Do You Need Talent To Sing Well?

Let's talk about: TALENT. And more specifically: let's talk about the singers who are not born with a natural talent and believe that you need a natural gift in order to sing well. Maybe that's you? Let's go!

A lot of singers that are not born with a natural gift or talent, believe that they will never be as good as singers that are born with that natural talent. The question here is this: is that true?

I do understand where that belief is coming from. As artists, we tend to compare ourselves to others. We turn on the TV, we watch a singing competition, we listen to someone sing a particular song and we notice that our version of that song might be completely different.

By comparing ourselves with other singers, it seems like that "end goal" is miles away from where we are now. So it's normal that our brain goes to that idea of "I will never be as good as her/him". But it's that true?

My Singing Journey

If I look at my singing journey, it's not true at all. Actually, the opposite is true! I wasn't born with a natural talent, I was born with a great passion for singing and music.

When I was at university, getting my vocal degree, I made that mistake of comparing myself to the other students in my class. I saw two groups of people: the talented singers (the singers who seemed to have that natural gift, everything seems to come easy to them) and the "trained" singers. The "trained" singer, in my opinion, is someone who is working hard, training their voices, pushing their boundaries, getting outside of their comfortzone,...

And I noticed that the "talented singers" enjoyed themselves after class. They went out to the local café to grab some drinks, while the "trained singers", well, they went to practice. We did our vocal exercises, we discovered our mix voice, we trained our diaphragmatic breathing,... We worked on all the vocal techniques needed to sing well. 

Then something interesting started to happen...

Surpassing the "talented" singers

The talented singers they seemed to score very high on the scale of singing skills and, in the beginning, the "trained" singers they seemed to score very low on that same scale. And overtime, something interesting started happening, the gap between the talented and trained singers began to close. We became equally as good at singing.

And then something even more interesting started happening, because the more time went by, the more training the trained singers got and they eventually started to surpass those with a natural talent! 

The reason behind it is because the trained singer, from the get go, learned to develop that discipline to develop their voices. A trained singer has determination, is committed to their vocal practice, that's something a talented singer has never learned and that's what allows them to continue to grow as a singer. The talented singers, on the other hand, never had to train their voices, it came naturally to them. So they also didn't evolve or grow as a singer. 

Interesting, isn't it?

What about famous artists?

Another example is Ed Sheeran. In an interview he talks about his journey as a singer and shows a recording of his voice a few years ago compared to his voice now. So even Ed Sheeran is a "trained singer".

Often times, when we see all those big artists, we think they have a natural talent, but actually, most of them are a "trained" singer. They have worked hard to develop their voices.

So instead of keeping on comparing yourself with those singers that might have a natural talent, I want to invite you to strive to be that "trained" singer. Because if you don't, you'll keep seeing what you don't have yet, you'll focus on lack, on something that is missing.

Can you imagine what is possible for you if you focus on what you DO have? On your current skills and goals for the future? On your determination, on your passion, on your commitment?

So... A little homework for this week (if you're up to it!): be mindful of your thoughts this week, what do you focus on? And how can you choose empowering thoughts that move you forward throughout your singing journey?

A little gift for you

Being a trained singer, means training your voice. A good vocal training starts with a good vocal warm up! Click here to download my free vocal warm up routine to get started.

See you next week!