SINGERS/NON-SINGERS: Have you ever successfully sang a Lana Del Rey song?

[Blythe 112]

omg are you Nicole Dollanganger? 

 

yes!

[Venice Jesus Whore 4,471]

Cola is the best Lana song for me to sing so far. I sound really good on it tbh but I sound awful on some of her other songs.

[kik 1,564]

G2 to A5. If I focus, I can do F2-B5. I'm more comfortable in the lower part of my range. Born to Die fits me like a glove.

 

I don't know what my range is called. I don't get it.

[TrippieHippie 69]

G2 to A5. If I focus, I can do F2-B5. I'm more comfortable in the lower part of my range. Born to Die fits me like a glove.

 

I don't know what my range is called. I don't get it.

Your a Mezzo Soprano. You have the same vocal range as Chaka Khan.

 

I'm gonna do mine some time today and repost here what I am

[TRASHBABY 346]

http://lonesome-lolita.tumblr.com/post/82999089749/clip-of-me-singing-as-some-have-requested-it

 

i did this quick one of meth by lana. dont think its that great but would like to hear some opinions! xo

[kik 1,564]

Your a Mezzo Soprano. You have the same vocal range as Chaka Khan.

 

I'm gonna do mine some time today and repost here what I am

 

Thank you, but I'm a bit confused... I had a few signing teachers in my life. I never really persisted in singing, because let's face it: I hate my voice, but I'm learning to love its uniqueness. It's hard because I feel like I fit nowhere. Or unconsciously, I try to imitate other singers voice when I sing their songs and it doesn't sound right at all. Like the very girly parts in many of Lana songs: I sound like... I wouldn't say a man speaking like a woman, but close to (I'm a woman btw). But that might be the color of my voice that doesn't fit this style (the girly parts).

 

The video says to sing those notes "comfortably" and I'm not sure how comfortable I am in higher notes. I don't feel like my throat is squeezed, but my voice is more shaky and I move to head voice just after a few notes.

 

So, my range is mezzo-soprano, but I feel more comfortable (in term of style that fits the identity of my voice... sorry if it's not clear) in the lower part of my range. Give me a song from Sade and I'm happy!

[Greenwich 1,052]

Lol I'm sure your good. O can sing a little low but I can sing very High. Like Lana in her May Jailer days.

 

I used to be like that but If you keep practicing. You will be AWESOME!

 

Trust me I was shit and still kinda am.

aw thanks im sure you are wonderful. im better than people that cant sing, like if i absolutely had to be the singer in a band it wouldnt be terrible to listen to. (1/2 singers out there dont even have talent lol)

[lagatabajolalluvia 384]

yes!

 

omg when I saw Lana live I gave her a book I made and inside of it it had a mixtape CD and it had your song Ugly      I don't know if she ever read that book but I like to think she discovered Grimes because of that mixtape (it had a song from her too and she followed Grimes on twitter a couple of weeks after I saw her live),,,, sooo maybe Lana heard your song   

[Blythe 112]

omg when I saw Lana live I gave her a book I made and inside of it it had a mixtape CD and it had your song Ugly      I don't know if she ever read that book but I like to think she discovered Grimes because of that mixtape (it had a song from her too and she followed Grimes on twitter a couple of weeks after I saw her live),,,, sooo maybe Lana heard your song   

 

omg! that is ridiculously adorable of you to have done that

[TrippieHippie 69]

http://lonesome-lolita.tumblr.com/post/82999089749/clip-of-me-singing-as-some-have-requested-it

 

i did this quick one of meth by lana. dont think its that great but would like to hear some opinions! xo

This is pretty good You flowed like Lana

[fl0ridakil0s 3,959]

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[larina 682]

well, hi! my name is nátaly and i live in brazil, and here we have a music school, and i take class of lirical singing.

i gave a concert perfoming Ride, and it was great. i was so nervous, but i had practiced so much! i loved to sing lana songs. in december i will perform born to die. its only a hobby, but its very rewarding <3

 

Yes, that's like me. I go to a singing school and my school has a monthly concert. I performed Million Dollar Man. I was also nervous but I had also prasticed so much. 

