Top 10 Songs You Should NEVER Audition With

there's an open call for cats i'm thinking we go down there sing memories and make complete fools of ourselves what do you say no no no no no no welcome to ms mojo and today we're counting down our picks for the top 10 songs you should never audition with which i bet you hear a lot of that song that the impossible dream from la mancha and being alive from company yes it's a safe and standard choice [Music] [Music] for this list we'll be looking at the worst songs to use when trying to put your best foot or voice forward whether it's too overdone too hard to play or just too hard to sing under pressure it counts obviously there are exceptions to every rule but in general it's a good idea to avoid these which song would you never audition with let us know in the comments below if you like what you're hearing be sure to check out the full song at the link below [Music] number 10 a song from the show you're auditioning for feel free to sing along if you know the words okay it's a given but an important one choosing a song from the show you're auditioning for can go wrong for so many reasons [Music] wow thank you johnny the team watching you audition probably already has a certain creative approach in mind for the show and if you miss the mark with a song from the show they might feel like you're not the right fit [Music] also if you audition with a song from the show you're probably going to pick a song for a role you want doing this might pigeonhole you in the director's mind and they might not consider you for something else your best bet is to go with a similar style but avoid anything from the show itself it's hard to believe that i couldn't see that you were always right beside me this feeling number nine defying gravity wicked [Music] we all know wicked an iconic show with iconic performances that should definitely be avoided in the audition room we almost went with popular for this entry which you should probably also avoid but defying gravity is really the killer with that said if you know for a fact that you can absolutely nail this number on the first run we won't stop you i'm through with playing by the rules of someone else's game but when you're following in the footsteps of adina menzel stephanie j block and the like you better be sure of your skills under pressure [Music] [Music] it's always best to avoid anything with such high standards already set [Music] [Applause] number eight think of me the phantom of the opera andre this is doing nothing for my nerves she's very pretty think of me think of me fondly when we've said goodbye if we're being realistic you should probably avoid anything from phantom of the opera like the plague all right i believe in you and no one can sing this song better than you can even michael crawford go get him it's overdone it's over the top and it's tough to nail when you're nervous but if we had to pick one song to throw by the wayside we'll go with think of me imagine me trying too hard to put you from my mind it's christine's first big solo in the show and with that stature comes a lot of pressure the song involves a ton of vocal leaps stays pretty high for the entirety of its run and has one of the most difficult outros we've ever heard if you absolutely must do think of me just promise us you won't tackle that ending alright [Music] [Applause] number seven satisfied hamilton [Music] as soon as the hamilton cast recording became available for mass consumption every director in the musical theater world just knew they'd be hearing the songs at auditions for years to come in fact in just a few short years many hamilton songs became ones to avoid watching it [Applause] [Music] we definitely think you should leave burn on the cutting room floor but nothing's worse than picking satisfied so i'm the one for one cause i'm the oldest and the wittiest and the gossip new york city is insidious and alexander is penniless that doesn't and it's always best to leave songs created for actors of color to the performers they're intended for but even if the song is right for you satisfied is one that's tough to perfect [Music] with its combination of belting wrapping and acting you need to be positive that you can absolutely kill it [Music] number six bring him home les miserables with its big emotions and grand musical stylings theater kids all over the world fell in love with les mis from an early age but just because you love something doesn't mean you should bring it into the audition room i don't know how i didn't get in i mean how do you beat a monologue from equus and 16 bars from les mis you're great kid they made a mistake you don't want to be the 10th person at said audition to break out on my own [Music] while we're on the subject it's also probably a good idea to leave bring him home out of the equation the song requires a strong start right in those few notes that if you're even the least bit nervous it's bound to show instead go with something that gives you a little more breathing room literally here [Music] number five waving through a window dear evan hansen before i even turn the key before i make the mistake before i lead with the worst of me sometimes it's a great idea to sing a song from a newer musical for an audition it's modern it's fresh and not a ton of people have had a chance to sing it yet but in the case of waving through a window from dear evan hansen it might not be the best choice [Music] [Music] then platt essentially made evan hansen what it and he is and waving through a window is without a doubt the most popular song in the show if you're some secret savant who can blow ben out of the water by all means be our guest as a general rule though it's always better to avoid the ones with iconic performances attached to