Whether you want to compete in a karaoke singing contest (at your neighborhood bar), audition for a local band, or compete against the top talent in the country to win a hefty recording contract like the rewards on a nationally televised talent show, it doesn’t matter what your goals are. Here is a quick review of the ten primary areas you should concentrate on to help you give the greatest performance you are capable of. Making the best song choice for your voice is crucial before doing anything else. Choose a song that complements your voice’s natural style. Select a song that highlights the strength in your lower register if your voice is naturally low. The same approach works if your voice is naturally high.
Attempt to adhere to the 80/20 rule. Choose a song that 80% of the time falls inside your vocal range of strength. Choosing a song that is too big for your current level of singing ability is not a good idea. Don’t pick a slow song just because you believe it will be simpler for you to sing a ballad; frequently, the slower songs call for the most breath support and vocal consistency to produce a show-stopping performance.
Too frequently, vocalists may listen to a song on the radio and assume that just because they can hum along to it (or sing it softly under their breath), they can sing it in full voice when giving a live performance. The only way to guarantee you can perform well is to practice the song at the appropriate volume for a performance (i.e., in full voice) until the act of singing that song has been entrenched into your muscle memory. In comparison to the difficulty vocalists encounter when they attempt to sing a new song for the first time in front of an audience, it is much easier to sing your old favorite songs since they practically sing themselves (muscle memory is created).
