3 Tips to Make Your Vocal Performance Sound Better Than Your Record
This post helps you get started, but that’s only the beginning. What would it feel like to sing your heart out with a transformed voice performing to thousands of people by the end of the year? Watch my FREE Workshop: The Power of the Voice: How to Give Stunning Performances That Will Move Your Audience to Their Feet and Leave a Lasting Legacy
You know those concerts you go to where the singer is even better than the record?
I remember going to see Brandi Carlile at Madison Square Garden some years back. I liked her music, but was not a hardcore fan at the time. My friend was and so I went.
But at the show, Brandi’s voice and performance completely blew me away. I had no idea she could sing like that. I became an instant fan.
Live performance is such a great opportunity to build new fans. But many singers worry about their vocals living up to the record! The last thing you want to hear are those words “yeah, it wasn’t as good as the record…”.
What if you could move your audience right now and didn’t know it? What if I few small tweaks to your vocals could elevate your performance right now? You don’t have to be perfect, you just have to be good.
Imagine leaving your audience captivated and begging for more. The awe in the audience’s eyes, the thunderous applause, and that indescribable rush when you’ve delivered a performance that lingers in their hearts and minds!
Picture yourself stepping onto the stage and instantly igniting the atmosphere.
While talent is born —great performances are built.
How do I know? Because I’ve built them. I’ve built vocal performances that got standing ovations and have won Grammy’s. There’s an art and a science behind it.
Ready to take your fans on a journey at your next show or Livestream? Want your performance to be even BETTER than the vocals on your record?
Here are three (of many) of my top secrets of live vocal performance to put behind your performance craft for magic to happen.
1. Prepare your voice and body for performance
Singing is an athletic event. You’ll need a pro warmup to perform at your peak.
Stop thinking that singing through a couple of songs at full belt is a warm up. It’s not! It can actually wear your voice out a little. Do a proper warmup that will open up your physical instrument and warm it up for performance. Get a copy of my Singers Gift Vocal Warmups designed to open your voice for performance. Once you experience it you’ll know exactly what I mean!
Warming up right will warm up your muscles and get you ready to sing, will stretch open your range and decrease tension in your voice to get it out of your through and free it up. Without warming uup it will be hard to perform at your peak performance level..
Here are some quick tips:
- Hydrate: your voice needs hydration to function properly. When you are dehydrated you won’t be able to hit higher notes and your voice will feel dry and even raspy or a little hoarse. Drink 8 glasses of water 3 days before an important performance and watch your voice soar!
- Stretch: tension is the enemy of the voice. Tension in the muscles of your voice (jaw, tongue, larynx, neck etc) constricts your voice limiting range and tone. Get my vocal stretches and massages inside my Singers Gift Vocal Warmup set. Download now!
- Aerobics: when I used to sing in a cover band in my early twenties I learned a ton about keeping my voice in good shape to perform. One thing that always worked was doing about 20 minutes of aerobics the day of the performance. No matter how I felt that day, whether I was run down, tired or feeling good, I would take a light jog and it opened my voice like magic. Try it and see how it works for you!
2. Map out your vocal arrangement
Planning out how you are going to sing the song helps to create a roadmap and clear line of sight for your performance. Map out your vocals on a lyric sheet. Mark your breaths (circle the big ones), scoops, high notes, notes you hold out and any riffs or runs.
I go into this in detail (and show a vocal roadmap) in my Free Vocal Workshop. Get the replay here.
Vocal arrangements are one of the coveted secrets of the industry. All big records have vocal arrangers. I started vocal arranging a few decades ago. Vocal arrangers are hired to come in and get the best out of the singer. To ensure the emotional delivery of the vocals. And the best part? It heightens the emotion.
Watch this video here about the magic of vocal arranging.
You can hire us to do your vocal arrangements. Just shoot us an email at info@caricole.com and we’ll send over more information about how it works. We have vocal arrangers to fit different budgets as well! Try one for your next recording or performance. You won’t believe the difference.
3. Look for the peak vocal moments to wow your audience
It’s not uncommon to leave peak vocal moments on the table. You have to look for them! Each song has a build (or should). You want to increase the vocal intensity as you move through the song to create a journey for the audience.
An example of some of the ways to create peak vocal moments are:
- Crescendos: a vocal note that builds more volume as you hold it out.
- Holding your voice out after a stop in the music (this wows audiences when done right)
- Riffs and runs placed in strategic places
- High notes placed in strategic places
- Peaks AND valleys. The valleys build the peaks. Don’t sing your song all on one volume or belt, you’ll lose the opportunities to create peak moments!
Get a replay of my FREE Workshop to dive deeper into this conversation and get my Ultimate Performer Formula and more!
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Hi, I’m Cari Cole.
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About Cari Cole
Cari Cole is the CEO / Founder of caricole.com and CCVM: Label Without Walls. She is a Holistic Vocal Coach, Artist Development Expert, A&R Director, and Songwriter based in New York City helping artists for the past 38 years. She is a mentor for Women in Music and The Association of Independent Music Publishers.
Her latest venture, CCVM a label services company, provides artists with a seamless path from creation to completion. After 30+ years of observing the overwhelm and challenges that artists face, Cari pulled together the best top creative professionals and designed a new approach to supporting our artists.
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The information provided on Cari Cole's website is informational only and should not be used for diagnosing or treating a health problem or disease. Those seeking personal medical advice should consult with a licensed physician. Always seek the advice of your doctor or other qualified health provider regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on Cari Cole's website. If you think you may have a medical emergency, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency room immediately.