Out of everything that may scare certain teenagers, there’s one thing that pretty unanimously sends shivers down every young person’s spine: putting yourself out there authentically on social media.
Over the past year, juniors Liam Guttman and William Mckiernan found the courage to do what scares almost all of us by getting vulnerable and posting themselves singing and playing guitar on their TikTok pages.
“I was for sure scared thinking about how people might react. At first, I kept it pretty quiet that I had an account, but people found it through their For You Page, and I kind of got used to it,” Guttman said.
Mckiernan agreed: “It was definitely nerve wracking the first time I hit that post button,” he said.
Although hitting post haunted them at first, both boys have received great feedback on their skills, pushing them to continue to post. Mckiernan and Guttman are entirely self taught, beginning their guitar journeys two years ago.
“My dad bought me a $60 guitar from Facebook Marketplace two summers ago. I had always been into music and singing, so I thought, why not?” Guttman said.
The pair mostly find inspiration from country artists like Zach Bryan and Tyler Childers, often doing covers of their songs. Guttman also writes and performs his own music online and at open mics.
Last summer, Guttman performed a lot at The Red House next to Salem Valley Farms and he recently performed his own music at The Barn in Groton.
“The first time I got up on stage I was so nervous. When I got there and saw everyone in the crowd I was like ‘no way I’m doing this.’ But once I introduced myself and began the fear went away because I was focused on the music. It’s
gotten easier to get up there every time,” Guttman said.
The pair are both pushed by the positive feedback they’ve received.
“I like people knowing that I can play music. Everyone has been really supportive,” Mckiernan said.
“I also feel like, in general, music is a huge balance of emotions. Depending on how I’m feeling or how I want to feel, I put on that certain kind of beat and it’s like an escape” Guttman said.
In the future, Mckiernan and Guttman plan on sticking with guitar and singing and hopefully continuing to perform for people.
“It’d be really cool to join a band in the future. My dad was in a band forever and it seems really awesome,” Mckiernan said.
The pair prove that our fears of putting ourselves out there are often unfounded.
