#13 - How to Sing Like a Diva: 5 Vocal Coaching Secrets for Sensational Singers! [Audio]

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Welcome back to Find Your Voice, Rock Your Confidence. I am your host, Sloane Reali. Today's topic, How to Sing Like a Diva: 5 Vocal Coaching Secrets for Sensational Singers! And this episode really is dedicated to singers. Whether you are[00:01:00] a hobby singer, you think you might wanna try your hand at songwriting and performing live, or you are an emerging artist. This podcast is for you today. So whether you're signed to a label already, whether you're already a touring artist, this is for anyone who is wanting to make singing a regular part of your life, of your world. I have a brand new male client. He actually was in a completely different field. I think he was in tech, his degree is in I think he's in a language and business, and then he took a very well paying job in tech and has literally just said goodbye to all of it, to focus all of his attention on his singing career.

So anything is possible at any given time. And with that, our quote, [00:02:00] For this episode by EE Cummings, I'd rather learn from one bird how to sing than to teach 10,000 stars how not to dance. Mm. She won that for a second. So anything is possible at any time. It, it's just, it's a matter of your drive, right?

How passionate are you? Where's your team? Who is supporting you in these decisions? If this is something that you want to do. Now, I also have a number of clients that they have their day job, but they're also making a little money on the side with their music and their, their production stuff.

So, it's just really we're only limited by our imagination. And today I wanna give you five vocal coaching secrets, tips. They're not really secrets because I have spoke of at least one or more of these in past podcasts, but today is really [00:03:00] specific for the one who's serious about their singing career.

So if you're just starting off, no problem. This is the perfect place for you, the number one. We've talked so much about breathing and warming up, but in, in this episode, I'm going to call it the pre-show ritual. So a for example Christina Aguilera, I did her little masterclass years ago, and.

And lots of artists have some sort of a pre-show, something famous, touring celebrities, and I loved her ritual which is very similar to mine is, that warm, something warm, not caffeinated, but you know, some, tea or water. Or just to keep that hydration, to keep those vocal cords warm lubricated yoga.

Stretching some form of a way that [00:04:00] opens up your body that really brings your alignment to attention, connected to the breath any, some, some sort of stretching not too rigorous. Rigorous of exercise, you're going to want to conserve your energy for your actual show. But these are very nurturing, calming, grounding a little meditation.

It doesn't have to be long. I've shared with you I've got the 26 ways to access your voice instantly which are, is an affirmation meditation. It's under 10 minutes long very effective. You can go pick that up. On the there's a link in the, the show notes that you can go pick that up for free off the website.

Visualizing your show, visualizing what it is you're setting out to do, whether you're just starting out and you're gonna go hit up an open mic, or you've got a little gig at the club [00:05:00] downtown. Maybe you are a guest artist being brought in to perform. Maybe you don't get a lot of time, maybe a 15, 20 minute set.

This is still very effective no matter how long you're going to be performing. It's all about connecting that mental brain, that state up here because. We know, those voices can get going. Who are you to think that you should even be here? Who are you to be showing up on this stage with these people?

Those, those voices that get going, all the reasons why you shouldn't, are all the reasons why you should, or I don't like shoulds. Actually, all the reasons why these tips I'm giving you could be beneficial. So, having that pre-show, not even just. Warmup. Not even just breath work, but at a little like a ritual.

Something that when you go into it, your brain and body are connecting and knowing. Oh yeah. Oh yeah. We're getting ready to go. [00:06:00] Wonderful. Testimony. Kiki, thank you so much for sharing. She's one of my clients. She's got a. Lot of projects going. She's been with me for a little while. She does have a day job.

She's the media director media relations at our, our university here where I live and. She shared recently with our last show. She gets more nervous at this point in the rehearsals when we're getting ready for the show. But when she gets on the stage, this is not a professional singer yet, but when she gets on the stage, There's something that is triggered in her body that actually gets her into a very relaxed state.

The day of the show, she woke up this time just knowing that, okay, oh, it's it's show day. We've got a show tonight. But when she's on that stage, there is a physical, tangible thing that is happening in her body now. Where she's actually more relaxed once she gets on the stage and starts her performance.

So, so [00:07:00] much of this, again, it's frequency, it's energy in the body. We can take that nervous energy and use it for for our benefit or we can resist it if, and you the first thing that you can do before a show is to go. Live in that nervous energy that is not going to serve you whatsoever at all, ever.

