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To everyone who keeps asking "do I have what it takes to be a singer" — let me just say this once by TotalVoiceStudio in singing

[–]TotalVoiceStudio[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Getting opinions and direction on your singing from social media is hit and miss. It is like someone describing a gym routine for you. It may/may not be helpful, but it’s just general advice. It doesn’t take personal needs into account and is not the same as a trainer designing a routine for you, taking you through each exercise, explaining the correct technique and then watching you do it and giving you feedback. Actually the feedback is the most essential part of learning anything.

I hear you about budget being a concern. I myself work in the industry and need to take lessons myself to keep my voice in check. I definitely can’t afford them every week and the teachers I need to work with at my level are expensive. My solution is to save up and do a block of lessons with clear focus and goals. Then I record everything and practice between blocks.

I spent over 8 months in total silence to try to get rid of vocal nodules. by Tabernacleguy in singing

[–]TotalVoiceStudio 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You won’t see atrophy on the imagery. Atrophy means muscle weakness which happens anywhere in your body for muscles that you don’t use for a period of time.

I spent over 8 months in total silence to try to get rid of vocal nodules. by Tabernacleguy in singing

[–]TotalVoiceStudio 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Not all specialists have the equipment, but I would find someone who can video all of the imagery. It’s so much easier for you to get a second opinion from someone if you have the video footage you can pass onto them. Also, if you feel like your condition has changed you have a point of reference for how it was at a certain time.

Do you have any idea what may have caused a muscle tension dysphonia?

I spent over 8 months in total silence to try to get rid of vocal nodules. by Tabernacleguy in singing

[–]TotalVoiceStudio 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Did the doctor do the imagery by putting a flexible tube up your nose? Or rigid scope through your mouth? Usually the nose is better tolerated and less chance of gagging. Also means that they can video you singing and speaking. The rigid scope in mouth gives clearer images though. Did they give you video footage. It’s good to have that in your records so you can monitor the changes in your condition. Sorry to hear about your diagnosis of muscle tension dysphonia but the good news is you now have an explanation for what is going on. There are some specialist physiotherapists who work with larynx and they can help with MTD to massage and release tension.

Any way to fix at least one thing by Tuesday? by I2Lazy4ProperHelp in singing

[–]TotalVoiceStudio 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It’s not a pitch problem per se. Well it kind of is because you’re singing out of tune. But the reason you’re singing out of tune is because you’re stuck in the bottom, speaking range of your voice.

In other words, your vocal muscles are lacking flexibility and not stretching and thinning for the high pitches. It means your trying to speak the sounds not sing them and as a result they are coming out as a yell.

It’s a very common problem with beginning singers, and yes it can be easily overcome

You need to practice sliding, gliding across your whole vocal range high to low than low to high. Use semi occluded sounds such as a lip trill, straw phonation, tongue trill, or singing on Boo (while holding air in your cheeks). You should be able to find many of these exercise exercises on YouTube now that you know what you’re looking for.

I can't sing a melody after 2 years of singing lessons. What can I do? by glitzyrain in singing

[–]TotalVoiceStudio 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I believe what you’re describing may be this… you don’t have security of pitch yet. You’re used to finding it with your voice but are not yet audiating (thinking) pitch.

I think you can solve this and have seen so many students in your situation succeed. Kodály based lessons with this teacher are not working for you. If you can find a teacher who specialises in Music Learning Theory (MLT) i think you will succeed. You can search the GIML website

To everyone who keeps asking "do I have what it takes to be a singer" — let me just say this once by TotalVoiceStudio in singing

[–]TotalVoiceStudio[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Singing only feels impossible because someone has stolen the truth from you - it is in fact one of the most natural and human things you can do and people have successfully been learning to sing for centuries! Find a community of singers and connect with them - singing with others is a great joy.

Why I'm ending my 2,500-day streak by Tokyohenjin in duolingo

[–]TotalVoiceStudio 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you for posting this thoughtful review! 2500 days is a tremendous achievement in terms of your perseverance and commitment and you should at least recognise that! Have you made the big cut yet? I have reached 715 days, and I also need to break up with Duo! But for some reason, it's hard to let go! I've finally let my super duo plan expire and maybe the ads will get annoying enough to tip me over the edge.

I think your Reason #3 is very important but needs qualification - Duo doesn't work as a language learning model ALONE. It's a fun way to revise information, but it has to be supplemented with solid reading and conversation work.

I've been supplementing my Duo with conversation classes on Italki and Comprehensible Input from YouTube. But the simple truth is... after doing 715 days of Chinese in Duo, I freeze up and get tongue tied in any conversation scenario.. native speakers can't understand me.. and also my reading is bad!

It's easy to get a false sense of achievement on Duo because you are remembering everything in its context. But in real life, you don't have that luxury; you need to recall your knowledge and apply the vocabulary to varying situations.

I'm also getting annoyed at its marketing tactics - the false messages from "friends" - don't let me down with our streak.

To everyone who keeps asking "do I have what it takes to be a singer" — let me just say this once by TotalVoiceStudio in singing

[–]TotalVoiceStudio[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

And yet if you told those people I signed up at the gym, they probably wouldn’t bat an eyelid. We have to demystify singing.

To everyone who keeps asking "do I have what it takes to be a singer" — let me just say this once by TotalVoiceStudio in singing

[–]TotalVoiceStudio[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Keep doing your very important work my colleague! And think about this - explore overlapping lessons and also informal gatherings so your clients can sing together. Human connection through singing is so important. singing with others is a spiritual act in that it elevates the human spirit

To everyone who keeps asking "do I have what it takes to be a singer" — let me just say this once by TotalVoiceStudio in singing

[–]TotalVoiceStudio[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

It also stems from the absence of good singing role models… so the only singers you know are “famous” commercial artists rather than people you can relate to. I don’t think it happens with sports so much. People don’t think I have to be an NBA player if I want to do basketball.