I will be singing Million Dollar Man once again this Thursday. But this time, I will be singing it for my school's Music Night. But I haven't practised it enough, I don't think.

[Adrift 4,813]

With a vocal range of B1 to Ab4, singing Lana songs is SUPER easy.

[Anthem 1,558]

According to the video in the OP, I am from an E2 to a C5. I've always had a kind of deeper, quiet voice for a girl and its very monotonous. I've only been actively trying to work on my singing voice since the beginning of summer and I have never had any formal classes or training.

 

I've recorded myself singing several Lana songs and surprisingly the songs I sound the best at (but still not good) are her mid-range ones rather than the deeper ones. I think my voice is so monotone that deeper songs just exaggerate it and I sound terrible (GOD when I tried AFFA ). It helps me a lot to have to occasionally reach into the higher stuff because it makes my sounds more varied and alive. I do catch myself trying to imitate her when I sing, but I tend to try and sing the way she does live rather than the album versions if possible, particularly with Born to Die and Ride. I feel comfortable singing almost all of her songs that aren't Sirens-high, but it doesn't always sound great.

 

I've been trying to improve the monotonous part of my voice in both my talking and singing and I think I'm starting to make progress. I used to talk/sing in my throat badly and I basically don't do that anymore. People can hear me better now that I am kind of projecting more so that helps. I don't know how well I'll sound as far as just my raw voice but we'll see. I've gotten to where I don't cringe when I hear it so that's good. I'm hoping I can get just good enough to record my own stuff because I really, really love writing and I'd like to make some of my songs into something I can actually listen to. I badly want to be able to sing Yayo and my dream is to hit that high note in Cola perfectly. 

 

Sorry I'm kind of rambling.  I just love singing and I don't have anyone I can really talk to about it because if I do they all want to hear and I'm just not ready for that yet.

[Slumdog 817]

I've been trying to improve the monotonous part of my voice in both my talking and singing and I think I'm starting to make progress. I used to talk/sing in my throat badly and I basically don't do that anymore. People can hear me better now that I am kind of projecting more so that helps.

 

Interesting. How is one supposed to talk if not from one's throat?

[larina 682]

According to the video in the OP, I am from an E2 to a C5. I've always had a kind of deeper, quiet voice for a girl and its very monotonous. I've only been actively trying to work on my singing voice since the beginning of summer and I have never had any formal classes or training.

 

I've recorded myself singing several Lana songs and surprisingly the songs I sound the best at (but still not good) are her mid-range ones rather than the deeper ones. I think my voice is so monotone that deeper songs just exaggerate it and I sound terrible (GOD when I tried AFFA ). It helps me a lot to have to occasionally reach into the higher stuff because it makes my sounds more varied and alive. I do catch myself trying to imitate her when I sing, but I tend to try and sing the way she does live rather than the album versions if possible, particularly with Born to Die and Ride. I feel comfortable singing almost all of her songs that aren't Sirens-high, but it doesn't always sound great.

 

I've been trying to improve the monotonous part of my voice in both my talking and singing and I think I'm starting to make progress. I used to talk/sing in my throat badly and I basically don't do that anymore. People can hear me better now that I am kind of projecting more so that helps. I don't know how well I'll sound as far as just my raw voice but we'll see. I've gotten to where I don't cringe when I hear it so that's good. I'm hoping I can get just good enough to record my own stuff because I really, really love writing and I'd like to make some of my songs into something I can actually listen to. I badly want to be able to sing Yayo and my dream is to hit that high note in Cola perfectly. 

 

Sorry I'm kind of rambling.  I just love singing and I don't have anyone I can really talk to about it because if I do they all want to hear and I'm just not ready for that yet.

 

It seems as though you have a large range for someone who's just taken up lessons!