So there is that the second secret, embracing the power of the vowels, the shape of your vowels. Now this is very specific to the method that I teach. It's part of the toolbox, what I call the four Ps, as in Paul, I refer to it as open forward. Placement. You also know the term projection is very popular.

But really mastering the shape of those vowels. We're never doing anything. You're never producing anything from the throat space anything coming out of your instrument. Your voice from here is originating. From that solar plexus [00:08:00] muscle connected to the diaphragm, that plunging muscle, you're drawing that air and energy up from the solar plexus.

You're drawing that up through the lungs. You are creating an exit, what I call open and forward to let all that energy go. The absolute worst thing, I think, I mean, there are a lot of of bad things that you can do to ruin your voice. But I. Pushing or forcing anything to happen with your voice. Just don't do it.

It, it's not gonna help if you, well, I'm gonna talk about vocal fatigue in just a minute, but it's more of a drawing of energy and creating an exit to then release and let it go. You never want to be doing anything from that throat space you wanna be drawing. The bigger the notes get, the, the bigger or higher we call it high.

I changed the word to big. The more athleticism, the more athletic you need to be to [00:09:00] deliver a note. The deeper you wanna be drawing from in your body, right, and you're going in op the exact opposite direction, the bigger the notes, you gotta get down to the deepest part of that body to draw that air, that energy, to support what I call the big notes versus high notes.

So never forcing, never pushing. Not a good idea. Secret number three. I spoke a little bit in the last episode. Connecting with that emotion, telling your story, right? There's, there are writers and there are storytellers, and when you can bring those two worlds together it, it, a beautiful thing can be created from there.

So again, really connecting with your listeners, right? So many songwriters, I mean, you, you, unless if you are doing live concerts, you are not able to engage with your audience lives. So your relationship building. It's starting when you're creating the song, [00:10:00] right? You are, you're starting in the studio. Who are you talking to?

Who is this for? What is this gonna be about? What is that heartfelt connection? How am I gonna connect with this listener on this piece of material? And genuine emotion, right? If it's, if it's love that you're talking about. What is your connection with love? If it's a a breakup, what is your connection with a breakup?

And, and Lord knows we've got plenty of love and breakup songs, right? I'm really into right now the alt rock playground. A number of artists. Shout out to Ghost Writer. Love you son. Love the stuff that you're putting out there. Really. He's, he is still talking about some of these things, but in the writing I.

It's, it's not coming across as that sad, woe as me. He has shifted. And even though he may be talking about something that's not so [00:11:00] positive, the tempo that he is using, the key that it's written in is actually very upbeat. It's very catchy. It's not the typical. Down and out song. He, he's got some really great stuff, so shout out to why Go writer.

You can go find him on Spot, all the music platforms Instagram, go check out his stuff. He's got a whole new it feels like a new genre to me, but I don't know. Go ask him what he's doing. The other thing that he's posting, very fun. You talk about connecting with your audience and your listeners.

He's been doing some interesting things and sharing the behind the scenes. Concepts of his songs, how he's coming up with the ideas, how he's processing his whole creative process and how he brings something finalized to the table to share with all of you, the listeners. So, connection is big, whether you're in the room with your audience or they're on the other side of your, your, their listening device, their computers, their [00:12:00] platforms.

Secret number four, vocal resilience. So, bouncing back from vocal issue. Really, really important. If you are not feeling 100% with your voice and you are scheduled to. Go into the recording studio. You've got a show, whatever it is you've got going on. If, if you're just a hobby singer doing this for fun absolutely push a pin in it and wait until you're feeling better.

We don't always have that option. You may have a show scheduled, you may have a tour scheduled, which has been the case with some of the artists I've worked with where they've completely lost their voice before needing to get on a stage. Very sad. It's a total bummer. It does not help by you continuing to try to push through the best thing that you can do for immediate vocal healthcare.

Number one, [00:13:00] rest. You're not a hundred percent. You're, you're losing your voice. Your voice is cutting in and out. It's cracking. It's not supported. There's nothing you can do. There's all kinds of different remedies. The best thing you can do, vocal rest. Hydration. We've talked a lot about vocal healthcare.

