I’m struggling with hoarseness in my voice—why is it happening and what should I do?

In a live Q&A webinar, vocal coach Charmaine Brown answers this question from a Worship Vocalist subscriber:

“I’m struggling with hoarseness in my voice—why is it happening and what should I do?”

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Responses

Lydia February 18, 2024

Hey! Usually on a Sunday morning after rehearsal (run through each song 1-2 times, 4 song set usually) I’ll get off stage and start to feel some fatigue and loss of range when I go through my head voice. I’ll be doing some lip trills and I feel it start to just lost grip almost completely in the head voice range. The. To hit the same notes it’s almost like I have to squeeze. What could this be from? I’m also the worship lead so I’m instructing team/sound for about 1:15 and then a 45 min break before first service. We have three services. Usually I’m not DESTROYED Monday but just a little fatigued. Thank you!

Reply
1. Charmaine Brown February 23, 2024
  
  Hi Lydia! It sounds like you are straining your voice on Sunday mornings due to not enough warmup and/or lack of correct/healthy vocal technique. If you don’t already, make sure to follow my Sunday Morning warmup plan, which starts 1.5-2 hours before rehearsal. https://worshipvocalist.com/how-to-warm-up-on-sunday-morning/ A super slow warmup is absolutely necessary for a long morning of singing like you have!
  
  I would also encourage you to keep working through the course lessons, slow and steady, building your mix voice and making sure to get rid of any bad habits of pushing up chest voice. That is usually what tires our voice out when we sing!
  
  Reply
Melanie June 26, 2022

I’m struggling with getting hoarse after singing a couple of songs even after vocal warm up 😐 Any thought? Thank you so much 😊

Reply
1. Charmaine Brown June 30, 2022
  
  So I would say–focus in on your vocal technique… make sure you’re not pushing up chest voice, as that is the main culprit! Also, experiment with eating different foods before you sing and see if it makes a difference!
  
  Reply
  1. Melanie July 3, 2022
    
    What does it mean to push up on chest voice to prevent hoarseness? Thank you so much in advance! 😊
    
    Reply
    1. Charmaine Brown July 8, 2022
      
      Hi Melanie! Pushing up on our chest voice means that we are singing in our chest voice (mouth/chest resonance) too high in our range. For females, we should never push our chest voice past an A above middle C, because when we do, the vocal cords become strained, which causes hoarseness and fatigue. I talk more about this in my Discover Your Voice lessons!
      
      Reply
2. Charmaine Brown June 30, 2022
  
  Hey Melanie! It’s probably due to a different factor… most likely pushing on your voice in the songs, or possibly stress, or a sensitivity to certain foods. So many things can cause vocal fatigue!
  
  Reply

I’m struggling with hoarseness in my voice—why is it happening and what should I do?

Responses

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