Lindsey Lee – Misery (Maroon 5 Cover)

Questions

1. Where in her technique does she need work? I notice some “Kermit-y”ness from her voice.  How and why is such a sound produced?
2. At 2:49, she makes a (what I’m assuming is stylistic) break into falsetto.  How can such a smooth flip be worked towards?  Is it accidental or stylistic? The first one sounds stylistic, while the second one sounds much more accidental.

My Analysis

This is my first time ever encountering Lindsey Lee. It was a treat! Ms. Lee has quite a bit going well for her. She is very talented and sings musically, especially along with the rhythmic feel of this song. Here are some of her technical highlights:

• Opens the jaw. You can see this in many phrases throughout the clip, especially on the /aɪ/ diphthong as found in words such as I, why, silence, and intertwined, in addition to her /aʊ/ diphthong as found in the word how. You can also see the jaw open well for her EH as found in letters, send, and yeah. 

• The tongue often stays forward. This allows her to be able to pronounce many of the words clearly. You can see this on many of the words mentioned above. Some specifics include the I am at 1:00, yeah at 2:03, and got me back at 2:25.

• Engages the chest voice. She sings in chest throughout almost the entire song, using varying degrees of it. She knows how to engage it well, which gives the clarity to her voice.

In response to the first question, the Kermit the Frog quality in her voice comes from depressing the root of the tongue on the larynx. You can hear examples of this in phrases such as it but you won’t let it bend at 0:35 and deeper than it seems at 0:46. It’s interesting that she does this because she often keeps the tongue in a much better position at many other points in the song. She seems to mainly depress the larynx on her EE and IH vowels. Christina Aguilera, who seems to have influenced her a lot, often does the exact same thing. Although I can’t say her specific reason for doing this, people often do it when they have trouble getting certain vowels to match the strength and power of their other vowels. 

As for areas in her technique where she needs work, aside from depressing the larynx at times, I would also work on her AAH, especially in the words back and that, because she has a tendency to go nasal and sing those overly thin. Furthermore, I would work on the relaxation of the corners of the lips so that she can produce the majority of her vowels in an easier way while still maintaining their clarity. This would help out with the issue on back and that. 

In reference to the second question, I’m pretty sure both flips she does are stylistic. It’s pretty common in Pop and R&B styles, especially among females, although I can’t think of any specific names at the moment. She handles the flip quite well. Basically, to do the flip, you have to completely let go of chest, because that’s what falsetto is by definition — a mode of vocal production which is devoid of chest or vocalis activity. You can practice this by doing yodels on an octave jump, starting off with a chesty AH on the first note, then going into a falsetto OO on the second note, being sure to feel the actual flip or break. It’s important to feel that break so you know what it feels like to completely let go of chest. Then, you can gradually practice it on smaller and smaller intervals until you’re singing it on an interval that’s the same as found in a the song, in this case, a perfect 4^th.

Clip Details

Uploaded by: lindseyjlee
Length: 3:46
Website: http://www.myspace.com/lindseyleemusic