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Any Improvement? Just The Way You Are, Bruno Mars: Codyknight22

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My last song was terrible. I really needed a song more {hopefully} suited to my voice. So I decided to go with a song a little softer, a little less pop-y, and a song that I hope I can use as a stepping stone to improving. So I chose Just The Way You Are by Bruno Mars. I don't know if someone did it first, but I don't think anyone did. Anyway I'm hoping for more feedback, maybe a song suggestion? But hope everyone enjoys this song, from Codyknight22.

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I didn't get to hear your first man. Something that jumped out to me immediately was sound fairly focused on the nasal and the 'ng' of kinds vocal production. I hear some musicality in some of the phrasing.

I think support is an issue, I think a bit of the pitch issue is stemming from this. I'd suggest doing some diaphragmatic breathing and slow air release exercises. My favorite one is to inhale on kind of a silent 'w' shaped mouth posture, and inhale really deep. Don't allow your shoulders to raise and try to feel your core expand.

Release on a silent hisss.. Slowly, steadily. For as long as you can. You really want to try to get in touch with your support system.

If I were to suggest, I'd look for some more open sounds. Maybe even step away from singing songs for a bit, and try to get some rich, resonating open vowels sustained. Ahhhhh, as in 'saw' is the most most open to my knowledge anyway, and while you may not want to center your voice this wide, it might help. See if you can get your voice ringing and resonating outside of the 'ng' which involves a pretty closed off posture. I like beginning of a yawn for open feelings. Once you get a feel for more open and feel for more closed, you can find something comfortable that is suitable for the sound of a song and you could try to add a bit more ng if that's a stylistic preference. To me it sounds like you might be a bit 'stuck' there in this posture.

Keep at it. People have started from less and gotten further than I ever did. Never give up. But take care and go slow.

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Thanks for the excersize ideas. I think those will get me a lot better. But in terms of song choice, any ideas?

To tell you the truth song choice is a highly individual thing. Emotional connection, how well it suits a voice both style wise and technical ability.

What songs do you love? We could maybe take a look at some of those? Me I'm a fan of soul, 60s pop, 70s art rock, pop standards, probably predominately, but I like to sing a lot of different styles of songs.

And if a song is out of your range, you can transpose a song. You can even use falsetto/head voice to sing parts that are out of your range or female parts once you get them working well enough. If people don't like it, too bad.

Basically you gotta start off with music that you enjoy, and whittle it down. If I were to give you a song you didn't like to begin with. I could keep offering more. If you're more of a modern pop guy and I'm more of and old school pop guy. It could be pretty tough. Try to get us in the ballpark. I've personally never listened to a Bruno Mars song in my life.

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I know I haven't replied in a while, and I know that song choice can be a huge issue for the person, but being naive comes with the ultimate consiquence of not knowing much of a good song choice. I, so far, have only picked songs that I think are good for my voice, but let's face it, they're not. I'm truly at loss for what song I need to pick next. Please someone, give me a song to sing. Because I don't I ow what to pick. I thought try a song like She's Gone. But I don't sound very good at that either (damn my nose). Just one song choice, please.

Codyknight22

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Hi Cody,

I know that you want to sing. You can do it but it will take work. Not because you sing bad and for you it will take a lot, that is not what I mean. It takes a lot for anyone to learn to sing. I have been singing for a long time and seriously learning/studying for the last almost year and a half and I am still working at it and "trying." It''s a slow process. But you are very young so have the time to do this right before you end up untrained and injured.

I noticed some thing and to me it is an important point. KillerKu posted a response to you with advice and exercise possibilities. This is important stuff. It is a bump in the right direction, not a cure all. It is a sign post telling you where to go to learn to sing. How to get "started." However, in your next post you don't seem to be focused on the exercises and where to learn more or how to get instruction or how to get started; what you ask is about song choice!! Wrong answer young man. Song choice was mentioned (actually I went back and re-read the thread and can't find it) but that was just a casual mention I believe. It is least important at this point. The best song choice in the world isn't going to teach you anything.

I know this is very cliche but...a house won't stand without a good foundation. You must build that first. If you don't you will fail at some point.

My suggestion is to forget about song choice for awhile and forget about posting a better song. Figure out how to get started "learning" and then get to work. Then in a few months try another attempt at a song utilizing your new techniques.

If I put you in the ring to box and you got whipped because you don't know how to punch or set up a strategy. Or you couldn't fight. A new opponent isn't going to fix anything. You need to learn for awhile before fighting at all. Only sparring and practice. Nothing real. Same with singing. Only spar....practice songs, scales, pitch. No attempts at posting productions for praise. Learn techniques first.

If you keep on going in the direction of just trying to sing how you are doing it now you will only develop bad habits that become extremely difficult to break and could actually hurt you.

Buy a book...get a coach. Study the techniques section here. get out of the Critiques section for awhile.

Good luck and get to work. :)

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  • 3 weeks later...

Thank you all for this. I know I haven't said much on here for a while, but I want to ask a question. I have recently heard a few covers on Amy Whinehouse's You Know That I'm No Good, and I just want to ask if anyone thinks that this is a good idea with my voice (assuming of course that I'll stay on pitch). I also want to ask if you think that it would be a good idea to play along a bit of nasally quality to my voice. I just want to know if anyone could let me know.

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Man, if you want to do a cover, go for it! The only thing you have to lose is time really, but music is a good way to spend it I think.

If you find yourself having your first problem of 'lack of support', try singing in a loud, silly classical opera like voice haha, then you can teach yourself to be full and strong before going into a pop style.

Really, and mind this, exercises are just a way to get you to understand things physically. Vocal teachers usually try to give you certain exercises to help you figure it out on your own, that's what they're for. Like certain vowels and such can teach you certain things.

The way I personally learned was by constantly experiementing and finding every wierd sound voice position whatever, and asking 'what is this' and 'what am I doing here' and lastly, 'can i sing with this'.

If you are able to figure stuff out without exercises, you can do that too.

But they help a lot of people, just saying.

I invented my own exercises, I always do. If you can sort of learn to 'mimic' silly sounds and voices, that's a good quility to have with your ear, because you are also working your vocal cords in ways that are unusual.

But experiment with exercises, don't get locked in to a specific one.

But uh, I'm really tired right now and not sure why I'm writing so much stuff that is not relevent to anything above.

So, do what ever covers you think you can pull off, or will push you to become better.

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