Being earnest is braver than being ironic. Irony never has to risk anything.

Irony comes with an exit built in. If the joke lands you look clever, and if it does not you were never serious anyway, so nothing of yours was ever on the table. Saying plainly that you want something, or that you liked something, removes the exit. That is why it feels exposing, and why it is the harder of the two.

Drop the protective layer once this week. Tell someone you want the part, or that the song they made is good, in a flat sincere voice with no joke attached. It is uncomfortable for a moment and it lands differently.