Does Mariah Carey Artificilaly Create her Studio Vocals?

Post by: Diva Devotee

The Elusive Chanteuse was a great album, regardless of the bleak sales. But something about some of the tunes on the LP always got my Spidey senses tingling. It was definitely Mariah Carey but the voice had a Splenda quality to it in parts, if ya get what I mean.

Mariah's voice is of course subject to change and has done so with each release- there's an article or video in that. So I reconciled this unease with an adapted technique, namely shedding weight and taking a more nasal attack, to hit the higher notes.

JOJO - Fuller Soprano or Higher Mezzo-Soprano?

Post by: Montrez Rambo

Jojo is one of those singers that comes along and makes people turn their heads, Not only are untrained ears piqued by her vocals, but those with a vocal background also fawn over her abilities. She has a bright and coppery timbre, robust lower register, sizeable lower middle, bright and sheer upper middle and a rich upper register.

But what is her voice class though? Soprano has been tossed around as many a time as mezzo-soprano has. There's one performance that is tell-tale... Who's Loving you, Smokie Robinson tribute.

DUA LIPA, Underdeveloped Soprano or Mezzo in need of nuturing?

Post by: Montrez Rambo

Dua Lipa! She's so gorgeous. What's even more gorgeous than she is? Her voice. She has a steely, mesmerizing sound that is husky and deep. Is she a mezzo-soprano or a textbook underdeveloped soprano? Let's watch the above cover of The Hills, filmed for Radio 1's Live Lounge and see if we can get to the bottom of this vocal conundrum.

Right off the rip. The girl was giving us lower register; tight and congested, but low nonetheless. Hovering around G#3, dipping to a solid Eb3. It wasn't the most relaxed but her larynx wasn't being floored either.

JESSICA REEDY Low Mezzo-soprano or Contralto?

Post by: Montrez Rambo

Jessica Reedy may not be a singer many of you have heard of, but in the gospel community she is well regarded, mainly because of her extensive lower register. Is she a rare contralto or one of many low mezzo-sopranos commonly mistaken for contraltos in popular music? Let's take a look at this performance to get a better understanding:

[Discuss] The Vocal Slide

We all know what a vocal slide is, right?

Also known as a glissando, it's the technique where a singer slides up (or down) the scale with a smooth and continuous sound. But I'm not an expert. Let's let a real singer- a "singer's singer," if you will- explain it to us laymen.

Declining voices: What's a Diva To Do?

Decline is an inevitability for all of us and everything. Physics even has a theory for it: The second law of thermodynamics. And our Divas, as magical as they are, are no exception to this.

With The Spice Girls Reuniting, Let's Talk about Their Individual Voices

Notice to all of you who survived the '90s: the Spice Girls are reuniting!

Not all of them mind...but more than half! Geri Halliwell ("Ginger"), Emma Bunton ("Baby") and Melanie Brown ("Scary") have sent out the proclamation that they are planning a "party" to celebrate twenty years since the group's inception.

Knowing it would perhaps be cheeky to perform under the Spice Girls banner with only three members, the trio are tentatively going with the new name: GEM. (Anyone who needs explaining as to "why that name?", please see yourselves out.)

Sporty Spice - "the one with the voice"- could potentially still join the trio's celebration, saying, "I am keeping tight-lipped. There are lots of discussions going on." But it seems unlikely that this wavering will be seen from Best Spice Posh, who recently, shadily said: "They used to turn it off and just let the others sing. I got the last laugh – and now my mic is well and truly on, finally.”

Am I really bothered by this announcement? No. But let's use it as an excuse to talk about the Spice Girls and their voices

[Discuss] Which Song Gives You Pain In The Throat Just Thinking About?

We all a love sing song on DivaDevotee- whether we're any good at it is of course up for debate!

Still, even if we aren't vocalists of any merit, that doesn't make much difference to how difficult or easy we perceive a piece to be. Sure, range is going to be an issue for most of us- particularly those of us of the male persuasion- when covering a Minnie Ripperton song. But excluding rangy vocals, what song has melisma too complex to copy, belts too intense to bear, or dynamics too difficult to deliver?

[Battle Of The Legends] Whitney Houston Vs Mariah Carey Vs Celine Dion

Post Submitted by Dante

Battle of The Legends!!! You have...

Mariah Carey (Light Lyric Coloratura Soprano):

What separates Mariah from the other divas is her musicality, range, and crazy agility. Mariah has been known to write 95% of her music and produce a good amount, too. Mariah possesses a five octave voice, meaning the women can sing low tenor to high soprano if she wants to. Also, she has the ability to sing complex runs and riffs without wavering pitch or losing fluidity. But with all things greats comes with it's downfalls, she lacks consistency in a live setting, and low notes are often sung with a low larynx.