 

That's like me, only the opposite. I have a very high voice and I thought I'd sound better singing the AKA songs and Lana's higher songs (I'm not up to Sirens yet . I should get them before I get the other albumless ones) but I actually tried singing Dark Paradise but it didn't really go well. My mum loved it when I sang MDM one day in the car and I downloaded the instrumental and we both liked it. I know it is still relatively high, but I sang it for my singing teacher and she actually believed it was too low. Now, seven months later, it is too high. I feel much comfortable singing in a semitone higher, instead of a full tone (they got us to buy both because the teacher wasn't sure, but I'm glad because it is now easier in the lower key). I could now sing with the original, but just in case I might have to do it slowly, I'll just stick with the semitone because I have to perform on Thursday. But I believe it was actually never too low for me because no one else (I also do this vocals thing at school and the teacher is a professional singing teacher and when I sung to the original, she never told me it was too low. I can sing Off To The Races, Radio, Carmen now (which I'm really proud of) and almost Born To Die. 

I also catch myself trying to imitate Lana when I sing. I've tried to add that "'Cause it's one for the money, oh oh, two for the show, woah woah woah woah, I love you honey and so, I'm finally ready to go" part in, but it's hard to add everything because the instrumentals she's singing to is pretty different to the studio one I'm singing to. I try to make it my own by singing it in the third chorus, instead of the second one. And not going high at the end. And not including the oohs that Lana sings live. And making the first verse and chorus actually sounding like the studio version, but then coming alive in the second verse. I try to sound myself (my grandma always tells me to stop trying to sound like the other singer) but it's quite hard because I am told I have a tone that sounds like Lana, even though when I hear a recording, I sound nothing like her. It makes no sense. And I don't really want to sound myself because I'm not singing my own song, I'm singing Lana's song. I'm imitating her. I'm gonna dress like her as well (which is pretty easy with my hair. But my hair doesn't stay with hairspray, so it will be hard putting it in a beehive and curling it would be even harder. We have this mount thing to help create the beehive and make it stay without volume. It could work but Mum has never done it before. I'd have just curls but my hair doesn't even stay curly for an hour and my hair looks boring just dead flat. My hair is boring. It's stupid. Dye doesn't even work on it. But nonetheless, I'm gonna get Mum to practise the beehive this week and hopefully it will work!

That is also the same with me, that I project my voice more. I used to always mumble and I also have a soft voice. But I think that is due to my social anxiety, which will hopefully reduce by performing. I also have a lisp which I love singing SS to help with that and it has actually really helped. I can also sometimes reach the "Summertime adness" and "Baby, you the best" parts, which is good (I know it's weird that I sometimes can).

Yes, I've been trying to hit that note in Cola too! At first, I couldn't do any of that part. I think trying to sing the high bits of OTTR helped because now the only part I can't do is the "yeaooww" bit (I'm no good at onomatopoeia). 

And I doubt you're that bad!

Sorry if I seem weird, just trying to relate to everyone, but I spent an hour typing this so I'm not just gonna let it go to waste...

[kik 1,564]

Interesting. How is one supposed to talk if not from one's throat?

 

Good singing involves the diaphragm. It's a lot about breath support. If you don't breathe properly, you often force your throat and it can be painful after a while (plus, the sound is not that good).

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eqmwA0m7e6s

 

 

I think my voice is so monotone that deeper songs just exaggerate it and I sound terrible (GOD when I tried AFFA ).

A tip that helped me is to visualize the sound being pushed up to the palate. The first time I sang BTD I thought it would be easy since my voice is low, but it's not! I didn't want it to sound masculine either

 

 I do catch myself trying to imitate her when I sing, but I tend to try and sing the way she does live rather than the album versions if possible, particularly with Born to Die and Ride.

I think a lot of people do that at first. I guess it's normal... it takes time to find your voice, your style. Plus Lana's voice is so great, who wouldn't want to be able to sing just like her?