The worst thing you can do is push or force. It's only going to make things worse. Traveling with the Neti Pot is a very helpful if you are familiar with that. It's a, it literally looks like a little teapot and you fill it with a saline solution. Same thing. Our membranes are all all filled with, and you put it in one nostril, tilting your head, letting gravity do the work, and flushing that through the sinuses, which are also connected to the throat.

There is also another product going to grab for you or watching.[00:14:00]

For you YouTube viewers, you that are listening to the podcast it is called a mesh nebulizer. It is a portable mesh nebulizer, and it it's, it's exactly that. It's, it's spray, it's it's a saline. That you just breathe normal and natural. And and I don't get paid to do any of this. This is just my resources and, and information that I wanna share if you find them helpful.

So, staying hydrated, vocal rest, giving it some time if you don't have to be on the road. Now, what do you do if you've got a show? In the case, I've had a couple of instances in my 20 years, a couple that really stand out. One was a corporate event. Hundreds of people in a beautiful ballroom here at a, a beautiful hotel where one of my singers was very ill, I mean, She, it was like she had a fever and all this is all way [00:15:00] pre covid.

We've already been paid for the gig. You show up and you, you do the gig. And in that case she was in the green room a good part of the time, but when she came out to do her thing, she came out and did her thing, and then she was back in the green room. Another case, I, I do not like the phrase break a leg because I really did break my foot.

My right foot, my driving foot, just a few days before a party that I was performing at. Very sad, very unfortunate. What am I gonna do? There's no way to find a replacement that, that short in the game. It was during the holiday seasons as well. So I showed up. When I wasn't singing, I was in the back with my foot elevated.

I might have done a couple shots of tequila to help a little bit, but you know, you do the gig Now if you have the luxury where it's something that, that is not so set in stone. The touring artist, I [00:16:00] know my Peach Tree Rascal Boys. You guys had a, a rough time of it. Somebody was losing their voice on the road and you know that the ideal thing is to not.

Put so much on the voice that it becomes fatigued and strained to begin with. So using the vocal technique that I teach is super helpful. If you do that, you will never lose your voice again. Ever. You will never deal. You'll never deal with vocal strain again, ever. If you're using an effective method or technique, and if not from me, with.

If you are looking for coaches or you're looking for a voice coach ask them about the technique that they teach. This is really important. The technique I use was a spinoff of Seth Riggs out of Los Angeles. There are, are lots of methods out there, lots of technique, but ask them what kind, what is the technique that they teach that is key to your vocal workouts.

So if you have the [00:17:00] luxury. And you don't have to be on, or maybe you're in a situation where you can change the key of the song. This is something that I teach the singers. Maybe you can't perform the song at the original key that you had planned, but if you take it down one whole step or two then it's more manageable.

So there are lots of little tips and tricks around that, but the number one thing is not to blow your voice out in the first place, but things happen. Life is in session. We get faced with vocal, challenges, but we always. Bounce back. I've never, I've never died from anything I've tried.

Thank you. Sandra Yancy, she's part of the, she's the, the c e o of the eWomen Network. I love that phrase. I have to give her credit never died from anything I've tried and I've never had a client in over two decades, thousands of clients ever. Not benefit from the information that they take from the resources, from the teachings.

They've, [00:18:00] they've always, everybody has always bounced back and, and, and some very serious physical things. Life threatening illnesses that people have always bounced back from. So I'm not saying that singing is gonna cure your cancer. But if you've been affected, if your voice, your vocal chords have been affected by cancer.

I have worked with clients that we've been able to restore what was lost there, just with what I've been teaching for for this period of time. So, bouncing back, it's possible. Don't let anything hold you back. And number five, practice. Not practicing to the point that you are, you have nothing coming out of your voice, not practicing to the point that you've practiced the life right out of the material that you're getting ready to share with your audience.

But that, that balance some consistent something consistent that you're, you're making it a habit just, just like, hygiene, brushing your teeth, showering, making your singing [00:19:00] warmups something, your material. I do not suggest practicing seven days a week. The vocal cord muscles, the solar plexus muscles their, their muscles, like any other muscle in your body, your biceps, your quadriceps in your legs.

My recommendation for practice is actually every other day. Spreading out four workouts within a seven day work period is kind of ideal, right? You, you, you do your workout, more, you don't need to be singing for hours on end if you're working out, 30 minutes a day.