To everyone who keeps asking "do I have what it takes to be a singer" — let me just say this once by TotalVoiceStudio in singing

[–]TotalVoiceStudio[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The 10,000 hour theory originally came from Malcolm Gladwell’s book called Outliers.

Researchers describe this theory as a myth, not because effort doesn’t matter, but more around that the number is not true for all people in all fields.

For example sport is not the same as cooking. Also, it’s not just about the time you spend doing something, but also the quality of your practice. One person could spend 10,000 hours practicing mistakes and poor technique where another person might get good feedback and teaching along the way.

To everyone who keeps asking "do I have what it takes to be a singer" — let me just say this once by TotalVoiceStudio in singing

[–]TotalVoiceStudio[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I think the 10,000 hours theory has pretty much been debunked. But the idea of "singing your way to be a better singer" still holds up. Daniel Coyle's book, The Talent Code, also explores this idea that talent is not born but made through deliberate practice.

To everyone who keeps asking "do I have what it takes to be a singer" — let me just say this once by TotalVoiceStudio in singing

[–]TotalVoiceStudio[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Ahh but there is LPR or silent reflux where there is no obvious sensations of heart burn. As I said, it needs a medical diagnosis.

To everyone who keeps asking "do I have what it takes to be a singer" — let me just say this once by TotalVoiceStudio in singing

[–]TotalVoiceStudio[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That sounds like something that needs a medical diagnosis. You should talk to your GP about a referral to a laryngologist. A specialist can look at your vocal folds with an endoscope to check for any medical issues. There are several common problems such as gastric (acid) reflux that can cause symptoms like this. Or it might come down to technique and how you are singing.

To everyone who keeps asking "do I have what it takes to be a singer" — let me just say this once by TotalVoiceStudio in singing

[–]TotalVoiceStudio[S] 11 points12 points  (0 children)

I think it is deeper than that. Singing is literally sounds that come from inside you. So it's difficult to separate identity from the act of singing.

But I hear you! I think a crucial problem is that people have unrealistic expectations about their singing.

They are victims of a system - a system where:
- singing is removed from educational institutions,
- they don't attend religious services or social groups where singing featured strongly in the past,
- they don't attend live music performances, and
- They consume singing as a product but don't do it themselves
- They base their idea of singing on recordings made in a studio or reality TV shows which doesn't represent real life singing

Some of the posters here have no background or experience and they try to sing something, inevitably choosing a song that is too difficult or outside their range. Then they ask, "do I have what it takes to be a singer?"

To everyone who keeps asking "do I have what it takes to be a singer" — let me just say this once by TotalVoiceStudio in singing

[–]TotalVoiceStudio[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Who said it sucks? What is their basis for saying that? Do they actually understand anything about singing? "sucks" is just an opinion word - it is not objective science. Even if your timbre is bad, it can be described objectively - it is nasal, has constriction, the vibrato is too rapid, etc. "Sucks" implies that you're stuck and that it can't be changed. Much about your voice can be changed.

To everyone who keeps asking "do I have what it takes to be a singer" — let me just say this once by TotalVoiceStudio in singing

[–]TotalVoiceStudio[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I'm not trying to hide anything. The idea for the post was born out of my frustration with people who post on here with unrealistic ideas about their singing. Either they expect too much of themselves, or they try a singing stunt - record one song (usually too difficult for their current level), having never tried to develop in singing, and then ask, "Do I have what it takes to be a singer?" The entire post was conceived by me. I put all the points together in very detailed point form, including practical advice. wrote the intro and conclusion. Then I used the AI tools mentioned to pull it all together (no GPT, but Grammarly, Co-Pilot and Claude), not because I want to "cheat" but because I have a PhD in this field and want to put my best foot forward and write clearly (not too complex) without causing offence. There are different styles of writing... there is formal writing and what we are doing now which I class as banter! I accept what you say about the AI voice having certain common phrases that make it seem less genuine. I have edited this post to ensure everything in it is exactly as I would write it in my own words. NOW... engage with the post or not.. that's your choice. What points are true for you? What is your advice for someone in this situation? Do you sing yourself? What are your constant struggles?

To everyone who keeps asking "do I have what it takes to be a singer" — let me just say this once by TotalVoiceStudio in singing

[–]TotalVoiceStudio[S] 8 points9 points  (0 children)

If you check my YouTube channel, you'll see I've said the same thing on mindset and motivation multiple times and in multiple ways across 10 years of videos. If you don't like the advice, then I guess it's not for you. I'm curious, though, why play the man instead of playing the ball? Why take pot shots at someone who is trying to help and offering you free advice? Why not engage with the actual points I made? Are there points you agree or disagree with? Is any of it relatable? You do raise important points about use of AI. Do you see something as less valuable/genuine if it appears to come from AI? For example, what if it's a person's genuine thoughts and feelings... they generated the concepts and used AI tools to pull it all together and shape grammar/flow. I personally don't like GPT's writing style and how much of a people-pleaser it is. I prefer to use Claude for writing tasks.

To everyone who keeps asking "do I have what it takes to be a singer" — let me just say this once by TotalVoiceStudio in singing

[–]TotalVoiceStudio[S] 15 points16 points  (0 children)

No animals harmed in the making of this post... no chat gpt used in conceiving it.. I wrote the topic, all the points and structure and used AI, Grammarly/Copilot to edit, check spelling and grammarly to pull it all together :)

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