Menu

How to get started with pop singing

Céline Dion, Whitney Houston, Michael Jackson, … There are so many great pop legends. On casting shows, ordinary people often try to sing their songs by imitating them. Sometimes this results in a great performance, but often it means a huge embarrassment for the singers. The fear of being compared to the great pop voices when starting to sing pop can be pretty intimidating. But don’t let this fear stop you! Everyone has started at some point and everyone can develop their own unique way of singing. So here are some tips and exercises to get started!

Let’s start by looking at what makes pop singing different:

It is easy to hear that classical singing and pop singing are completely different. But when you actually sing, what do you do differently?
First of all: As a pop singer, you have a microphone and maybe even reverb for performances. While one of the goals of classical singing is loudness, to overtone the sounds of an orchestra, you don’t need to amplify your voice to sing pop songs. You can use a voice that is more like your speaking voice and sing very quietly if you want to. Singers such as Billie Eilish or Lana del Rey sing so softly in some parts that their style is sometimes called “whisper pop” – a style that sounds more personal and intimate, as if the singer is telling you something directly while standing next to you.
Compared to classical singing, there is more use of the chest or a mixed voice – especially if you are a female singer. Sopranos, for example, often use their head voice for most of their classical singing.
The sound of the classical voice is also different because you are using a technique where your larynx is lower. This results in a rounder classical sound, while pop singing sounds brighter and straighter, with the sound more “placed” in the front of the mouth.
Of course, classical singers also try to pronounce the words so that everyone can understand them, but it can be difficult to understand them because of a long coloratura. In pop singing, the lyrics are essential. They are pronounced more naturally and more at the front of the mouth.
When people mock opera singing, they usually mock the strong vibrato. Although not every classical singer uses it to this extreme, and it also depends on the style and time of the piece of music, classical vibrato is quite intense. Pop singers sometimes hardly use it at all, or only at the end of a long note. It’s generally more subtle than in classical singing.
Despite all the differences, we need our breath to sing – no matter what style. So the breathing techniques and exercises are very similar to other styles.

Pop singing uses several different techniques:

Elizeu Dias – https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1517230878791-4d28214057c2?ixlib=rb-4.0.3&ixid=M3wxMjA3fDB8MHxwaG90by1wYWdlfHx8fGVufDB8fHx8fA%3D%3D&auto=format&fit=crop&w=869&q=80

Belting is probably the most popular pop vocal technique. The typical belting sound is very strong, clear and loud – you may know it from Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You”. But to create this impressive and emotional sound, you have to put your vocal cords under pressure – so be careful if you try it on your own! You need a lot of practice and some vocal training because you need a lot of energy in your voice and the help of your chest muscles. If you want to practice, put your shoulders down and sing “yay!” loudly and clearly. You should feel your chest muscles move.
The second characteristic of pop singing that we are going to look at is speech quality. As mentioned above, in pop you use your chest voice more often. In general, you should use a very natural voice, which is quite similar to your speaking voice. These tips might help you: start by speaking the lyrics, then switch to speech singing, and then gradually add melody. Another way is to use less breath at the beginning of a word: Pronounce vowels with a sharp edge, just like you pronounce the word “apple”, but in a more expressive way. Find a way to reduce the amount of breath that’s audible. In the end, it all comes back to the advice not to try too hard to produce a melody. Imagine yourself telling your story and don’t worry too much about the singing.
Below your chest voice, there is another register you can use: the vocal fry. Katy Perry and other singers sometimes use it to add emotion and dimension to their singing. It’s very important that you don’t put too much pressure on your voice and that you don’t squeeze when you try this, as this can damage your vocal cords.
Ariana Grande’s way of singing is instantly recognizable by her riffs or runs. They are used to highlight a particular part of the lyrics (but can also be used to show off your singing skills). This R&B-influenced feature can only be learned by listening and practicing what you hear. Over time, you can develop your own runs.
Chest and head vocals or a mixed voice are all used in pop. A bright, light, head voice with a lot of air, such as Billie Eilish (as mentioned above), can suddenly break into a strong chest voice, or the other way around. These sharp breaks are often used by pop singer Sia, for example.
Inflections also play a big role in pop singing: For example, you can use your breath as an intentional tool to express the meaning of your song and add strong dynamics.
Another feature of pop singing is the thyroid tilt. You should feel your larynx moving as you make a very long, high-pitched “meow”. Just put your hands on your throat, where the Adam’s apple is.
Last but no less important: the communicative aspect. Be personal when you sing and tell your story. Make it sound as natural as possible – for example, by smiling when singing about happy emotions. You can really hear when a singer is smiling!

Practice is the key:

  • In addition to the humming exercises I have mentioned in other articles, here are some more warm-up and technique exercises and tips. You could sing scales using different vowels or arpeggios. Or “sirening” – imitating a police siren is not only fun for children, but also a pretty useful exercise: stay on the “ng” sound and open your mouth as if you were yawning. To reach the higher pop notes, practice by laughing hard and silently.
    To avoid damaging your voice, remember to warm up properly, just as you would for any sport. And your voice likes to sing at the same time every day. But don’t overdo it! 45 minutes should be the limit of your daily singing session.
  • As we all know from sore throats, whispering is very bad for your voice. If you want a strong, straightforward pop voice (and no “whisper pop”), make sure you do not use too much air when you sing. There are several breathing exercises that can help you practice controlling your breathing.
  • Maybe it sounds old-fashioned to you – but a metronome likes to keep you on the beat. Try it as a challenge when you start a song. If you know the main rhythms of the song, you can vary them to add some personality – no need to stick to the rules!
  • If you like, you can also vary your training by setting different goals. You could sing different parts of a song, practice it loudly or softly, try different emotions, styles or paces. That way, your daily practice will be more interesting and you won’t lose your motivation so quickly!

There are many ways to learn to sing pop music:

Gian Miceli – https://cdn.pixabay.com/photo/2019/01/05/22/39/musician-3916095_960_720.jpg

Because of its popularity, you can find thousands of pop singing tutorials on the internet. One example is Freya Casey’s YouTube channel “Master Your Voice”. You can also practice with backing tracks, karaoke tracks or, if you know how, accompany yourself on guitar or piano! Because the chords are relatively simple, you don’t need to be a musical genius on the other instrument. If you want to take lessons from a professional singing teacher, make sure it is someone who knows more than only the classical style of singing. But there are also cheaper options, such as workshops run by music schools or universities.
Performing on stage can be very intimidating, but there are ways to get used to it: have a karaoke night with friends, play street music or join an open mic event in your city, take part in or organize flash mobs with pop songs. If you want to challenge yourself, consider auditioning or taking part in a casting show (it doesn’t have to be one that’s on camera).

All in all, learning to sing takes some courage. But it is said that anyone can learn to sing, so don’t give up if it seems impossible at first! Try small steps. And one day you might find yourself not just imitating famous artists, but experimenting and finally finding your own unique style! This is one of the main aims of pop singing: To sing it as if you wrote it – to tell your own story.

References: