Six Bad Speaking Habits Sneakily Ruining your Singing Voice

A singer does everything right in warm-ups but feels vocal fatigue or loss of range halfway thorough a gig or reheaarsal. The culprit isn't always the singing technique; most of the time it is how they talk. The way they talk - speaking in raspy voice, not having enough breath, projecting your voice in a loud environment (work, restaurant, bar) affects the way you sing. I always say that singing is an extension of speech so your speaking habits impact the health of your singing voice. Most singers don't realize that the way they speak influences their vocal quality and longevity. Here are some ways in which poor speaking habits can sneakily ruin your singing voice.

Six Bad Speaking Habits That Affect Singing

1. Poor Posture

Poor posture in speaking can cause tension in the neck and shoulders, which restricts breath support and vocal resonance. Good posture is essential for optimal speaking and singing.

2. Shallow Breathing

Many people tend to breathe shallowly while speaking. Maybe because they are anxious many speakers and singers raise the shoulders while speaking which inhibits good breathing. This is acturally called "clavicular breathing." This habit can limit the airflow needed for singing, making it difficult to sustain notes and project the voice effectively.

3. Overuse of Vocal Fry

Using vocal fry or a gravelly voice while speaking can strain the vocal cords/folds because the lack of tension makes the folds vibrate unevenly. This habit, if carried into singing, can lead to vocal fatigue and damage over time.

4. Speaking too low

Speaking in a low voice can limit the range and flexibility of your vocal folds. Because you don't exercise the voice in the higher range it can result in a less dynamic singing voice, making it harder to express emotion and variation.

5. Throaty speaking

When you speak from your throat you force your vocal tract to do all the heavy lifting which leads to problem habits. Because you are not using your natural amplifiers (resonators) correctly the throat is tightened and all the muscles tire out causing hoarseness or sore throat.

6. Lack of Articulation

Poor articulation while speaking can lead to unclear diction in singing. When singing you need to articulate more as your consonants have to project. If you don't the audience's ability to understand the lyrics is diminished and impacts the overall performance.

Tips to Improve Speaking Habits for Better Singing

1. Practice Good Posture

Ensure that you are standing or sitting up straight while speaking to promote better breath support and vocal production. Especially when singing stand like a ballet dancer- upright, tall, and imagine your spine is reaching the ceiling, but dont' raise your shoulders. This allows the diaphragm and the intercostal muscles of the ribs to expand.

2. Focus on Deep Breathing

Incorporate deep breathing techniques into your daily speaking routine to enhance airflow and support for both speaking and singing. Practice breathing through the nose and feel how the breath feels lower. The reason is that your nasal passage sare narrow and filled with turbinates, creating a resistance; that signals the nervous system to relax your upper chest and shoulders, and engage your diaphragm.

3. Avoid Vocal Fry

The vocal quality called vocal fry is the lowest note you can speak. Fry sounds like a creaking door. Speaking in this quality is damaging to the voice as you are not getting enough air pressure under the vocal folds. In lessons I have students speak in fry and push on thier diaphragm and they realize the pitch of the voice increases almost a fifth above where they were speaking just because they added more breath support. Be mindful of your vocal quality and try to avoid using vocal fry in everyday speech. Instead, aim for a clear and resonant voice.

4. Vary Your Tone

Practice varying your pitch and tone while speaking to develop a more dynamic vocal range that will benefit your singing. Use your words with real emotion, expecially when reading aloud.

5. Work on Resonance

If you tend to speak throaty, try exercises that create a more nasal resonance uses the back of your tongue such as humming.Of course you are not going to walk around doing this but this exercise will allow your tongue to begin to develop the correct muscle memory so it will automatically readjust when you sing or speak.

6. Improve Articulation

Engage in articulation exercises to enhance your clarity of speech, which will translate to better diction in singing. Remember the "Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers" or "she sells sea shells by the sea shore"exercise when you were a child? There are many more of these exercises to develop better articulation.

Conclusion

Being aware of your speaking habits is essential for maintaining a healthy singing voice. By making small adjustments to how you speak, you can significantly improve your vocal quality and longevity as a singer. Studying with a qualified voice teacher/coach will give your more understanding of your voice and help you develop it and keep it healthy. Schedule a free consultation with Cynthia Robinshaw for more information.

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