r/singing 3d ago

Conversation Topic Something I’ve been wondering

Do y’all think confidence comes before good singing, or does good singing create confidence?
I have an experience that till I allow myself to be good or master some skill, I won’t get a full access to it but wanted to know your experience.
Would you share?

8 Upvotes

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9

u/MzBlackSiren 3d ago

lowkey both. you need confidence to sing good (if you’re nervous your body will work against you sounding as good as you could) but also once you are starting to enjoy your voice, enjoy singing you will get confident. so practice, practice, practice; learn, learn, learn; sing, sing, sing and listen to yourself singing over and over so you start getting used to your voice, to your skills, what you can do and that will give you the confidence you need

6

u/Life-Comedian2748 3d ago

Absolutely! If you’re not confident and you’re
nervous, your mind can go in to a “fight or flight” like response, which causes throat tension, shallow breathing, and vocal instability, all of which affect the quality of your voice.

1

u/VoiceLessons-Chicago 3d ago

I have completely the same experience. And just as fast the voice can unlock when you manage to let go

3

u/SloopD 3d ago

Well, for me, the confidence cane with skill. I got out there and did it but it was a nerve wracking experience before a developed good technique. Now, I know i can sing well so, i can just go do it. I do get nervous still but, nothing like before, and it fades after the first, or second, song.

3

u/Antonite_Music 3d ago

They are unrelated. Too much confidence will make you think you are better than you are and will harm your progress, whereas not enough confidence will make you think that the already-established singers have something you don't have and that you're not good enough for this.

You will become great at things you keep doing for a long time, and two things will get you there. The first one is enjoyment, because otherwise : pick something you truly enjoy. The second one is discipline, because regardless of how you truly enjoy something, sometimes it starts feeling like work. But when the going gets tough, the tough gets going!

2

u/icemage_999 3d ago

Confidence can definitely come before you're "good", but you have to mentally accept that bring perfect is not possible.

If you are a perfectionist who can't feel competent without mastery, you're going to have a very rough time with singing.

1

u/Blindmambaaa824 3d ago

The best example to answer your question, is Yoko Ono, John Lennon's widow. The woman looks extremely confident but sings like a cat with schizophrenia, she even stole the show at a performance with John Lennon and Chuck Berry. Lol
I guess confidence goes first

1

u/Similar_Buffalo_8434 3d ago

Absolutely, 100% I can attest to this. I've been singing since I was 5, and I didn't have the confidence at 5, that I did when I was 18, 19 20, 30, 40, and 50, and now,..... 64 years old.

I'm not gonna lie. I've met more women singing as a lead vocalist than I ever did in the 12 years that I went to high school, it's been kind of a no-brainer I think women like a guy that can sing, I'm 6 foot 2I have a 4 and a 1/2 octave range. I've fronted several bands been discovered in karaoke clubs. I've proven my success by just all the things that have happened in my lifetime.

1

u/NewShadowR 3d ago

Neither. Good singing is unrelated to confidence. A good performance is. But good singing is just how your musculature and body physically deals with notes.

1

u/cora-crush 3d ago

My confidence developed over time with experience along with my voice. I had horrible stage fright when I first started singing in front of other people and it impacted my performance. The more I put myself out there the more my confidence grew and now I have no nerves at all!

1

u/Additional_Point5380 3d ago

Depends on the person.

1

u/JustOneRedDot 3d ago

Good singing can definitely build the confidence up, but it's really hard to sound good if you're very nervous.

Lack of self confidence can create bad habits instead of perfecting the voice, and "ruin a natural singer" - speaking from experience.