Mary J. Blige, Destiny’s Child, and the Notorious B.I.G.<\/a> are just a few artists who Prince Charles Alexander<\/a> has worked with in the studio. From the early to mid 1980s, he produced, wrote, and recorded on Virgin Records with his group, Prince Charles and the City Beat Band. He was an early innovator of wind synthesis and a part of the “punk-funk” generation that incorporated many of the ideas and sounds that would propel rap music to the forefront of the American music scene. He is the author of the undergraduate course, Vocal Production<\/a><\/em> and the graduate course, Commercial Vocal Production<\/a><\/em> at Berklee Online and has tips to share for vocalists and producers who are new to the studio. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Record some voice memos of yourself singing against an instrumental track of a favorite song (those should be easy enough to find for free on YouTube). The more you do this, and the more you adjust your level and the music level, you will be mimicking the actual process of recording in a studio. It is the same thing with much better equipment. My favorite vocal effect is reverb. It helps bring singers and the music into a space that is interesting to listen to when done well. Reverb is like salt and pepper, not enough and there is no flavor, too much and the meal is ruined, but when seasoned properly, the meal (song) is exquisite. There are so many. Marvin Gaye is my all-time favorite because he had multiple vocal textures and timbres; and, as a vocal producer, more or less invented a multi-track vocal style that most record producers draw from to this day. The list of modern singers that I like is too long but Jennifer Hudson is usually stunning. Both Marvin in his time and Jennifer Hudson in her time have beautiful vocal instruments and can do anything with them. My current pop crushes are Beyonc\u00e9 and Bruno Mars, with a dose of Halsey and Shawn Mendes. <\/p>\n\n\n\nWhat advice would you offer to a singer who hasn\u2019t recorded in a professional studio before?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
<\/p>\n\n\n\nDo you have a favorite vocal production effect to use in the studio, either on your own vocals or someone else\u2019s?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\nWho is a singer whose vocal qualities you most admire?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n