twenty thousand within a few days. Pretty cool, eh?
My motivation for these videos was not to get lots of views. It was to do something scary. I’ve always felt that I have something to say as a writer, but I’ve lacked confidence when it comes to speaking, singing in front of people and especially seeing myself on film.
These videos are an opportunity to confront that fear.
The internet gives us all a chance to have fifteen minutes of fame. Maybe I just had mine. It’s been a thrill watching the view count rise this week, but that’s not the point.
I’m reminded of Rohan’s wonderful post, The Opposite of Viral. Rohan reminds me to keep creating pieces day after day, and remember that it’s about “slow organic growth,” not the fleeting fame that comes with virality.
It’s been fun getting fifteen minutes of small-time internet buzz this week. Now it’s time to dream up new videos, write, dig deeper, have fun and cultivate more slow organic growth.
PS Here’s a brand new cover video.
published .
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