This rant came about after a US vocal coach on YT was exposed (by a musician/singer) as miming on a live gig and (said vocal coach) doubled down and said he wasn’t - when clearly he was.
By the way did you know Celine Dion mimed her performance at the Paris Olympics (although it seemed she was singing live) - the evidence is out there, that will lead onto my second observation ‘The Cult of The Fan’ later.
Fil (yes another one) from Wings of Pegasus (WOP) uses Vocal Pitch Monitor software which displays the pitch/timing and the exact notes being sung in a wave form. Fil is a musician/singer and responds to requests from people to analysis a recording. He is gaining a reputation as an honest, trustworthy and the go-to person for analyzing live recordings.
Fil found that the US vocal coach had recorded a song back in the late 80's and was using part of that recording (the high parts of his vocal performance) in his live gigs in 2023. He’d sing the lower register parts of his vocal only.
Fil (WOP) in his analysis of the recent ‘live’ gig showed clearly that the high parts matched to the millisecond those recorded in the 1980's
Over the five/six years I’ve been watching YT I have noticed more and more YT artists using pitch correction to make their performance sound ‘perfect’ - why, we’ll get onto that later.
By the way Auto-tune is a branded pitch control software. Auto-tune leaves (for me) a very distinct sound that shouts Auto-tune is being used. If an artist chooses to use it, fine.
As a former singer I can tell you that I could never, ever reproduce my vocal exactly - pitch perfect time after time. Each performance was different sometimes my pitch was just a little off (other times so damn good that women after the show would - and I would) and sometimes flatter then a flat earther’s’s logic.
Also as I got older my voice changed and I was no longer able to hit the highs I used to. I became a sound engineer doing mostly live gigs then studio work when I worked with A&M records.
I know the tricks you can use when recording to make that singer (whose range is not so good) sound better. Those tricks do though leave a signature sound and if you have a really good ear (like I still do) you can hear those signatures.
When you watch a YT artist, what is labelled as a live recording, it may not be live - shock horror. If you don’t have a good ear and notice the subtle change in the sound (how suddenly all the sounds of the room have disappeared - and your left with a clean sound) there are ways you can tell by watching and that’s where we get onto ‘timing’. Is the singers mouth closed (or closing) but you can still hear the note at the same strength? When singers mime they tend to over exaggerate their mouth movements. Do they look more animated?
With musicians there is one thing for the watcher (it sounds obvious) can you hear a note yet nothing is being played on the instrument? It’s funny how many times this does happen.
The cult of the fan - this has been amplified by the way humanity has moved towards being more tribal and with the social media algorithms feeding us a restricted view of the world.
I recall a few years back when I heard an amazing singer (on YT) and then 3/4 of the way through the live recording I heard a subtle difference in that singers vocal sound (I’d replayed that section again and again to be sure). I’d noticed a different vocal had been inserted for a few seconds. Everything else was live. I made a comment and that was my first experience of intense hatred online.
It later transpired (because I was not the only one to notice it) that professional singers picked up on it to and had contacted the artist and their management and after an investigation it was found that the venues sound engineer had interfered with the recording. However even when it was revealed the ‘fans’ never humbled themselves.
Be clear I have (deliberately) not named any artist and I don’t need to, also I’m talking about YT artist not established artists. Although as you’ll read in a couple of seconds, their record companies can and do alter recording.
Just one more antidote which Fil (WOP) brought to our attention awhile back when someone asked him if Freddie Mercury’s vocal had been altered on a reissue of a track. Fil found after comparing it to the original release that It had been pitch corrected - I mean Freddie Mercury’s vocal - WTF.
This is not a perfect world and live performances are never, ever perfect (our Fil talked of a gig he went to in his home town of a very famous artist whose performance was crap).
YT artists should deliver an honest performance with all the slight inaccuracies that occur when singing/playing live.
To quote my favorite rapper (from his track 'Find No Enemy') "True strength is the strength to be honest".
I recommend Fil’s Wings of Pegasus website as he is an honest person. (is it a trait among people called Fil?) His analysis are always without judgement, he doesn’t criticize and his efforts are backed by clear scientific evidence.
Yeah that me, back then, sound engineering.
I've seen Fil's videos (Wings of Pegasus) many times. It's interesting, educational, entertaining and...unfortunately disillusioning. When I listen to music, almost all my senses are engaged. But I like to switch off my mind. I need my mind for work and I appreciate it when I don't have to do that all the time in my free time. That's one reason why rap isn't really my thing. Since I started listening to Ren, however, that has changed somewhat.🤗
Knowing that "it's not what you're listening to" is something that really gets in the way of enjoying it. It's the same situation as when I watch a movie and start paying attention to where the movie was cut and if the continuity is there...terrible.
So, do I want to be screwed over? Of course not. But: I don't have as good an ear as you, for example, as a sound engineer. And maybe that's a good thing.
Yip, I’ve watched his “investigations” and it is truly disheartening to realise that your favourite stars are faking it.
I would prefer an artist to be…. occasionally off-key and genuine.
👍 Good rant. To me one of the worst things is when they use all the tools available to launch music from people who are somewhat or very fameous but obviously cant sing at all
Frank, your studies have paid off 🤗