How Do Vocal Cords Work? Singing And Rap Voice Basics
Don’t worry when I show you how the vocal cords work I won’t get TOO science-e but I want you to realize I truly DO know what I am talking about when it comes to being an artist with a voice.
After all, I am a really successful music artist!
How To The Vocal Cords Work?
So check it out, this is how the Vocal cords work for you to sing or rap.
- When breath passes over the vocal cords
- Those oscillations become vibrations in the breath stream.
- Which are amplified by the resonators
- And the result is sound formed into words by the articulators.
A lot of unnecessary words I know..
But if you can’t tell already, you’re really going to learn everything you need to know about vocal cords today!
Does it make sense to you that if you know how your vocal cords work it would be easier for you to get a singing or rap voice?
Of course it does!
Annnnd that’s why I am showing you how the vocal cords work. This way you can make your singing and rap voice better to start making your songs sound better overall.
All because you will understand how the vocal cords work!
So Heads up here, or really, throats up
** TERRIBLE JOKE **
The Vocal cords are also referred to as the vocal folds so when you hear that term it means the same thing.
A Quick Fix For Vocal Cords To Sound Amazing
Here’s The #1 Scientifically-Proven Method Rappers And Singers From All Around The World Are Using To Make Even A Weak, “Pathetic” And Weird-Sounding Voice Sound Amazing In 30 Days …Without Expensive Voice Training, Decades Of Practice, Or Talent…
If you’re a rapper or singer and want to “shortcut” your way to having an amazing, radio-friendly voice that everyone loves, this is the most important message you’ll ever read about your vocal cords.
The only difference between YOU… and artists who are celebrated, played on the radio, and loved by everyone is their voice.
Your voice is what gives your music character and makes you stand out.
Having an amazing sounding voice is the fine line that will take your music from good to GREAT…
And it’s the one thing that CAN’T be fixed with good beats, expensive studios, or world-class sound engineering.
If your voice sucks.
It sucks.
And there’s nothing you can do about it.
Many rappers end up WASTING a small fortune trying to make their voice sound better by buying expensive recording equipment, studio time, or hiring a sound engineer to fix their weak sounding voice.
But once you’ve mastered your voice you can keep all that money.
After going through my “Rap Voice Masterclass” you’ll have everything you NEED to make your voice sound great …even when recorded with a cheap mic in your home studio.
It’s a game-changer.
If you feel like this is right for you, click here, and get instant access to my ‘Rap Voice Masterclass” online course plus 3 FREE bonuses worth $441 as a special welcome gift.
Check it out Voice Masterclass
Vocal Cords Vs. Guitar And Piano
After this, you will know how to play an instrument. Your rap voice.
You will also have the answer to “How do vocal cords work” since everyone keeps asking me on my YouTube (250k subscribers)
If there is anything I want you to learn from this entire article it is that your vocal cords work are they are any artist’s most valuable instrument.
When someone is in small talk with me and asks me what I do, I try not to say because then I have to explain how far I’ve come and the whole story so they know that I’m seriously a popular music artist.
So I say I’m a very successful songwriter instead. If they pry further sometimes they ask what instrument I play. I don’t hesitate to say I play the vocal, the coolest instrument there is.
It’s always the lead instrument in popular music. Your rap voice is what matters more than almost anything else and that’s why I made this Rap Voice Master Class so intricate and detailed. You learning everything in this course is going to supercharge your most valuable skill set which is playing your instrument.
The point here is to help you master your instrument so you can be an expert at playing your rap voice like a rock star guitarist is an expert at playing his guitar. You’re not learning piano, guitar, or drums… you are learning rap VOICE.
Why Everyone Has A Unique Rap Voice
Well, this is all part of how the vocal cords work.
Have you ever thought about how interesting it is that you can instantly identify the rap voice of your favorite rapper or singer?
What would life be like if everyone had the same voice? When your parents wake you up in the morning by calling out your name, wouldn’t it be strange if you couldn’t tell who it was calling your name?
It would be weird for you, too. Can you imagine calling out to a friend across the classroom only to have them ask, “Who said my name?” When you stop to think about it, it’s really handy that each of us has a unique voice.
But why is that?
When we consider the ways in which each of us is unique, you might initially think of things like your looks and your fingerprints.
Your rap voice and vocal cords identify you as unique as your looks and your fingerprints do. Although some people might sound quite a bit alike, no two voices are ever exactly alike.
Vocal Cord Factors For Rap Voice
We each have a unique voice because so many factors work together to produce that rap voice. Your voice starts down in your lungs, where air is exhaled to create an air stream in the trachea and across the larynx, which is often called the voice box.
Stretched horizontally across your larynx are vocal folds, which are also known as vocal cords. As air passes over them, the vocal cords vibrate very quickly to produce sounds.
The higher the rate of vibration, called frequency, the higher the pitch will be. The pitch of your voice is largely determined by the length and tension of your vocal cords.
By themselves, the vocal cords produce just a buzzing sound.
The parts of your body between the vocal cords and the outside world, such as the throat, nose, and mouth, act as a resonating chamber to turn those buzzing sounds into your unique human voice.
