Welcome to the New Year!
 
I can’t believe we are already at the end of January. I have a long list of things I want to accomplish this year both personally and for the studio and have slowly been moving through my list. Over the break I have taken the opportunity to get lots of things done here at the home of Voicehaven Studio, a massive landscaping project has begun, the house is prepping for painting and Voicehaven Studio has some new wheels to get around in.

​That did mean I had to suspend in person lessons for a short while but I am looking forward to welcoming students back in February,  I do have some places open to add some more students to the studio and remember online lessons are always available.
 
So what are you goals for the year? Do you set any?
 
Vocally, I want to do some more study on vocal effects such as scream and fry singing, mainly because it fascinates me when singers do it well without vocal damage. I have some fun online courses planned and am loving seeing Voicehaven Studio grow. Oh and I will be walking the dogs daily!

​But how about I throw you a singing challenge? Or a singing ‘suggestion?’
 
I suggest you spend 15 minutes a day on vocal exercises and learn one new song a fortnight. If you do that, that is 26 new songs by the end of the year! (just throw a couple extra in to cover January)
 
Remember I am always here to help you with your vocal and performance goals, please reach out of you have any questions or would like some advice.
 
Let me know how you go!

Just a quick little post here as I feel like this is an important thing to address as a female singer in the rock metal music scene, which is traditionally a heavily male dominated genre.
 
It probably isn’t surprising that when Linkin Park announced their new singer as Emily Armstrong (co-founder of Dead Sara) there were going to be some noses out of joint. Initially it was an attempted character assassination, which I won’t go into, as it has been covered thoroughly and Armstrong herself has made a public statement about it. Another reason I won’t go into it is because it is nonsense. I mean David Draiman literally signed bombs that the IDF used to kill Palestinians and he is still singing.
​

​Then the attacks focussed on her vocals, she doesn’t sound like a dude! He doesn’t sound like Chester Bennington, well no sh*t. She isn’t him.
 
What I do think is that the swift attempt to cancel Armstrong before she had even kicked off is because of the obvious fierce loyalty to Bennington (he was brilliant and very missed) but also because people are pissed that Mike Shinoda replaced him with a female singer.

​Honestly, I think having Armstrong sing original Linkin Park songs is setting her up, because Bennington was a brilliant singer and no matter how good she is, she cannot and never will sound like him. But on her own she is an awesome scream singer. Their launch single, The Emptiness Machine, in which Shinoda and Armstrong share lead vocals is a catchy, bore into your brain hit and I love it.
 
I have seen some footage of their current tour and she holds her own and is a great front person. I think in order for people to enjoy the new Linkin Park, they need to let go of the old Linkin Park, hold it dear in their hearts, but embrace their new direction and their new singer, yes, it’s tough to not compare when they keep playing old songs, but not impossible.

​I know there are many levels of controversy around the rebrand of Linkin Park, but if the music is good, then really, what is the problem? Would Bennington want Shinoda to never play their songs again? I don’t know, Shinoda would know and made his choice, and that choice can weigh on his conscience. But it took seven years after Bennington passed for Linkin Park to release a new single, so the choice has not come lightly.

For those still with their noses out of joint because Armstrong is in the band, honestly it’s time to chill, it is band, nothing more, nothing less. There are much bigger issues in the world right now. Worry about them instead.
 
Female singers in rock and metal are growing in numbers and are here to stay and I am absolutely here for it. And to the man who had the audacity to tell my twelve year old, music obsessed daughter not to listen to Linkin Park because Armstrong is a ‘bad person'
​Kindly shut up.
 
Peace.