Dear Singers,
THANK YOU for getting this Free Report, “The 8 Most Common Mistakes Made by Singers”.
In this report, I will help you discover the mistakes you may be making while you sing- without even knowing it – that may be harming your voice and holding you back from your full singing potential.
Make sure you read all the way to the end of the report, as I have something special for you, just for reading this report.
Thanks again, and Happy Singing!
Billy Purnell
The Vocal Troubleshooter™
“The 8 Most Common Mistakes Made by Singers”
1. Singing too loudly for your vocal ability, and “shouting” to hit high notes
One of the worst mistakes a singer can make is trying to be too “big” with their voice; thinking that what is impressive about great singers is their “power”, but not understanding where that power comes from.
You know when you have done this when either during singing or after a performance, you get an “achey” feeling in your throat; that means you were basically “shouting” or trying too hard. Sometimes, this happens because you can’t hear yourself in relation to the band or the music you are performing with, so you sing louder, trying to hear yourself. A good on-stage monitor or in-ear monitor system will help that, but what if it still happens?
The sound of “power” in the trained professional is a coordination of a) projection, not volume, where the vowels are focused forward in a way that makes them sound bright, with a ring, a forward presence, b) an ability to emote in a way that makes the singer sound confident and really believing in the song, and c) the ability to move from lower register to upper register, seemingly without a “break” in the voice.
A and C are technical abilities which can be learned through good training, whereas B is more of a skill that is similar to acting. This is an area where many people will say you have to be “born with it”, but ask any actor who has had great training and they will tell you that this, too, is something that has to be nurtured and honed.
2. Not properly warming up for intense singing
Ask any athlete; starting any intense physical workout, game or demonstration without warming up the muscle groups is surely going to end up a disaster in the long run. The young can get away with it for a period of time maybe, but it will inevitably catch up with them, and the performance is rarely as good as it would have been with the proper warm up. Muscles can only be “shocked” into action for so long, and then they begin to lose the smoothness and efficiency with which they do their job. Singing involves muscles; that’s just the way it is!
3. Thinking that singing in the shower or along with the radio is “practicing”
Your neighbor sings in the shower. His neighbor sings in the shower. Everyone loves to sing! That’s fine if you want to be a great Shower Singer, but as a professional, this thinking is unacceptable.
Practicing HOW you sing – the methodology, technique, principles and more, all combined into a structured “workout”, practiced and then APPLIED to your song performances – THAT is practicing.
If you want to be the best, if you want to “own” your voice and be able to control it through every riff, belt, whisper and sustain, you have to develop the coordination that it takes to do so, and that can only come through repetition of a proper technique that keeps your muscles working in the same way from song to song to song.
4. Trying to force “riffs” or “runs” without understanding them musically or mechanically
So many people approach “runs” with the attitude of “I’ll throw it out there, and the more I do it the better I’ll get”… they even fool themselves into thinking that it’s good if it feels like it’s good. They may know something is wrong, but they figure “practice” will fix it.
NO – if it’s wrong, practice will make it worse!
Number one question to ask yourself: “What are the notes this person is singing in the riff?” It’s not just a wobbly mess of vibrato and performance; a good “run” has definite notes that the singer is hitting, and you’d better figure out what they are.
Proper voice study is learning every single note – exactly the way it was written – note by note, then putting them together in phrases, then combining phrases and so on. Back in “The Day” we would put a record on and drop the needle a hundred times to learn a guitar solo – well, I’ve got news for you: if you want to learn to riff with your voice, you have to study the great artists the same way.
5. Singing with a “tightened” throat instead of an “open” one
A great belt voice sounds like it’s just wailing away without any thought of mechanics, coordination, or technique…
That’s how it’s supposed to sound!
It’s like the singer is just naturally pouring out emotion without any thought to how they are doing it – just letting go. While letting go is a big part of it, the mechanical coordination in a voice that is pleasing to listen to is based on an “open throat” that is not tight, and can sing all night. That is what good training is all about!
6. Trying to imitate other singers, instead of finding your own voice
Every singer has to wear two hats: a) the student hat, where the singer wants to learn everything they can by imitating other singers that are effective at what they do, and b) the artist hat that says that no matter what other singers do, this is how I do it.
Being different, fresh, and identifiable are qualities that will eventually make you the star you want to be, so it’s important to combine your study of others with an exploration of what you do best, even if what you are best at is not what you love the most!
Remember, it’s art, but it’s a business, and if you want to succeed, you have to put YOUR best foot forward. Don’t try to be someone else; they are already out there! The exception to this, of course, is if your act is purposely focusing on mimicking another singer, as in tribute bands.
7. Not drinking enough water, not eating properly for singing
Your voice is an instrument, a machine even. Nothing works properly if it is not treated properly.
Keeping your body hydrated and properly nourished is essential to having your voice work at its maximum. Fast food and sodas are voice killers. The phlegm buildup and lack of stamina will devour you as a singer.
When your body is under hydrated, the phlegm is thick and clings to the vocal cords, and I don’t have to tell you what that feels like. Then you clear your throat over and over, grinding the cords together and swelling them up from friction, and at that point you are compromised and will most likely over-sing to get through the “breaks” in the voice.
The best technique in the world will not help you if your instrument is messed up – keep drinking water. Not just before the gig, but all the time! When the body is hydrated, the phlegm is thin and watery, and goes right down – it does not bother you. DO NOT neglect this!
8. Thinking that voice training will only make you sound like an opera singer
That’s old school, baby. It is not as common these days, because vocal training has become more exposed to the public, but there are still those out there that believe training will make you sound like a classical singer and you won’t be able to sing rock or pop without sounding totally weird.
This is exacerbated by the fact that there are still teachers out there that believe you have to train classically in order to sing anything; that it’s the “right” way. Sorry, neither is true. Today’s good teachers know what it takes to sing modern music, and how to get the voice to do it without compromising the sound or vocal health.
Now That You Know What These 8 Mistakes Are – Discover How to Hit Your High Notes Perfectly Every Time Without Straining with Billy Purnell, the Vocal Troubleshooter™, creator of the “Ultimate Voice Training for Singers” Course
Now that you know what the 8 Most Common Mistakes are and what to watch out for, let me invite you – if you haven’t done it already – to get the course, “The Ultimate Voice Training for Singers”
This is one of the longest selling voice training courses on the Internet, with happy singing students all over the world discovering how to hit their high notes perfectly every time, and unleashing the hidden potential in their voices.
This detailed course is designed for you to be able to follow along with me from the comfort of your home. Broken down into eight (8) instructional videos and thirty (30) different voice exercises – all delivered instantly via digital download – this course will work for you, no matter if you are a total beginner or advanced singer.
It’s time to get started!!
Happy Singing!
Billy Purnell
The Vocal Troubleshooter™