Open Mic Night At Coffee Cabana: My Subculture

For young musicians and myself, there is nothing greater than experiencing open mic night. Coffee cabana hosts open mic nights where musicians can come and perform their music. Coffee cabana is a typical coffee shop with tables, chairs, and sofas. On Thursday nights, coffee cabana has it all: the people, the food and drinks, and most importantly--the music. Singers and musicians come to relax and let the good times roll as we get to perform three songs.

It is mutual among all of us performers at open mic that we must show enthusiasm, and respect for the current performer. Often time this can include tapping our feet, singing along (if we know the lyrics), and certainly clapping real loud at the end of a performance. It is a proper trait to at least act as if we are enjoying the music. Each performer gets three songs, but these songs must be limited to fifteen minutes. It is understood that we should pick our songs so we can get through them quickly so every one can have a turn at open mic.

Musicians at open mic share the same language as well. Often you will hear some guitarist say, "nice lick", 0r , "I dig your solo man." Occasionally we will also discuss what key a song is in or what chords make up the song. We will also discuss our influences. We will sing our covers of songwriters such as The Beatles, Billy Joel, The Eagles.

Musicians from all over the valley travel to open mic night to gather together with fellow musicians and to feel the thrill of performing their own music. Behaviors, phrases, and rules are apart of the open mic life whether it is at Coffee Cabana or any other coffee place.