Do I suffer from "American Idol Syndrome"?

Jean-Christian

Hey guys and girls! 

My name is Jean, which is sort of pronounced like 'John' ;-), I'm from New Zealand - and I've been making music since I was 12 years old, and trying to sing since I was 19 ... I'm now 25! Not quiet over the hill yet!

It's kind of frustrating at times, but I do my best to keep going. I have a very limited range (pleasant range that is! my voice is very 'heavy' although I'm a baritone.... almost like I don't have a head voice - I find sirens impossible to do!) - and I'm not sure if I should even be trying to do this anymore - but it's become a personal vendetta to conquer/master my voice! 

My favorite singers include Jeff Buckley, Jared Leto (30 Seconds to Mars), Pat Monahan (Train), and Chris Cornell (and many, many others!).

I've always loved making music - I started playing classical piano, moved on to contemporary music and songwriting, but I always feel like my voice is holding me back from writing the music I was put on earth to write!

I've decided to put my trust in Ken's system - mainly because of the fact that I hugely respect him as a musician (have you heard his guitar stuff!??) wow. And he's an incredible singer. I'm starting from scratch at Stage I.

I'll attach a couple of songs so you can tell me if I'm completely deluded and should just quit while I'm ahead (American idol syndrome)! I know that I'm flat on some notes, breathy on others, etc. but if you could let me know what you think I'd really appreciate some honest evaluations - please tell me if I've got absolutely no talent and should just start a plumbing apprenticeship! (I'm actually serious - I'd like to know if I am wasting my time and I know my friends are too nice to tell me the truth).

Anyway, all the best, and I hope to be seeing/hearing more from everyone on the forum!

Cheers for reading!

This was me back when I just started out (first time in studio singing!):

https://soundcloud.com/jcgreyling/sweet-addiction-jean-christi?in=jcgreyling/sets/demo-1 (original)

https://soundcloud.com/jcgreyling/from-the-morning-nick-drake?in=jcgreyling/sets/demo-1 (Nick Drake cover)

There are a few more songs on my Soundcloud account

These is more recent:

Hozier Cover - Sedated (it's way too fast - I had just broken up with my fiancée... so I had a lot of anxiety/energy)

http://phead.mu/s/mFP6v50U

And the slower version with better guitar part and more distorted/gritty vocals (although bridge is strained):

http://phead.mu/s/3l6Rxxqe

And a Damien Rice cover - Coconut Skins (our cicadas are very loud here in NZ sorry - another recording out in the bush!):

http://phead.mu/s/ktproI40

Jean-Christian

I should mention I've had Ken's program for a while but haven't seriously practiced it until now... hope to learn heaps from everyone here on the forum - some great posts up!

radagast

I love your Nick Drake cover. Nick Drake is one of the most important musicians in my life. Thank you. You have a very very beautiful voice, that evoked similar emotions to when I listen to the original. I have been practicing Volume 1 and 2 for months now, and am seeing slow but steady progress and I would be so pleased to have a voice like yours. 

PLEASE DON"T QUIT! 

Jean-Christian

Radagst, I must admit your comment has gotten me quite emotional in a very good way... and wanting to practice a million times more than I already do. Thank you... It really means so much.

durza

Hey, I just wanted to say: I really like your voice! It's quite breathy at the moment, but if you keep practising and exercising, you'll have an awesome and strong voice one day! Just don't give up, you'll make it.

highmtn

@Jean-Christian,

This sounds really good.  You will learn a lot by studying Ken's lessons, and your tone and your range will grow even more.

You have a great start, and your singing conveys a lot of feeling and emotion, which is something some singers never get.

Hang on to that as you learn to better use the voice you've got.  It's going to be interesting hearing how you grow if you really apply yourself to Ken's methods.

Hang in there with us.

Nice to have you here.

Bob

Jean-Christian

Thank you Bob and durza - I'm really encouraged from both of your comments - durza - yes, I suffer from a breathy voice haha! But working hard at getting more edge/pharyngeal qualities in there. :P thanks for the heads up. Bob - thank you! Conveying the emotion of the song/my relationship to it has always been my number 1 priority when it comes to music - its so cool that it comes thru! I have been doing kens training every day and so far have been making steady progress. I'm not in a rush as I love the journey of getting better, but it helps to know that im not wasting my time aka people not wanting to listen to my voice - I'm just glad to be able to sing songs that people can enjoy - thats why I'm working on technique - to better be able to do that (pitch, breath control, and better tone) I'll be sticking around for a while so we'll see how much I can improve over the year thank you for your comment and I hope to be learning a lot from all of the vocalists on this forum! Cheers

durza

Yeah, that's cool if you already have a tone people (and you) enjoy listening to. I've never had that pleasure, I always hated (and still do) my voice, but it's getting better. I'm slowly getting to that point where I can listen to my singing without having to vomit. KTVA really rocks your voice and you'll see great results with your voice! Just really make sure you do everything like Ken shows, I found that the 2 most important things are the really bright Ah sound and the support.

For the Ah sound: Make sure you do it as bright as you can, even if you think you've got it right, try to make it brighter. I always forget about this and I have to tell myself to brighten up the tone.

For support: It helped me to think about pushing down, don't know if this helps you too, but imagine pushing your diaphragm down. And for the breathiness I would try to think about sucking air in while singing, that should help with your support too but mainly to get rid of that air.

I'm still beginner and far from being  professional but these are two really important points I've noticed since I've started with KTVA.

Good luck on your way to an even better singing voice!

arra

Hi Jean, just wanted to let you know that you're blessed with a beautiful voice already. I do believe that you have a lot of room to grow, so I'd be very interested to see you develop as a singer.

seeker

@Jean-Christian You sound way better than me and I'm a tenor, being a baritone is great if you master your tone, I still have the same doubts you had on this thread.
Your voice is awesome, extremely calm and serene! I love it, keep going man.