What the Folk!

Hi all!

I'm Sara, and hail from "that place no-one's even f****** heard of" . I'm a laggard when it comes to the Conchords; truthfully I didn't pay too much attention to them a few years ago when they were making headlines.
But last year I had my own experience of trying to "make it" in America, and I failed miserably. So I decided to watch the show out of a need to find something amusing which plays on the NZ-US dynamic, and which would soothe my own harsh, miserable reality of failure. The experiences I had in America obviously changed me for the better, because it was automatically comforting and now I absolutely love the Conchords for both their songs and their storytelling! Combine that with my love of articulation and voices and other such things, and I'm sold!

I probably won't be posting too much as I'm mainly here to browse the mass of forum posts detailing everything I missed, but I'll pop up every now and again.

Hi there, IronicSara! Welcome to the forum.

Hello, IronicSara. I'm intrigued. Are you a performer/artist or was your attempt in the business arena? I'm sorry it didn't work out, but I'm glad you can view the experience as a positive one and the Conchords were there to buoy your spirit! They often lift mine.

If I may...why are you so ironic, Sara? I enjoy all types of irony...from the biting and sarcastic all the way to mild clever t-shirt slogan quips like, "Avoid cliches like the plague."

I hope you enjoy the forum, and please jump in anytime with your comments, musings and opinions.

Hi IronicSara! Looking forward to hearing more from you- enjoy the board!

Hallooo!
I don't know what your arena is (Acting? Singing? Something totally non-showbusiness?) If you really want to make it in the US you can't give up! Success is 1% inspiration, 99% perspiration, and all that. Like most successful creatives, the Conchords were active for YEARS, perfecting their craft, before anyone started paying serious attention - as you'll see when you start digging around in the forum!
Anyway, I'll shut up now, since I don't really know what I'm talking about! But Welcome! Nice to meet you (do tell more...)

Hey IronicSara! Welcome!

Hey IronicSara! I'm also intrigued as to what you were trying to "make it big" at? And you're from NZ as well? What part?

Welcome, IronicSara!
From someone who's been in all aspects of the business for a slew of years, I say never give up. You may have to adapt to find a way to make a living doing what you love, but keep at it! It's so rewarding!

I do look forward to hearing more about your US adventures, and what area you attempted.

Hi IronicSara!

Hiya and welcome, IronicSara!

Wow, many questions and replies and such! Thank you!

I appreciate irony in all its forms so hence the username. There's nothing too profound about why I chose it really. Although all living things seem to come with an embedded irony, but I digress.

I'm in Auckland at the moment, but originally hail from a small rural town. I spent 3 months in Wellington a couple of years ago and they were best 3 months of my life!

I'm musically untalented and haven't acted since high school (that's a definite relief to the human race, trust me). I originally went to the US on a 12-month visa and hoped to get into either radio/journalism/PR/marketing/publishing or something media-related, even retail if I really had to. My aim was to go for a more permanent visa through that, but a disastrous lack of planning before and during my time there, and major issues with the people I was staying with meant that I ended up being broke, at my wit's end and having to go home early. In retrospect, I was completely naive and I rushed far too many things. And as one random guy on the street told me, I should have used my accent as a quirky advantage in job interviews to impress Americans..Incidentally, I found myself playing down my foreigner status as much as possible to avoid the attention, *cough*. Having said that, I loved the US and Chicago, (except for the added sales taxes, having to look left FIRST when crossing the street, and so many people want to steal your water bottles because of the summer heat...) I might try to go back to the US one day. The benefit of hindsight should help a lot.

So, when I returned to NZ I was feeling crappy, and the Conchords quickly became my rock. I damn near cried at the final scenes in season 2 when they also returned to NZ, because I knew that situation too well. I've just been listening to the BBC radio series and I loved Jemaine's line about how some people climb the ladder to success, but they dug a tunnel to success (back home).

Of course, there is the irony that the actual guys have made great names for themselves, which is awesome. They're a huge inspiration to me now, and I only wish I had paid more attention to them sooner! Although if I had, I wouldn't have had the story behind the story of how I became a fan, and I quite like that story. I just hope that one day I can see them performing their music live..One day.

Hey Sara! Thanks for sharing that story with us. It's nice to meet you. Hopefully you'll get to see them soon, they're overdue for a NZ tour and they've alluded to the possibility of one in the near future. If that happens I hope you realize you are obligated to post detailed accounts of your experiences, lol.

Absolutely, Sara. So sorry things didn't work out for you, but everything happens for a reason,and maybe you're meant to find success somewhere else, or at a later time. We'll be cheering for you!

Thanks for the info! Nice avatar.