So many people have heard about Deion Sanders, the Hall of Fame football player who became a coach. He coached at Jackson State University for three seasons, amassing a record of 27-6, before taking over as head coach at the University of Colorado in 2023. But before he made the move to coaching, Sanders was an NFL Football television analyst. I loved watching his Sunday evening Primetime highlight show and hearing him and LaDainian Tomlinson talk about player performances and even interview players after outstanding games. When talking about a game or a player’s performance, he would say something that always stays with me.
‘Not everyone is ready for the moment,” Sanders would say when a player would not rise to the occasion and perform well when the game was in their hands. The player was challenged, and they were not ready or had not done enough to prepare to execute the job of their position; when the pressure was high, things became heated, and the game was on the line. That is the moment.
In our lives, we all have those moments, whether it is at work, with family or with friends. In my life, I know my moments related to music are coming very soon. My performances and my music will be heard by thousands of people. I will need to deliver strong live vocal and stage performances, as well as video performances for song clips as well as social media clips. A bit of holiday excess of food and adult beverages can make you unready, very quickly. Each day requires decisions, discipline and willpower. Becoming ‘ready for the moment’ has to be on your mind all the time, because life can throw you off track without a moment’s notice.
While out and making good choices to get ‘ready,’ I saw a young woman preparing to busk on a busy pedestrian corner in Broadbeach on the Gold Coast. We were headed home at that point, and she wasn’t going on for another 10 minutes. I asked her name, and she kindly told me her stage name, Inoxia, so I could look up online later. WOW! I was quickly reminded of what exactly getting ready for the moment looks like for a music performer. She seems to have busked all along the eastern seaboard of Australia, where she has been developing her craft of vocal performance, stage presence and audience engagement. She has nearly 4 million followers on TikTok, with more than 33 million likes on her videos https://www.tiktok.com/@inoxiasounds. She has nearly 300,000 followers on Instagram and nearly 500 posts https://www.instagram.com/inoxia_/. Inoxia has just released a new single, ‘Lie,’ which is a banger! I hope you check it out. And thank you, Inoxia, for showing me what it REALLY means to be on that grind and hustle, getting ready for the moment. I know your moment is coming AND you will be ready.
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