 

People can hear me better now that I am kind of projecting more so that helps.

Me too! I was always talking monotone and I wouldn't articulate. Like if I was talking in a group, nobody would hear me, that used to piss me off. I just didn't realize my voice wasn't projecting at all. I have a lazy voice. I'm introvert and I used to be very shy. Wouldn't talk much and when I was a child, I had huge hesitations when talking, the words wouldn't come out of my mouth.

 

I'm hoping I can get just good enough to record my own stuff because I really, really love writing and I'd like to make some of my songs into something I can actually listen to.

That's my goal too. Writing and singing makes me feel good and alive.

 

I badly want to be able to sing Yayo and my dream is to hit that high note in Cola perfectly. 

Yayo is my favorite song and I wish I could sing it beautifully, but it's hard. I finally got that high note in Cola. It's not perfectly operatic, but it's in tune. I was so excited when I got it, I could have open a bottle of champagne to celebrate. Sorry neighbors.

 

Sorry I'm kind of rambling.  I just love singing and I don't have anyone I can really talk to about it because if I do they all want to hear and I'm just not ready for that yet.

Same here. The though of singing in front of people is horrible. I would be more comfortable doing a strip tease tbh. I have a hard time singing happy birthday at someones party lol. Seriously I don't know why it bugs me so much. I've never sang in a karaokes, even though my friends are pushing me, even though they sing badly, we are all drunk and supposed to have fun, but I'm too much of a perfectionist. One day, one day...

 

Btw here's the channel of a great singing teacher: https://www.youtube.com/user/inspiredtosingtv/videos

 

I've met her when I went to Melbourne last winter and I took 4 lessons. She's amazing!

[Anthem 1,558]

It seems as though you have a large range for someone who's just taken up lessons!

 

That's like me, only the opposite. I have a very high voice and I thought I'd sound better singing the AKA songs and Lana's higher songs (I'm not up to Sirens yet . I should get them before I get the other albumless ones) but I actually tried singing Dark Paradise but it didn't really go well. My mum loved it when I sang MDM one day in the car and I downloaded the instrumental and we both liked it. I know it is still relatively high, but I sang it for my singing teacher and she actually believed it was too low. Now, seven months later, it is too high. I feel much comfortable singing in a semitone higher, instead of a full tone (they got us to buy both because the teacher wasn't sure, but I'm glad because it is now easier in the lower key). I could now sing with the original, but just in case I might have to do it slowly, I'll just stick with the semitone because I have to perform on Thursday. But I believe it was actually never too low for me because no one else (I also do this vocals thing at school and the teacher is a professional singing teacher and when I sung to the original, she never told me it was too low. I can sing Off To The Races, Radio, Carmen now (which I'm really proud of) and almost Born To Die. 

I also catch myself trying to imitate Lana when I sing. I've tried to add that "'Cause it's one for the money, oh oh, two for the show, woah woah woah woah, I love you honey and so, I'm finally ready to go" part in, but it's hard to add everything because the instrumentals she's singing to is pretty different to the studio one I'm singing to. I try to make it my own by singing it in the third chorus, instead of the second one. And not going high at the end. And not including the oohs that Lana sings live. And making the first verse and chorus actually sounding like the studio version, but then coming alive in the second verse. I try to sound myself (my grandma always tells me to stop trying to sound like the other singer) but it's quite hard because I am told I have a tone that sounds like Lana, even though when I hear a recording, I sound nothing like her. It makes no sense. And I don't really want to sound myself because I'm not singing my own song, I'm singing Lana's song. I'm imitating her. I'm gonna dress like her as well (which is pretty easy with my hair. But my hair doesn't stay with hairspray, so it will be hard putting it in a beehive and curling it would be even harder. We have this mount thing to help create the beehive and make it stay without volume. It could work but Mum has never done it before. I'd have just curls but my hair doesn't even stay curly for an hour and my hair looks boring just dead flat. My hair is boring. It's stupid. Dye doesn't even work on it. But nonetheless, I'm gonna get Mum to practise the beehive this week and hopefully it will work!

