Singing Terms That Changed My Life: Weight

One of the best things about learning to sing with One Voice: Singing Evolved is the freedom it allows me to work on different styles and genres. If there was one person I wanted to be growing up as a singer, it was Idina Menzel. I loved how she belted out her big Broadway numbers in Rent and Wicked. It was fierce and fearless - exactly how I wanted to project myself as a performer. Luckily, One Voice was there to help me learn how to do just that.

Disclaimer: I’m not a One Voice Coach, but I am a singing geek. Here is the link to take private lessons with One Voice!

 It’s funny because now my students watch Frozen and want to sound like Idina Menzel, but they also want to sound like a very different singer. In the last year of voice lessons, many of my students have wanted to sound like Billie Eilish.

If you are aware of these vocalists, you will know that they are on polar opposite ends of the spectrum. Idina Menzel sings loud, proud, and borders on yelling. Billie Eilish sings soft, breathy, and borders on whispering. The beautiful thing is that both of these artists are completely intentional about their different styles. So what’s the secret ingredient that these vocalists are using? They are using “weight” as it is referred to by One Voice.

Every time we speak or sing, the air from our lungs passes through our vocal cords. When we hear a very “breathy” sound like Billie Eilish’s voice, she is allowing a lot of air to release from her cords. This is called singing in a light weight. Here are some examples of singers using a very light weight:

Female Example: Billie Eilish - Ocean Eyes

Male Example: Bon Iver - I Can’t Make You Love Me (cover)

Want to try singing in a light weight? The main thing is the release of air. Place the palm of your hand in front of your mouth and try mimicking one of the singers in these links. You should physically feel the breath on your hand. If you are having trouble, try whispering the lyrics first and then slowly transition into singing.

When we hear a “yelling” sound, like a big Broadway belt, we call this singing in a heavy weight. In order to restrict the amount of air flowing through our vocal cords, we increase the intensity with which our vocal cords press together. Imagine shutting a set of double doors to stop a heavy wind blowing inside. As the wind increases, you have to increase the intensity with which you push on the doors to make them close. This is what is happening inside the vocal cords to produce a heavy weight. Here are some examples of singers using a very heavy weight.

Female Example: Paramore - Ain’t It Fun

Male Example: Blink-182 - All The Small Things

You don’t hear very much air at all being released when these vocalists sing. Now let’s try singing in a heavy weight. Place the palm of your hand in front of your face again and try singing one of the above songs. You shouldn’t feel very much air, if any, on your hand when you sing this time. If you still feel a lot of air, you can try to restrict it by speaking the lyrics and then moving toward singing while keeping the airflow restricted.

There are a couple of common misconceptions about weight. The first is that one type of weight is better than another, and this is not true! They are just different, and the great thing about weight is that it puts the choice of how to sing in the vocalist’s hands. Another misunderstanding is that light weight is the same as “falsetto” or “head voice”. Similarly, it is easy to assume that heavy weight is the same as “chest voice” or “bass”. But remember that weight is based on airflow, not on the actual note being sung.

In fact, if we combine this with our knowledge from my “coordinations” blog post, it means you can sing through any note starting in light weight, moving through a mid-weight, and ending on a heavy weight. You can also do this in the reverse. The idea is that it is a spectrum and the more you learn to control your weight on any given note, the more control you will have while singing your songs! I’ve put together a short video to demonstrate this with the song I Will Always Love You by Whitney Houston. I will stop on the word “I” and move through different weights while singing the same note.

Learning about weight really took singing to a new level for me. I remember being in complete awe at what my voice could do the first time a One Voice coach taught me to use heavy weight. With time and practice, it became a lot easier and now I feel so much more confident when I want to sing loud like Idina. Click here for a One Voice video that elaborates even further on weight.

Don’t forget, I teach as well! Check out my current special - Pay What You Can for 4 Virtual Voice Lessons. Spots are limited! Tune in next week for a new blog in this series of vocal terms that changed my life!

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