what are the main goals a grunge musician should do to sing?

JasonMoonwater

Id like to know because ive been trying to sing like Kurt Cobain and i cant get the right sound. I also tried to sing like Chris Cornell but i dont know where to start. I dont want to exactly sound like them but to get there vocals seems like a lot of practice. I need to know what i should do to warm up , practice etc. Anyone know?

highmtn

The type of singing you want to do can hurt your voice if you don't learn safe singing techniques. You need to have a strong, healthy voice, and from there, you can learn to control the breath and safely distort. You'll need to develop breath support, which is a way of holding back the breath and reducing the amount of air you sing with. It can't be explained or learned without being a part of a full, comprehensive course, so that you learn your limitations and how to manage and control your voice.

All the Best!

Bob

JasonMoonwater

Thanks for explaining it man , ill try learning to control my voice more lol I've been trying to get the tone for a song im going to make. Its going to be pure grunge , been studying it for a couple months now.

TommyM

Hiya Jason,

I can totally understand. I started out sounding like Eddie Vedder but developed a range and power like Cornell...the problem is that I did it unsafely for a long time and then stopped singing completely. Now though, I reckon Ken's your man for learning how to sing those skyscraper vocals in a safe and reliable way.

It's totally possible to do it by yourself but KTVA seems like the most tried and tested way to get to where you want to be. I can only speak as someone who's never applied Ken's training properly yet, but from what I've learned so far it's clear that his approach allows one to safely access those sorts of notes with power and clarity.

Remember too, Cornell totally wrecked his voice for a long time. I heard him with Audioslave and I could've wept at how awful he sounded; strained, painful and lacking any of the power he once had. Fast forward to his voice now, after re-training it and re-learning how to sing properly he's sounding incredible.

Cornell also took professional lessons in the early days of Soundgarden, so start applying the basics from Ken's videos and invest in the course if you're serious about developing your voice in that sort of way.

JasonMoonwater

True , he did need training to get his voice many artists lost there voices because they didn't get training. Right now i cant afford training from Ken lol and im gonna save up my money before i start spending it and need it for many reasons lol. I've been training my voice everyday and noticed its getting scratchy and rough. I might stop singing like i do now and change the style. I might try the course and i have a free pass to a university for training in voice, guitar and etc.

highmtn

Your free pass to a university might give you access to soundproof practice rooms, which is something a lot of vocal students wish they had. Even if you're in there for guitar, you could do vocal exercises, too, before you leave.

TommyM

@JasonMoonwater To be honest, I've been unemployed for eight months so I couldn't afford the course either but I can testify that even Ken's free content on YouTube will help you develop a hell of a lot of power, control and range if you put the work in. Over the last few months I've managed to regain a large part of my range purely through using the fundamentals that Ken demonstrates in his videos, so definitely check them out and try working with basics like scales, sirens, vowel modification, working through the passaggio and all that sorta thing. Just singing songs is a great way to practice, but if you go back to basics and get comfortable with your own voice, rather than imitating your favourite singers (which I did PLENTY for a LONG time! Hahaha) then you'll find a whole new world of flexibility and strength.

I've started a new job last week so, once I get paid and sort out the money I owe back for rent and stuff, I'll definitely, definitely be investing in, at the very least, the Pro Bundle + Weekend Warrior package - ideally I'll go for the Gold Bundle, but that all depends on how much bonus I end up making...hahahaha!

With the roughness and scratchiness of your voice, it sounds like you might benefit from avoiding constant daily practice for a while and taking rest days in between. Maybe even just restructuring your practice so that you're not pushing it to the point of blowing out your voice might be useful. Either way, it's totally doable and Ken's approach is a very healthy, safe way to go about it while still maintaining your own personality and style.

Keep us updated, man!

JasonMoonwater

I hope you find a Job Tommy lol and I've tried listening to Ken Tamplin and watching his video's and it has helped me improve a lot and i noticed i knew some things my music teacher didn't even know because of Ken lol I do take rest day's and that is true i should try to go for the safe approach and all that lol So far it's different and i've noticed i improved over the past few months. Thanks for commenting ! Again lol

JasonMoonwater

Also MT ill think on that and id like to improve on both guitar and voice because im going for a solo career lol Might be hard but im gonna try it! Also I haven't been able to use those rooms yet but ive been trieing lol