When I was six and singing in the school nativity play I felt a stinging slap accross the back of my legs. My teacher ( a nun that must have worked for the Gestapo) told me to mouth the words but not let any sound out because my singing was so awful.
I was 19 before I sang in front of anybody again.
Now I am a resident at a folk club and get paid to do gigs. My confidence is fragile but I enjoy doing what I do and the audiences like it too, I get asked back.