them [Music] number four don't rain on my parade funny girl don't tell me not to live just sit and put up life's candy and the sun's a ball of butter don't bring around a cloud to rain on my parade if ben platt is strongly tied to evan hansen barbara streisand is basically married to fanny bryce your rendition of don't reign on my parade was flawed you totally lack barbara's emotional depth thus pretty much everything she sings in the musical funny girl should be avoided and none more so than don't rain on my parade don't tell me not to live to sit in potter life's candy and the sun's up don't bring around a cloud to rain on my parade when you're going into an audition you want to make sure you stand out while also showing off what you can do hey [Music] the last thing you want is to be compared to someone who's not even auditioning for the role and unfortunately if you choose don't rain on my parade it's going to be near impossible to not compare you to baths number three being alive company someone to hold you too close [Music] someone to hurt you too deep ah sondheim in any other context we'd be raving about how much we love his difficult and unique arrangements when it comes to an audition room however you need the accompanist on your side from the get-go so you should probably avoid incredibly difficult to play songs like another 100 people another 100 people just got off of the train and came up to the ground while another 100 people just got off of the bus and down looking around at another hundred people who got off of the plane and are looking at us who got off of the train and the plane and the bus may be yesterday but you should definitely avoid masterpieces like being alive someone to force you to care someone to make you come through who'll always be there as frightened as you of being alive not only does it have that signature sondheim stamp of complexity but it's near impossible to separate yourself from the master himself unless you can blow it out of the water people will likely leave talking about how good sondheim is rather than how good you are [Music] [Applause] number two any jason robert brown song every musical theater kid worth their salt loves a good jason robert brown tune it means cancel all your parties forget your big grade settle down now it means the crowds will not be cheering so despite what you've been hearing you can lay down your space which means his songs are frequently used in auditions emphasis on the frequent i've got a singular impression things are moving too fast we can guarantee your casting director has already heard everything from the last five years and probably most of songs for a new world that day maybe twice [Music] like sondheim jason robert brown pieces are incredibly hard to sight read you don't want to be a kathy in this situation and make the pianist hate you so might as well choose something else why did i pick these shoes why did i pick this song why did i pick this career why does this pianist hate me before we unveil our top pick here are a few honorable mentions anything goes anything goes this song ain't the top good authors too who once do better words now [Music] let it go frozen we're begging you let this one go [Applause] [Music] [Applause] if i were a rich man fiddler on the roof you'd be richer if you didn't use this song for auditions we'll land like a trumpet on the ear as if to say he lives a wealthy man on the steps of the palace into the woods even in fairy tale form sondheim should be avoided all right what do you want have to make a decision why not stay and be caught should i give that a thought what would be his response but then what if he knew who i am when i know that i'm not what he thinks that he wants this is the moment jekyll and hyde your audition is not the moment for this one [Music] before we continue be sure to subscribe to our channel and ring the bell to get notified about our latest videos you have the option to be notified for occasional videos or all of them if you're on your phone make sure you go into your settings and switch on notifications number one memory cats i can sing you can all right summer belt it memory okay good there was really only one choice for the number one spot you knew it we knew it sure it's an absolutely gorgeous song and without a doubt the most beautiful song in the show but let's be real that's not exactly a unique opinion and you definitely wouldn't be the first person to take it into an audition and now first grader martin tobias and his mother will perform oh boy this is a popular song memory from cats besides being overdone this song requires a ton of emotional investment you can't just sing memory you have to feel it [Music] all alone in the mood [Music] i can smile at the old days i was beautiful the show is literally about cats so getting the audience to care about the characters takes some serious acting chops our best advice let the cat keep your tongue if you're planning to audition with this one [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] do you agree with our picks let us know in the comments and hey if you're a fan of the song playing right now be sure to check out the music video for it right i finally here away out of my comfort zone and now that i take a place where it felt unknown to me

Channel: MsMojo

Views: 125,054

Rating: 4.9199781 out of 5

Keywords: audition, being alive, bring him home, cats, defying gravity, don't rain on my parade, hamilton, jason robert brown, list, memories, mojo, msmojo, music, musical, satisfied, songs, songs not to audition with, songs you should never audition with, think of me, top 10, watch mojo, watchMojo, waving through a window, wicked, worst audition songs

Id: opXRlYln-rE

Length: 18min 36sec (1116 seconds)

Published: Wed Sep 15 2021