I have heard a lot of discussion on the internet about what people consider ‘good singing’ in the modern pop industry. And often in these discussions, there seems to be a lot of hate directed at people who sing in a more subdued manner, or ‘whisper-sing’.

It has always perplexed me why people would have a problem with that kind of singing. It is usually characterized by breathy vocals, the dominance of head or mix voice, and overall quieter sound. Notable names that come up who sing in a more subdued fashion are Billie Eilish, Julia Michaels, Lorde, AURORA, Frank Ocean, Khalid, Zayn, Labrinth and even Justin Bieber. And reading those names on the list, you would probably realize that these are some popular, popular artists right now. So where does the hate come from?

I believe it largely comes from the huge shift that has taken place in pop music over the last decade. Even in 2010-2011, we were still hearing ‘American-idol’ style singing, with people perpetually aspiring to be as good as powerhouse singers like Whitney Houston or Christina Aguilera. Of course, subdued singing or whisper singing is nothing new, and has been a style taken on by many successful artists. But in a modern context, I feel like there are different connotations that arise. As we entered the second half of the last decade, the music industry started to draw a thicker line between ‘singers’ and ‘artists’. Social media and greater accessibility to the lives of famous artists helped people appreciate them for a lot of things beyond their singing abilities. Storytelling, aesthetics, personality seemed to come to the forefront in these years. It is possible to be an amazing, technically perfect singer, but not a good artist.

Artists have to be able to convey stories, use creative avenues like fashion, stage visuals, aesthetics and overall self-awareness to deliver the music that they do. And some of these stories don’t need a heavy, ‘belty’ tone. It is jaw-dropping and amazing when singers can push the boundaries of their voices and deliver amazing vocals, but they have to be able to package it in a way that is enjoyable to a big pop audience. It is not that easy.

Another thing that possibly caused this shift was the improving music technology. People listen to music on headphones more than ever before today, so I think artists found that they were able to play around with quieter styles. When I put on my headphones sometimes, I don’t really want to listen to something loud and vocally difficult. Some days I might want to listen to an intense rock song, but some days I want to listen to someone just narrating a story quietly, without any crazy singing.

That being said, I don’t think its accurate when artists call themselves a ‘singer’ in all senses of the word, without actually displaying technical variety. If you call yourself a professional singer, I do think there are certain boxes you have to check in the technical side of things.

All that being said here are some of my favorite ‘subdued-singing’ type songs, in no particular order 🙂

1. Labrinth – forever
2. Dvwn – Insomnia (ft. YAYYOUNG)
3. Harry Styles – Fine Line 
4. Sales – White Jeans
5. Angus and Julia Stone – Chateau 
6. Clairo – Bags
7. Selena Gomez – Souvenir 
8. Kali Uchis – After The Storm (ft. Tyler, the Creator, Bootsy Collins)
9. Vampire Weekend – Step