Vocal Hygiene: Usher’s 4 Tips for Improving Vocal Hygiene

Born Usher Raymond IV, but simply known as Usher, the Dallas-born singer of R&B music has won eight Grammy Awards and captivated audiences for more than twenty-five years. The singer-songwriter—known for his sultry singing voice and charismatic stage presence—calls Prince and Michael Jackson large influences but simultaneously creates his own brand of R&B and hip-hop, leading to Billboard-topping songs.

Vocal hygiene is maintaining healthy habits to support your vocal folds and ability to sing correctly. Singers must properly care for their vocal cords and larynx (voice box) by warming up the vocal mechanism with exercises. Singers can also practice good vocal hygiene by avoiding food and beverages that cause inflammation and gastroesophageal reflux. To prevent strain, sing within your vocal range and do not overuse your voice.

Voice therapy techniques can help you develop amplification skills and give you the tools to employ your vocal range fully. Over time, hygiene issues and vocal misuse can lead to voice disorders and vocal nodules or polyps, benign bumps on vocal folds that affect your voice quality and tone.

The voice uses our whole body to sing. Here, Grammy Award winner Usher gives some tips on vocal health care so you can sing at your best and take care of your voice:

1. 1. Develop your range with a vocal coach. You might not be able to hit every note; that’s okay. Sing where you’re comfortable so you can practice with a vocal coach to improve vocal quality and expand your vocal range correctly. “If you sing really really high, you might drop an octave down and then sing in a lower octave so that you can still work on whatever you’re trying to get tight, but not straining your voice,” Usher says.
2. 2. Hydrate before singing. In addition to drinking plenty of water, a humidifier can hydrate your vocal cords. “Be around some warm water,” Usher says. “Moisture is very good and [nourishes] the muscles in your throat.”
3. 3. Limit irritants before singing. Avoid consuming acidic foods such as citrus fruits and tomatoes before you sing. “Anything too acidic isn’t really good for your voice,” Usher shares. “It creates acid reflux; the more of the acid that comes up from your stomach and then kind of gets that little guck on your vocal cords is never good.” Alcohol, caffeine, dairy, and spicy foods are other irritants that can cause dehydration and inflammation of the mucous membranes.
4. 4. Rest your voice. Conserve your voice or take a complete vocal nap to support your vocal cords. For his part, Usher warms down his voice after a performance. “I didn’t understand this [until] I was about maybe twenty-five, to be perfectly honest,” Usher says. “I’d heard it and I didn’t really take it [seriously] until I had this grueling schedule, and I’d have to lift my voice up every day I was on the road. And sometimes I’d get hoarse. I didn’t listen to my body. I pushed through it because I was just so in the moment. You know, if you stress your voice and strain your voice, you’re not doin’ yourself any justice.”

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