Got a question for you:

What does it feel like when you step on stage? Do you feel like a superstar every time you’re behind a microphone, or even when you’re singing in your car? 

Do you want to?

Confidence in our own ability is something that EVERYONE struggles with. We all have parts about our voices that we wish we could fix we’re just not sure how. As your own biggest critic, there may be songs you would love to sing but you tell yourself you can’t because there’s “that note,”  “your voice isn’t strong enough,” or “it’s just a really hard song.” How do powerhouse vocalists like Carrie Underwood, Sam Smith, or Kelly Clarkson do it? 

Training & Practice.

Listen, I get it. There are songs I listen to and think “HOW?!” The plain and simple answer is, those people work incredibly hard to sound the way they do. Years of lessons, practicing, and honestly sometimes, a bit of trial & error. We, as people who aspire to sound like our heroes, beat ourselves up because we “just can’t nail it.” We scare ourselves into thinking we can’t do it.

Let me tell you a secret: That is simply NOT. TRUE.

So who am I? Why do I get to tell you what is true and what isn’t? 

I started singing at the age of 2 in my church’s children’s choir (like most, good, southern children), and the thought of getting up in front of people AT ALL would send me straight into tears. In fourth grade, my music teacher gave me my first solo in “Candle on the Water.” Being an elementary school concert, there were four soloists who all took their turn stepping up to the mic to sing their verse. After the concert, I was standing with my parents, still visibly shaking, (hello, adrenaline!) and suddenly, I started getting compliments on my little solo. After a few more experiences shaking, singing, shaking some more, and getting patted on the back for a job well done, a light bulb went off in my brain. I LIKED how I felt after I sang. I REALLY liked getting compliments. I needed more.

After several shaky years of trial and error behind a microphone, I started to feel fully at home on stage (granted, even to this day, I get butterflies!) Once I figured out that singing doesn’t have to be scary though, all I needed was some actual coaching. Not just my Mom saying “it’s OK! You can do it!  Someone to tell me how to stop thinking so much, just do! 

Now, let’s back up for a second. I am not saying it is going to take you YEARS to improve. I am saying that I made all the mistakes so you don’t have to. 

I fell in love with singing and started doing so professionally at 15. I attended Belmont University and  earned my degree in Commercial Voice with a Music Business Emphasis. *Phew.* Long title, easy explanation. I was taught how to sing just about every genre of music, how to do so in a healthy way, and have been doing so ever since I graduated in 2012. 

Since I started teaching in 2016, I found that all of my students have unique concerns about their voices however, almost every one of them has the same underlying issue. 

Fear.

As a singer, it is incredibly easy to allow your own fear stop your voice from doing what it wants without even realizing it’s happening. You can have the best technique in the world but, if you psych yourself out by thinking you can’t hit “that note”, you’re correct.

Maybe it’s your breath support, your posture, whether or not your mouth is open and relaxed, or simply the wrong key for your voice. Maybe it’s a combination of all of those things. 

All very simple, fixable things. 

However, if you’ve told yourself you can’t do it, your subconscious has already set you up for failure. 

Let’s dive into some science, shall we? When our body feels threatened, it releases a chemical called cortisol. This chemical then tells us we have to have an action-based outlet in order to get rid of the threat. If we don’t do that, then it just sits there and creates an anxious, panicked feeling. How does that affect our singing?  When we sing and are not confident in what our voice is about to do, our brain tells us that we are feeling threatened. Muscles tense up, breaths get shorter, pretty much the exact opposite of what you want to happen when you’re singing, right? Right.

This also happens when you make a mistake and suddenly become very self-conscious of said mistake.

So, maybe your voice cracked - OK, why? Was it because you didn’t get a big enough breath? You weren’t supporting the note correctly? Was your mouth not open enough? Or, did you get scared and psych yourself out because you didn’t believe in yourself and therefore your brain sent a signal to your voice shouting ‘DANGER, DANGER WILL ROBINSON!’

If you’d like to hear from someone who’s studied these chemicals and what they do to your brain, you can read an article here written by Roger E McLendon,  MD, Neuropathologist at Duke University Medical Center.
(Also, my Dad.)

One of the biggest lessons I can teach you is to own the flaws in your voice so you know exactly where they are, what they do, and how to fix them or, sometimes, use them to your advantage!

Perfection is boring, unattainable, and simply not relatable! I honestly don’t strive for perfection. I strive to hear your voice being the best it can be, on a consistent basis. 

What if you could change your brain from shouting ‘DANGER!’ to “Breathe and GO!” The chemical that gets released in your brain when you get scared or feel threatened WANTS you to stop thinking so much and just do it. Be like Nike. Just DO IT! That skill you’ve been wanting to master so you can be the singer you’ve always wanted to be is already readily available to you. You have everything you need to succeed, you just need someone to show you how to control it.

The biggest and best stars on the planet do not have perfect voices. They have the most unique and immediately identifiable. In case you’re wondering, that’s what the Music Industry is all about these days so, OWN WHAT MAKES YOUR VOICE YOURS.

Once you begin to let go and own what your voice can do, flaws and all, your voice improves, and so does your confidence.Knowing that your voice, your body, and your mind are all connected and meant to help each other, and being able to control all of those things so they work together to make your voice the best voice it can be, will not only improve your singing but, also boost your overall confidence.

I am here to make sure that when you’re ready to take that next step in your singing career, whatever that may mean, your confidence shines so bright, that singing becomes second nature.

So, are you ready to boost your confidence and your voice? I am.

Have a Question? Ask Away!