The Intelligent Vocalist

Eliminating vocal cracks and breaks is the #1 issue for most singers. In this episode, John discusses the main causes of vocal cracking and gives his best advice for smoothing out your voice throughout your full range.

Positive, focused energy is vital for good singing, but there is so much in our lives that saps this precious resource. Social media, stress, and negative thinking are just some of the ways we sabotage our energy resources. In this episode, John discusses how to revitalize and protect your focused energy so you can have positive practice sessions and performances.

Natalie Weiss is one of the most popular vocal coaches on YouTube. Her videos have been viewed over 30 million times. In this episode, Natalie and John discuss how to learn pop style and vocal riffs, as well as her brand new course "Breaking Down the Riffs." EPISODE LINKS Breaking Down the Riffs Course

Shannon Coates is not only a brilliant educator, she is also down-to-earth, funny, and delivers high-level concepts with easy-to-understand language. In this episode, John and Shannon discuss practical voice pedagogy and how knowledge can help singers flourish. SHOW LINKS: Shannon Coates' Website and Courses

One of the significant challenges of singing is that it is sensation-based, especially vocal resonance. These sensations in the human voice can be tricky as they are not easy for everyone to feel and often don't present themselves until you are singing correctly. In this episode, John gives simple exercises to increase awareness of your resonators, their sympathetic vibrations, and to improve your quality of tone.

The quality of our singing is directly related to the quality of our thoughts. Insecurity, doubt, or hesitation can quickly derail our vocal efforts. In this episode, John talks with celebrity voice teacher, Michael Goodrich about the science of the brain and getting the mind ready for singing. Show Links The Inner Singer

Great lyricists use words not just for rhyme schemes or emotional context but for musical color. Finding the right shade and intensity level of a word will boost your singing to a new world of artistic expression. In this episode, John discusses how to break down a song to find the right vowel shades for balance, intensity, and the highest levels of musical and emotional impact.

Jamila Ford is an experienced singer with a long list of credits, including Seal and the Coachella Festival. Jamila brings the perspective of a successful working singer to her podcast audience (The Working Singer) and her lucky voice students.

Just as in life, music and singing will bring disappointments. Most of these disappointments are not in our control, but that doesn't mean we can't get back on track. In this episode, John discusses how to handle setbacks and why self-forgiveness can be a powerful step in moving forward.

Teachers and singers often struggle to fix a vocal issue because the root cause has been misdiagnosed or missed completely. Making a proper assessment of your or a student's voice is an essential step in finding your way forward. In this episode, John talks with Chris Johnson of the Naked Vocalist podcast on his detailed assessment method and how you can more accurately discover what's happening in the singing voice. EPISODE LINKS: Chris' Website