“Get the F*<K out of my house!!!” I bellowed while standing with my pants down around my ankles. What struck me in that awkward spit-second was the velocity and conviction emanating from my voice. I had never heard such a primal sound come out of me before. Unfortunately, there was no time to analyze how I produced it. While sitting on the toilet, I watched a burglar walk down the stairs from the second floor of my house. He obviously didn’t know I was home and I didn’t know he was in my house. Someone had to say something.
My howl startled him as much as me. Without thinking, I ran towards him while yanking up my pants and threating to end his life. I chased him through my house, out the door, and down my driveway – all the while barking at him like a vicious animal. As we ran down the street, the reason center of my brain finally kicked in and I thought, “Hey genius, what exactly are you going to do when you catch him?” I was running barefoot and holding up my pants with one hand when I decided to spare his life . . . or mostly likely mine. It was also at that moment that I felt my throat choke up.
All the bravado drained out of me as quickly as it entered. I ran back in my house and called 911. On the phone I noticed my lion’s roar returned to a pedestrian pussy cat. Once the police left, my thoughts returned to my instant ability to project my voice with such a deep, powerful, sound that made an intruder run rather than confront me. Yes, I have 50 years of vocal training to lean on, but in all that time I had never asked, nor created, such a sound onstage. And that’s the point – a voice simply reflects the emotional state, and needs, of its owner.
Now if you’re thinking, “Well, I’ve needed my voice to be loud at times and it didn’t comply.” That doesn’t disprove my observation, it merely indicates that you also had other needs and emotions running at the same time. Most likely, you also needed to be on pitch, in tempo and not embarrass yourself while asking for more power. Plus, your emotional state was most likely doubtful, insecure, inhibited or worried about damage at the same time. When all those competing factors are simultaneously vying for control, the result will be what you typically experience when attempting to belt: tensing, choking, cracking, flat or desperate sounding singing.
We all have behavioral programs running in our brains that are based on our upbringing, temperament, personality, chemistry and beliefs. These silent algorithms dictate our behavior. For some, their operating system allows the voice to be big and bold. For the rest of us, there’s malware constantly corrupting our desire to express. Yes, there are physical prerequisites for projecting a voice with comfort and control. However, if you don’t address any psychological issues triggered by a perceived social risk of being heard, the physical ability of your larynx becomes moot (or mute).
Next week’s post will cover the best way to approach the physical side of projecting the voice. I definitely utilized my vocal training when dealing with that intruder. But what that frightening situation demonstrated, was how vital my mindset was when projecting my voice. For those 90 seconds, I had complete permission to be a beast. They never caught that guy that broke into my house, so I’ll never know if I truly scared him or if he just ran to avoid the cops. Regardless of why you need to project your voice, there is a vocal beast inside all of us. To unleash it, requires both your mind and body be willing and able. One without the other will keep you captive, when what you really want is to be captivating!
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