That is also the same with me, that I project my voice more. I used to always mumble and I also have a soft voice. But I think that is due to my social anxiety, which will hopefully reduce by performing. I also have a lisp which I love singing SS to help with that and it has actually really helped. I can also sometimes reach the "Summertime adness" and "Baby, you the best" parts, which is good (I know it's weird that I sometimes can).

Yes, I've been trying to hit that note in Cola too! At first, I couldn't do any of that part. I think trying to sing the high bits of OTTR helped because now the only part I can't do is the "yeaooww" bit (I'm no good at onomatopoeia). 

And I doubt you're that bad!

Sorry if I seem weird, just trying to relate to everyone, but I spent an hour typing this so I'm not just gonna let it go to waste...

 

That's so awesome to hear how you've evolved over time it gives me hope for some of her higher songs for me in the future. I also totally get what you mean by trying to sound like her since its her song and obviously it sounds beautiful when she sings it. I try not to with certain parts of certain songs because I don't sounds as good and the problem really lies in that she sometimes uses effects like layering and lots of reverb and there just isn't a way to recreate that naturally. Or at least I try not to be hard on myself when it doesn't sound as nice because those effects can make a real difference. This was especially the case with Brooklyn Baby. I did that one, hated it, but then added reverb (like she did) and it made the sound a lot more listenable so I felt a little better. I haven't tried layering or anything like that - I want to get good at singing rawly before trying to manipulate a bunch of effects to make it sound better so I'm trying to avoid songs like West Coast. My favorite one I've recorded myself doing was actually Old MoneyI try to make it my own when I can but I'm just still so new to the singing thing that I don't really even know what I'm doing most of the time haha. 

 

Oh and good luck with your performance as well! I appreciate the time you took to write all of that out! Hopefully I can take a singing class at my college next spring (my schedule wouldn't allow for it this fall). 

 

Btw here's the channel of a great singing teacher: https://www.youtube.com/user/inspiredtosingtv/videos

 

I've met her when I went to Melbourne last winter and I took 4 lessons. She's amazing!

 

It didn't quote it all, but thank you so much for your kind response! I felt like I could totally relate to everything you said and I appreciate the tips/video. Especially about not being heard in a group - its the worst. I literally refuse to go through drive-throughs because they can't ever hear me and I get upset having to repeat myself. I've always been very lazy with my voice (I still am half the time) but I'm actively thinking about it and trying to improve. 

 

That Cola note kills me not only because its high, but I can't even make the same noise? Hers is like a "yeoooawh" and mine is.. not. But I'm not really expecting to be able to do that nicely or at all for a while since I'm just starting. I recorded myself doing Yayo the other week and it wasn't great. But I'm also scared to really sing as openly as I can because I live in an apartment and I don't want my neighbors to hear! It makes a difference when I do because I did try it once and sounded so much better. 

 

And for real on singing in public. My sisters want me to sing karaoke with them and I always say no even though I want to. But I don't really want to until I know its going to be amazing. I dream that the one day I say yes that I'll go up there and blow everyone away in the first shot, haha. I made the mistake of telling my boyfriend I like to sing and he occasionally jokingly (but not really joking) asks me to sing to him and has told me he really wants to hear me. Maybe one day. 

 

 

 

 

I do have a friend who is out in L.A. trying to make it as a singer. I've thought about seeing if she'd help me but I'm too shy and I don't want her to think I'm using her (she apparently has some connections to where if she wanted an album out it would happen - she just isn't happy with her work to put one out yet). I really just want to do this as a fun pasttime because I love the whole process so much. I wish I had gotten into it a lot sooner. 

 

One last thought... does anyone else make a playlist of instrumentals, play them in your room, sing to them, and pretend you are Lana and fans are cheering and you are actually good at singing?  I did that all the time this summer. Poor, poor neighbors.   A girl can dream!    

