This week I want to ask you ‘what is your musical diet?’ A Youtube creator I follow called Rick Beato put this great video out last week on ‘Has every song been written?’ commenting on the fleet of lawsuits that artists are firing at each other over copying songs.
Now while he sets out to discuss the nature of this, it’s the last few minutes of the video (I’ve timestamped the video to start from this point) that I wanted to share with you. And that is in relation to musical diet…
Those of you who have worked with me know I’m a big believer in expanding your musical diet to incorporate a greater range of nuances, subtleties and flavours. The more you experience, the more you have to draw on that you like, the more mature and sophisticated (yet accessible) your sound will become, and (conversely) the greater your understanding of what it is you DON’T like and what you avoid will start to inform your musical style.
In this video, Rick talks about kids not eating vegetables. No one wants to eat broccoli if chips and fries are on offer. But if you taste them enough, your preferences change and you start to appreciate the subtleties that at first were too complex or just not in your preference at all to begin with. Whatever you consume musically, WILL define what comes out of you musically. This means if you’re searching for a new sound, a unique sound, a more mature sound, you need to consume music in line with that, not just more of the same. It’s this that I feel Rick and his guest Rhett touch on wonderfully.
Do have a watch of the last 3-5 mins of this video, and if you feel so inclined, the full 30 minute video is well worth a watch whilst having a tea/coffee/beverage.
Learn More: Related Articles
If you want to learn more about vocal style, you may enjoy these related articles:
Style vs Hyper-style: An analysis of Modern Vocal Style
Developing Style: Expansion and Contraction
Learn to riff: why it’s easier than you think
Why singing is like clothing
Styling songs: 3 versions of the same song
Why do singers resort to gimmicks to get noticed?