Why do some singers sound good on the studio....?

Question

and not live??

I mean .. do they totally change their voice in the studio?

Then why are they "SINGERS" ??

Isn't it awkward that means everyone can be singers :S

even though they "sing" yuckkk...

thanks in advance

Answer 1

Studios can add effects (such as with a vocoder) and edit the voice of the singer in snippets and then overlay the vocal pieces in the full track, thus making the singer sound much better than they are "live".

Answer 2

Well, there are a number of reasons, actually...

Sometimes you'll even notice it with bands and other groups that aren't "pop" singers... Some of it is lack of experience.  When you perform live, especially in large arenas or concert halls, the sound echos differently.  These places are designed to take the sound off the stage and send it to the audience.  As a result, it is often hard to hear your band mates, other musicians, and even yourself!  And often times, the sound echos back, so you hear the music 2 seconds after you sang it... you have moved forward, but your ears haven't!  You have to know- and I mean KNOW- your notes, timing, etc., and you have to learn to LISTEN.  Every time you change your venue- say an outdoor concert in one city, then an events center arena in another city- the reverb (echo) changes and it is hard to adjust. This is a factor whether we're discussing a singer, a classical musician, a rock band, etc.  One way that performers try to combat this is using in-ear amps (headphones that block out extra sound and allow you to hear your band mates and yourself), or using audio monitors that face themselves on stage, but sometimes this just doesn't help!

Another factor is that the performer just isn't as good as they are sold to be!  One of the other posters is absolutely correct- labels find a person with the right look and "mold" them to make money for the label.  These people do actually have talent... talent in SALES, not music.  This leads to another poster's answer- the studio fixes anything that doesn't sound good.  With today's technology, sound technicians have the ability to "fix" wrong notes and make a craptastic "singer" sound like a star.  They can manipulate voice recordings, lengthen notes, add effects, and make sure everything's in tune and balanced.  And if you ever wonder why it takes so much time to record- it's because the "singer" has to do about 30 takes on every song so that the engineer has many samples to splice together.  Really, when you buy an album, the star should be the SOUND TECH... the "singer" is just the face that the label markets to the public.

After we hear a "perfect" song on the radio or CD or iTunes, that is what we expect.  We know it a certain way, with no mistakes... it is a "flawless" performance.  When we get to the live concert, many times we expect the same quality of sound.  This is a pretty harsh expectation, but with ticket prices being what they are, it SHOULDN'T be an unrealistic demand!

And one last reason, is of course, that they are people!  Even the greatest performers s***w up sometimes... lack of focus, being sick, being too STONED, and NERVES all play a factor in a live performance.  The greatest performers take those nerves and turn it into a great energy that gets the audience going... "made" performers don't know how to do this, so they become overrun by nerves and psych themselves out.

So the short answer to your question- that is why they are called "singers" and not "vocalists".

:)

Answer 3

they are not singers. they have a certain look or style that will bring in money, so the record companies do whatever they can to make the person sound good...that is why they have to lip-sync live performances...because they are talentless. I witnessed this first hand in dealing with a record label myself. and these are the companies that are taking the art out of music.

Answer 4

when singers sing in recording studios they can actually hear what their voice sounds like through the headphones with music and they can always keep recording until it's perfect. When they sing live, their bodies are vibrating as they sing so they don't know how they sound to the audience. Also, in recording studios, they can fix the pitches until they're right. Recording studios are also quiet while live performances are loud with all the screaming. And the way the voice projects also depends on the size of the room.

Answer 5

Because they're able to tune the instruments just right. They're also able to make their voices louder and go over the music. Technical advantages also help. I don't know why they're singers if they make it better in studios.

Answer 6

the singers in the studio are probably not under as much pressure because if they mess up they can just do it again but live if they mess up they can't go back and fix it plus they're fans willl be mad. maybe another reason is because concerts are late at night and recordings are in the day usually.