[larina 682]

That's so awesome to hear how you've evolved over time it gives me hope for some of her higher songs for me in the future. I also totally get what you mean by trying to sound like her since its her song and obviously it sounds beautiful when she sings it. I try not to with certain parts of certain songs because I don't sounds as good and the problem really lies in that she sometimes uses effects like layering and lots of reverb and there just isn't a way to recreate that naturally. Or at least I try not to be hard on myself when it doesn't sound as nice because those effects can make a real difference. This was especially the case with Brooklyn Baby. I did that one, hated it, but then added reverb (like she did) and it made the sound a lot more listenable so I felt a little better. I haven't tried layering or anything like that - I want to get good at singing rawly before trying to manipulate a bunch of effects to make it sound better so I'm trying to avoid songs like West Coast. My favorite one I've recorded myself doing was actually Old MoneyI try to make it my own when I can but I'm just still so new to the singing thing that I don't really even know what I'm doing most of the time haha. 

 

Oh and good luck with your performance as well! I appreciate the time you took to write all of that out! Hopefully I can take a singing class at my college next spring (my schedule wouldn't allow for it this fall). 

 

Yeah Oh, you will definitely reach it one day, I can bet on it Yes, that's true but sometimes I don't even know I'm doing it! To solve the problem of effects and stuff like that, I just look at her live performances of those songs. Yes, effects can make a big difference but why be untruthful? Patience, grasshopper. If you really sound as awful as you think, then you would just have to wait. I doubt you really sound like it though. You're really hard on yourself for this, and trust me, you're not alone--to be honest, that's the same with me... well my teacher says so. I had a similar case with Brooklyn Baby: I was singing it in the car (we have the Ultra CD playing) and Mum says I sound really good singing it. But then when I tried the instrumental, I was way off-pitch and out of time a bit. I believe this is because there is no vocalist as support. This could be the reason why it failed. But I'm glad it worked out with reverb though! Oh, so you record yourself with professional equipment? How cool! I only use my phone's Voice Memos and upload it straight to SoundCloud lol.

 

Thanks so much! I hope your singing classes quickly help you! And no worries, my pleasure

 

That Cola note kills me not only because its high, but I can't even make the same noise? Hers is like a "yeoooawh" and mine is.. not. But I'm not really expecting to be able to do that nicely or at all for a while since I'm just starting. I recorded myself doing Yayo the other week and it wasn't great. But I'm also scared to really sing as openly as I can because I live in an apartment and I don't want my neighbors to hear! It makes a difference when I do because I did try it once and sounded so much better. 

Same with me. I can't even make a "whoo!" sound. Like, the really high-pitched, short Michael Jackson-esque sound. I don't even think any sound comes out when I try it. Well, a little, but it sounds awfully screechy and ear-bursting. Yes, projective singing does sound nicer than when you keep it in. I'm the same. I don't live in an apartment (although we are hoping to move out of my grandma's house and back into Mum's unit) but we have this really grumpy and moody neighbour who complains whenever our dog barks and we only have a little dog. And because it's not Mum and I's house, we're scared to make too much noise.

 

One last thought... does anyone else make a playlist of instrumentals, play them in your room, sing to them, and pretend you are Lana and fans are cheering and you are actually good at singing?  I did that all the time this summer. Poor, poor neighbors.   A girl can dream!    

Yes :holler: Well, I don't play them in my room (well actually I do but my room is an open space so there's no difference between doing it in my room and the living room), but yes, I do that. I even pretend I'm Lana when I'm performing! Because I'm  already dressed like her and singing like her, why not pretend to be her. It actually relaxes me. 

[Wilde_child 490]

Luv it! Luv trayertrash's too, it reminds me of MM.

 

I did a really messy live take of Lana's "Cola"

 

(sorry to link some random girl's tumblr, but I deleted it off my own so the original post is gone)

 

http://dizzytails.tumblr.com/post/82199136389/