Grant-Williams Bemoans Over-Singing Epidemic
Renee Grant-Williams
American TV audiences can’t seem to get enough of the phenomenally successful show known as American Idol, but noted vocal coach Renee Grant-Williams could do with a little less of the show’s over-the-top vocal performances, which she describes as “painfully loud and meaningless over-singing.” Grant-Williams, one of the nation’s leading voice experts and coach to some of the music industry’s biggest stars, points to this week’s duet by a former guest judge and partner as a prime example.
“By shamelessly over-singing, Demi Lovato and Joe Jonas managed to destroy what might otherwise have been a perfectly decent song,” Grant-Williams says. “Their performance was over-loud, over-ornamented, mutually over-competitive and ultimately banal. The lyrics to “Make a Wave,” written by Scott Krippayne and Jeffrey D. Peabody, are very positive and send a very powerful message. However, these two singers obscured the words so badly by over-singing, that I had to look up the lyrics to see what they were actually saying. The very essence of a song is to touch the listener by conveying a message of some kind. That’s difficult to do when no one can get a grip on the melody or understand what’s being said.”
Grant-Williams feels these non-verbal squiggles should be there for one reason only – to emphasize the powerful emotion of the song. “When a singer ornaments, it should be because, at that moment, the singer’s emotions are running so high that words will not suffice; the singer is only capable of a visceral response too powerful to put into mere words.”
She also feels that singers she encounters are increasingly belting out songs to the point where words don’t matter. “We seem to be caught up in an epidemic of loud,” she says. “Singing should be more subtle than just slinging a lot of voice around. If you sing with a thundering voice, you sacrifice the honesty, intimacy, and integrity of music. Yet, this style is presented to millions of TV viewers as desirable.”
“You just don’t hear the level of ear-splitting over-singing in Australia and other places like you do here in America,” says Grant-Williams, who recently returned from a sold-out teaching-tour of Australia. Observations she made during tours in Europe and South America confirm that this phenomenon is especially prevalent in the United States. “I’m convinced it’s due in part to the tremendous influence in the US of talent shows where over-singing is rewarded. I still think America has the best singers on the planet. They just need to bring down the volume and focus on the words and the emotions. I’m determined to do what I can to curb these phenomenon before they get out of hand.”
Grant-Williams has as few simple suggestions to help singers get back to the basics of good singing:
1. A song is a one-way conversation, a singer must be very intimate with the words.
2. Singing should be like speaking with the audience, there’s no need to yell.
3. Use consonants and silence to indicate the most important words of the song.
4. Use inflection sparingly as you would use spices, too much will ruin the song.
Grant-Williams coaches aspiring performers as well as celebrities including Keith Urban, Kenny Chesney, Miley Cyrus, Faith Hill, the Dixie Chicks, Tim McGraw, Christina Aguilera, Linda Ronstadt, Randy Travis, and Huey Lewis. She is a former instructor at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music as well as the former director of the Division of Vocal Music at the University of California, Berkeley. For more information visit www.myvoicecoach.com.
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Thank you!! I’ve been saying this for some time now!!
Yes, Mam! I agree! This is exactly how I was taught to sing! Back to the Basics…Thank You! Focus should always be on the words and emotion conveyed in a song!
Yes! Thank you! I carry two pairs of ear plugs in my purse at all times.
I agree completely. I attended Renee’s Master Class last weekend and she grilled me hard on this specific issue! I could not hear it or wrap my mind around it at first; but she’s brilliant at her craft and I totally trust her judgement.
When you compare someone singing the way she recommends and someone singing to show off how powerful their voice is,dragging every word out way too long and all the vocal acrobatics they can do….well, that’s been so overdone at this point that it is becoming annoying and people tune you out! When I saw this duet on AI the very next day it perfectly illustrated it for me. I didnt care that they were good singers; I was just annoyed by them. Lesson learned!
Several years ago I heard someone try to present their version of our National Anthem. I was totally disgusted at what I called at the time their use of “Vocal Gymnastics”. It seemed that it was more about them than about our anthem and country. I agree with Ms Grant-Williams. “Eddie and the Cruisers” said it best when they said, “Words and music, man. Words and music.”
YES-!
I agree with a lot of your commentary Renee’, you are well respected. In the rock world, this is the style and it needs to be taught how to do this correctly so folks don;t lose their voice. They should also be able to come back to intimacy rather than just hurling from their throat.
Singing is an art where many emotions should be conveyed and versatility ephasized.
Thanks for your post.
-Voice Coach Ken
PS: I don’t want to make ths about me so I won’t post any of my info, but Renee’ you might be interested in my approach as it includes serious belting wailing, but also includes very sensitive intimate vocals as well 🙂