What if I really just have a bad voice and can't sing?

Hi, 

I'm sorta new to the course and am here wondering if everyone truly can sing -- and with training, decent to well. 

My backstory: family members used to make me sing solos in church when I was 7-8 years old. It was terrifying. I had no training, etc. I used to sing in the church choir afterwards, but again, no training. I was shy and when I sang, barely whispered, sometimes faking it by just moving my lips. I always thought I was terrible.

I'm now 31 and as I've taken to playing and progressing on the guitar, I deeply long to sing as well and to write songs. I just worry that I don't have it in me.

A family member recently said that no one in our family can carry a tune. I tried to argue against that, saying I've read that many people can sing better with training and practice, but he disagreed with me. 

I used to go to jams with friends where people would sing at an open mic while playing their instrument. I longed to go up there and sing and express myself, but just thought I wouldn't be any good. Singing is something I want to try. Maybe it's not in me and I'll never sound good. But I signed up for the course to try. My other issue is finding privacy where I can practice.

The issue about finding privacy to practice may be a different discussion question (I can make one). But if anyone has tips, I'm all ears! I have roomates and someone is usually always home. I've considered singing from the car or going to a remote outdoor area, etc. 

My struggles with singing are also a confidence thing. I've been working on a lot of personal things, trying to find my voice in life, allowing myself to be seen and to take up space, and singing felt like one more avenue to pursue this.

So I wanted to ask, can some people just really not sing? With any amount of practice and training, it's just not in them? And then how does one know? 

Hi, Katye! Below is an article I wrote to answer this very question. I also want to point you to this article on practicing quietly with roommates/neighbors.

Best of luck to you!

Can I really improve, or are people just born singers?

Camille van Niekerk

 

The short answer is: yes, you can improve! But let’s talk about why we feel that’s not true and what we can practically do to see improvement. 

 

Singing seems like a talent rather than a learned skill because:

 

1. We use our voices all the time! 

 

It doesn’t make sense that singing would be so difficult, when you have no trouble using your voice to speak. If you don’t know the difference between your “singing voice” and your “speaking voice”, you’ll approach singing as you do speaking and run into problems when you try to sing pitches significantly higher than your speaking voice is pitched. 

 

1. We don’t think of informal training as “real” training. 

 

There are plenty of “untrained” or “self-taught” singers who have incredible tone, control, and range - without ever taking a voice lesson. How can that be, if singing is a learned skill and not purely a talent? Those singers have been taught: by every singer they grew up listening to. They might not use scales to warm up or “fancy” terminology, but they’ve learned about dynamics, tone quality, vowel modification, phrasing and more, just by listening and imitating what they hear. I’d venture to say that every “naturally gifted” singer has a lot of listening and practice under their belt, and that many of the “best” singers are also the best imitators. 

 

1. Looks can be deceiving. 

 

Unlike the guitar or the piano, the vocal instrument (specifically the vocal folds within your larynx) are hidden. What you do see and hear can give you a false impression of what the singer is actually doing. For example, you may hear a loud, strong sound and see the singer opening their mouth tall and wide. But when you try to do the same thing, your voice begins to strain and maybe even crack. You see the “finishing touches” of belting without seeing the stable larynx or hearing the subtle vowel modification the singer is employing to avoid straining and cracking themselves. You certainly don’t think of the time they’ve spent training their voice to sing that very note. 

 

1. Your voice doesn’t sound the way you think it does. 

 

Almost every beginning singer I’ve worked with tells me they don’t like the sound of their own voice. I’m a professional singer and teacher, and it took me a few years of consistently recording (and listening to my own vocals) before I could listen to myself without that cringe-inducing, “please let me leave the room” feeling overcoming me. The point is: you’re not alone! Read this article to learn the science behind why that is: https://www.livescience.com/55527-why-people-hate-the-sound-of-their-voice.html. 

 

Alright! So what can I do to improve, and how do I know if I’m actually making progress?

 

1. First, start training your ears!

 

There’s no getting around it: you can’t sing well if you’re singing out of tune. See this article for some tips to get you started: https://www.30daysinger.com/blog/how-to-tell-if-you-re-singing-in-tune-using-free-websites-apps-to-improve-your-pitch-accuracy. 

Here are a few app recommendations (free or inexpensive): https://musiciantuts.com/ear-training-apps/. 

And here’s the #1 musicianship app, if you’re willing to pay a little more (currently $3.99/month): https://www.earmaster.com/. 

 

You’ll know you’re making progress in this area when your scores improve on your app of choice, and when you’re advancing to higher levels. 

 

1. Determine your comfortable vocal range, and use that range to search for warmups and songs that will suit your voice well: https://www.30daysinger.com/blog/finding-your-vocal-range. 

 

1. Commit to at least 5 minutes of daily vocal exercise. 

 

5 minutes is better than none at all! If you do have more time, aim for a 10-15 minute vocal workout. Tracking progress here is difficult without a teacher, but here are a few ideas:

• Comfort level: can you sing with more ease than you used to?

• Reliability: is your voice cracking or disappearing less than before?

• Range: can you sing and sustain pitches that used to be out of your reach (or strained?)

• Strength: can you sing with power from your body, rather than pushing or squeezing from your throat?

• Tone quality: is your tone more consistent?

• Vowels: do your vowels maintain their beauty throughout your range (are you modifying them well)?

• Registration: are you able to access your different vocal registers?

 

1. Select songs that are a good fit for your voice, and begin rehearsing! 

 

My best tip for beginners is to choose songs with a relatively small range, and look for a higher or lower key if the original doesn’t sit comfortably with your voice. Here’s a good place to start: https://www.30daysinger.com/blog/how-to-choose-a-good-song-for-your-voice-considering-range-registration-and-style. 

 

To track your progress, record yourself every month or so and listen back, making note of things you’re doing well and things you still want to improve. With singing, you’re never “done”. It’s something you continue to adjust, grow, and maintain. 

 

Final thoughts:

 

Think of singing like any other learned skill. Of course there will be “naturally gifted” swimmers, but we can all learn the strokes and increase our speed with practice. Not everyone will play golf like Tiger Woods, but we can all work on our swing and play the game. As long as you think of singing as a talent that you “just don’t have”, you won’t work for improvement.

 

See below for a few articles with more ideas on improving your voice:

https://www.30daysinger.com/how-to-sing 

https://www.30daysinger.com/blog/how-to-improve-your-singing-voice-steps-to-follow-for-self-study 

https://www.30daysinger.com/blog/getting-better-fast-when-will-i-hear-improvement-in-my-voice 

Thank you! This is an excellent article with helpful resources!

It's my pleasure, Katye!