[#FreeKesha] Taylor Swift Donates Money To Kesha, Demi Lovato Remains (unim)Pressed

In the midst of a surprising amount of support from her fellow Divas, Kesha's musical career suffered another setback last week.

[Discuss] Which Singer Has The Most Beautiful Falsetto?

I know, I know! There are many vocal teachers out there that insist the female falsetto doesn't exist and that it's the head voice producing that particular timbre. But science has proven this to be untrue, so I am going ahead with the post. Take that, (more informed than me) teachers!!

[Discuss] America Considers Jessie J "One of the Greatest Singers"- So Says Jessie J.

Oh America, what have you done to our Jessie J, filling her head with nonsense seems to have warped her mind a little. Speaking to Women’s Health, the Domino singer revealed that y'all have been celebrating her "as one of the greatest singers", and she "loves it". Really?!

Clearly feeling herself- no shame in that- she went on to reveal how she wishes to be remembered as an iconic Divas, saying "I want to be up there with the Celine Dions, Whitneys, Beyonces and Arethas".

[Discuss] Is Alicia Keys A Terrible Singer?

When Alicia Keys debuted in 2001 with her smash hit Fallin', she was held up as a kind of wonder kid. Hailing from a deprived area of New York, the Diva was pushed as a classically trained pianist who was as capable on the keys as she was with her own voice. And if that wasn't enough, she was a writer and a composer to boot! Truly the whole package, it was little surprise that she quickly came to Clive Davis' attention.

Diva Devotee's Albums Of The Year 2015

The end of the year is here, so you know what that means! A chance to run down my top five albums of 2015! This year I'm going to keep it simple with just an image, a favourite song from each, and a few words to sum up each set. This has nothing to do with sales, chart performance or what anyone else thinks. I'm going on what I like and what I listened to most in 2015.

Definitely more so than last year, I feel this will be a difficult task! We had some good releases in 2015!

[Open-ish Post] Where All The Halloween Songs Be At?

For real- where are they?! Divas love to put out festive music, chasing that All I Want For Christmas yearly yield, but when it comes to this spookiest of occasions, they're paying it dust! For shame!

Is it really too much to ask for some melismamatic wailing to go with my pentagrams and rituals?! I certainly think not! #seething.

Well, I'm still going to get into the spirit by putting up a post that is related to the day. Check out Alyssa Edwards being given a "spooky-kooky" Halloween makeover from drag sister Sharon Needles. And in the comments, let's talk about the holiday: you know, what ya wearing/doing, horror stories, scary songs and who/or what you be summoning today.

I am here for it alllll!

[Album Discussion] Lana Del Rey- "Honeymoon" / Leona Lewis- "I Am"

Two of our Divas have released new albums in quick succession. When it rains it pours!

First we had Leona Lewis' I Am, which was released on the 11th of September. It didn't exactly make a big splash, charting not so great in the UK(#12) or the US (#38)- though she smartly remains pragmatic about this. Now this week sees Lana Del Rey's Honeymoon drop, with predicted sales of 100k and a Billboard album chart position of #2. Not bad!

[Discuss] Miley Cyrus & Her Dead Petz / "Dooo It"

Fresh off the back of her hosting gig at the MTV Video Music Awards, Miley Cyrus announced the surprise (and immediate) release of her fifth album, Miley Cyrus and Her Dead Petz. "How very Beyonce of her!", the world cries.  But hold up, she actually one-upped the Queen by giving this experimental project away for FREE [Listen here]!

[Discuss] Nominate Your Song Of 2015 (So Far)

For someone, like me, who does not have an option for "most played song" on his music player- Winamp for lyfe- this is going to be tough. Couple that with having the memory of a cream cake, it may end up being near enough impossible. However, you dolls are a smarter bunch, so this question of simple recall should be easier for you.

[Discuss] Overrated Singers

We've all had that experience where someone (or usually at the time, seemingly everyone) is going on and on about a singer, and you're just not getting the fuss. Bad times.

This isn't really about a singer being out and out bad, mind. For example Britney Spears can't really sing well. But since she's  never been billed as a vocalist of any sort, to call her "overrated" (vocally) would be untrue. So what do I mean? Let me give you una example.

[Discuss] Favourite Part of A Vocal Range?

This is a toughy, I know.

Each part of the range has its pluses and negatives. Not only that, but they also sound different depending on the singer. But in general, what part of the voice do you find yourself most easily impressed by?