As you can see, there are many different parts of the body involved in producing your rap voice.
Each of those parts is unique in each person, which is what gives each person a unique voice. Moreover, those parts can change over the years and even from day to day, so your rap voice itself can change over time and even today!
Puberty And The Vocal Cords
For example, as boys grow older, their voices tend to deepen. This is because testosterone in boys makes their vocal cords longer and thicker.
Girls’ voices will change a bit as they grow older, too, but not to as great an extent as with boys.
In general, men will have deeper voices than women, because their vocal cords tend to be larger and vibrate at lower frequencies.
You may also notice a change in your voice when you have a cold. The raspy voice common to people with colds is caused by swelling in the vocal cords caused by the cold virus.
Coughing can also cause further irritation and swelling in the vocal cords.
Pretty cool huh.
More On How Vocal Cords Work
First of all, let’s look at the positioning of the vocal cords. The general misconception about vocal cords is that they are UP AND DOWN.
But it helps to envision and understand that they are actually flat.
As if you are KARATE CHOPPING yourself in the throat
Look at this picture. The vocal cords are locating within the larynx also called the voice box.
At that sits at the top of the trachea also known as your windpipe.
The vocal cords are located midway down your neck as you can see in the picture. Right between the top and the bottom of your neck.
There are 2 vocal cords and they’re connected in the front of your neck.
Men can feel the top of their voice box, it’s called the Adam’s apple
Women also have it but it’s much much smaller and harder to see or feel.
Even Megan Fox has one.
Now, your vocal cords are JUST behind the Adam’s apple
Vocal cords have length, width, and depth and are made up of different layers of tissue. But there is a TON of muscles you need to see that help you produce your rapping or singing.
There are so many muscles when you look at it from the front it almost looks like a bat with it’s wings about to spread.
After looking at this and seeing how many muscles there are in your throat, and knowing you can build up muscles… you have to realize that making your singing and rap voice stronger is clearly a REAL THING.
These muscles can grow and become stronger the more you practice your craft.
In a minute I am going to show you some really cool stuff with the vocal cords so stick around. But first I wanna show you something pretty cool that happens when you swallow and breathe.
When you breathe, the vocal cords open so you can take in air. And they come together when we talk or make noises at all.
Because remember, no noise can be made if the vocal cords don’t create the vibration which resonates and then comes out of your mouth.
You’re probably wondering what happens when you swallow, right?
When you swallow there is actually a lid like a Pringles can that covers the vocal cords to protect them.
What Happens To The Vocal Cords When You Swallow?
In response to activation of pharyngeal pressure receptors
the swallowing center in your medulla
Initiates reflexes that prevent food entry into respiratory passageways
The uvula contracts which blocks the nasal passages from the pharynx.
Then the laryngeal muscles contract which closes the glottis at the top of the trachea by tightly aligning the vocal folds.
The epiglottis or that Pringle chip I was talking about earlier.
Swings down upon the closed glottis with all airways blocked off respiration is temporarily inhibited. After food passes through, breathing resumes.
If you ever cough, it’s because fluid got through before that epiglottis closes.
That fluid goes into our lungs and so we cough with a lot of pressure from the lungs in order to clear out that liquid from the respiratory system.
The air from the lungs is actually moving faster than a fastball in baseball. The air we cough out moves at over 100 MPH.
Pretty cool huh.
If you watch the video above you can see the vocal cords in action and how the vocal cords work in real-time.
How The Vocal Cords Look
You’ll Notice the vocal chords stretch out longer on the higher frequencies.
And here you can see how it stretches out way shorter on the lower frequencies..
It’s similar to the sound spectrum when you really look at it.
Lower frequencies are the bass, and higher frequencies are more in the 6k and up range.
Pretty cool right.
Well now you know everything from how they work, to what they look like and now, you just gotta learn to use them.
Remember that amazingly insightful and helpful post you just read is actually taken right out of the introduction to my Rap Voice Master Class that every rapper within their first 2 years of rapping can use to get over the biggest hurdles rappers have at first… Choosing their rap voice and finding their style.
Want To Know More About Vocal Cords?
I have HOURS of video training teaching artist everything they need to know.
And these videos this week are to celebrate the launch of this brand new Rap Voice Master Class that took me the last 3 months to plan what you need to help you WIN, write scripts, shoot the videos, edit the videos, make the perfect bonuses and then prepare for this week for you to know about it.
If I were you, and I wish I had something like this when I started…
Here’s The #1 Scientifically-Proven Method Rappers And Singers From All Around The World Are Using To Make Even A Weak, “Pathetic” And Weird-Sounding Voice Sound Amazing In 30 Days …Without Expensive Voice Training, Decades Of Practice Or Talent…
If you’re a rapper or singer and want to “shortcut” your way to having an amazing, radio-friendly voice that everyone loves, this is the most important message you’ll ever read about your vocal cords.
I would go check the Rap Voice Masterclass out.
I bring you right into the studio with me and show you things you’ll thank me for after you see it.
Don’t miss out on what’s going on right now.
Let me help you.
I’m Rob Level, This is Smart Rapper. Here’s the link for the Rap Voice Master Class right now.
I’ll see you at the TOP