Every other day, no more than four times a week, five max, you're getting the vocal rest, you are getting the muscle Recovery time in between the workouts is gonna be way better than trying to sing every day. I don't recommend it actually. So, making it a habit, being consistent, being committed.

But not [00:20:00] overdoing it, right? It's, this is all balance. So, today's a little bit shorter, but in review, five quick ways to, up your game and find your diva having some sort of a pre-game. Ritual, which would include breathing, grounding, meditating, visualizing the outcome that you're looking for, but not being so attached to that outcome.

Being able to be in the flow, being able to be in real time. You never know, especially in a live show, you never know what is gonna happen in a live show. Anything can happen in a live show. You, you might. Wires might get crossed where, the band's going one way and you're going another way, right?

I, I teach you signals and how to get you all back on the same page, right? Let's all go back to the top, let's all go back to the bridge. So, you've got your plan, but being, holding it loosely. Number two, open forward placement. [00:21:00] Truly the breath, a consistent connected. Correct.

Consistent. Consistent, connected, and correct. My three C's breath. Connected from the solar plexus to what is going on up where the jaw, your lips, the shape of your vowels. Those two things alone, those are like two sides of the same coin. Those are your bookends. If those things are in place, you are gonna shine like a rockstar.

You shine like the rockstar you already are. Number three, connecting with the emotion, telling great stories, speaking from your heart, singing from your heart singing and, and sharing from a place that you know deeply, right? It is really hard and it, it's hard to believe. If I am, am he hearing something from someone that they haven't personally experienced themself?

It's not gonna hold a [00:22:00] whole lot of weight. How, how, and where I really ran into it, some of the younger folks, I, I work with kids too, but, a teenager, singing about, that horrible breakup and how they've recovered. I mean, I'm not saying that teens.

Don't have horrible breakups and think that it's the end of the world, but their experience is limited by their time on the planet so far. So, you, you, you wanna speak, sing, share from a place that you have personally experienced. And someone who does that really well. Man, shout out to Sid Franklin.

Another amazing talk about a diva, this girl. Go look her up on all the music platforms. Sid Franklin. She's also on Instagram and I'll, I'll leave contact to some of these artists in the show notes. But beautiful, heartfelt, that girl writes from a place of. Pain. Like she's, she [00:23:00] has lived through some incredible things and she uses it to fuel her creativity.

And the work she's putting out is absolutely beautiful. And if you get a chance to ever catch her live maybe you'll go check out her, her show schedule. But incredible rider, incredible to be able to share and sing from a, a place that she knows that she's lived. She survived and continues to thrive as a songwriter for vocal resistance.

Bouncing back. Do not push it if you, if you feel like you're going down. I, I mean, I personally don't get sick anymore, but I do a lot of different things. Acupuncture, saunas, regular chiropractic care, keeps my posture, keeps my everything opened up and moving. You're starting with self-care in the first place, and one of the things I see with the emerging artists that are, are trying to get signed or, or go on tour is, So many things are calling for you are, are [00:24:00] wanting, you are pulling at you.

And I've, I've had, sessions scheduled where I've drove all the way down to LA to meet with somebody and, I've got a meeting that's on the calendar and they're on the way to see me. But, someone on management team is saying, we need you over here. So, I can't say enough about self-care, no matter how old you are, how young you are, how long you've been singing and performing.

Your self-care must be a priority if you want to be in this business for the long haul. So there's a lot of things wanting new artists' attention when they're just starting out. And then of course, practice is a balance. Don't overdo it. Do it enough to keep, that strength, flexibility, endurance with these muscles, but don't overdo it.

And on that note I gotta find another way to end these podcasts. Two things. Go pick up 26 ways to access your voice instantly. It's less than 10 minutes [00:25:00] long. I'll have the link in the show notes. It's one of the freebies you can go grab off of the website and if you are an emerging artist or maybe you want to start doing singing and music more seriously.

The other thing that you can pick up in the show notes is the link to my calendar. Please give me a call. It's a complimentary discovery call. It's 30 minutes. It's just a conversation for us to get to know each other a little more, see how I might be of service answer some questions for you, see if we're a good fit, and then we just go from there.

So, thanks so much for listening. Again, if you are listening to this and maybe you are not, more of a singer type but you know of somebody who wants to take their singing more seriously. Please share all this information with them. I would love to hear from them. I'd love to hear from you as well.

So until next time, keep calm and sing a song. All you divas out there.

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