Preface to the Expanded Edition

WELCOME TO the new, expanded edition of Set Your Voice Free.

The world has changed massively since this book first appeared in 1999, and shifts in technology, the music industry, and our understanding of the true power of the voice have opened amazing new possibilities for people who know how to control the way they sound.

Today, any of us can potentially reach millions of people almost instantly, and start the process of getting our audience to trust us, believe us, like us, and connect with us. Based on what people hear as soon as we begin to sing or speak, they decide whether they want to listen to our music, hand us money, be moved by our message, or fall in love with us and what we have to offer.

Your new SoundCloud track, your Kickstarter campaign, your TED Talk, your audition, your big break—all that opportunity hinges on the power of your voice. Scientists tell us that we have one second to make the vocal impression that determines the way we’re received, and in the time since this book first appeared, I’ve developed new techniques to help you ensure that your voice carries the precise sounds that will make people want to stay with you, rather than immediately tuning you out.

By using the classic exercises and the new material in this book, you’ll be able to showcase the best of yourself—your talents, your passion, your originality, your authenticity. The techniques at the heart of the book are the ones I’ve been refining for decades in my work with artists such as John Mayer and Gwen Stefani, as well as with actors such as Reese Witherspoon and Jeff Bridges, who didn’t consider themselves to be singers before they worked with me, and these techniques will give your voice the power and resonance you’ve always wanted.

If all you do is focus on these techniques, you’ll be way ahead of almost every other singer or speaker competing for the attention of your audience. But I hope you’ll take advantage of the additional exercises and advice you’ll find in this edition to go beyond simply sounding good. I’d like to plant the seed of the idea that you can use your voice to become a master influencer. The most profound discovery I’ve made in the past fifteen years is this: If you know how to control the pitch, pace, tone, volume, and melody of your voice—the elements that form the core of this book—you can consciously use them to guide the emotions of your listeners and magnify the impact of every communication you have.

The link between music and emotion has always been clear to us—a song can make us weep or rage or dance for joy—but we rarely carry the power of music into the way we speak. By marrying music and speech, I can help you become a much better singer and speaker at the same time. I’ll show you how the best communicators use the intimate, musical power of sound to control people’s perceptions of them and move their listeners to action. That’s what real influence is, and I’ll give you the tools to develop it.

New Tools for Singers

It’s odd to think about, but when this book originally appeared, there was no American Idol or America’s Got Talent or The Voice. Idol debuted in 2002, AGT in 2006, and The Voice didn’t sing out in America until 2011. When the book came out, not even 50 percent of Americans were using the Internet regularly. iPhones weren’t even a glimmer in someone’s imagination. That time looks almost like the Dark Ages.

But I was busy on the front lines of the transformation of the music industry into a place where reality singing competitions, music-centered programs like Glee, audio streaming, and live performance became the new kingmakers. So in new chapters of this edition geared to singers, I’ll share what I learned.

I’ll give you a firsthand look at what it takes to live through the whirlwind of a show like Glee, or an Eminem or Gwen Stefani tour, managing the demands of performing on insane schedules and keeping your voice in top shape. When it’s time to hit the stage, where the profits are made in today’s music industry, you need to be able to count on your voice. You can’t just hide in the studio and order takeout. I’ll show you how the hardest-working people I know do what they need to do, put shows together, and make sure their voices keep working for them.

I’ll show you how stars such as Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon, who weren’t singers before they worked with me, prepare for singing roles with techniques that will help you get ready for any demanding new role that’s at the outer limits of your comfort zone.

I’ll tell you exactly what you’ll need to do to stand out in an audition or a reality competition, and keep impressing the judges and audiences who are your gateway to opportunity.

I’ll also show you how to master the art of being truly original—by writing your own material, even if you “can’t” or “aren’t musical.” If you want control of your career, especially today, that’s the step you’ve got to take, and I’ll guide you through getting started, and making the most of your unique vision.

New Tools for Speakers

Because of the work I do with voice and emotion, I’ve become known as an influence expert and vocal strategist, and students pay thousands of dollars a day to learn what I know. I’ll introduce you to the basics of what I teach them and show you the next steps you can take to turn your voice into the vehicle that connects you in an intimate, powerful, and persuasive way with your listeners.

We live in a world now that’s all about the elevator pitch. How fast and efficiently can you tell a group of strangers about yourself or a passion project? How fast can you move them emotionally and get them to take action in favor of you and your project or idea?

I’ll show you the four key emotions you need to evoke in your audiences to make them like and believe you, and I’ll show you exactly how to create the sounds you need to deliver those emotions convincingly. With this foundation, you can begin to infuse your speaking style with a new layer of connection and feeling.

Then I’ll give you a close-up look at how the masters do it, focusing on two of my students who happen to be among the most influential people on the Internet.

My student Bethany Mota, a young woman barely out of her teens, has parlayed a love of fashion and a magnetic presentation style into a YouTube channel with 10.3 million subscribers, her own fashion line, and a fledgling singing career. I’ll break down the elements that make her so believable and make her fans so ready to follow her anywhere.

My student Brendon Burchard, who was primarily known as a motivational speaker, woke up one morning and decided to shoot some YouTube videos. Almost overnight he became one of the Top 100 Most Followed Public Figures on Facebook. His weekly YouTube show is the most-viewed direct-to-camera personal development series in YouTube history. His motivational podcast, The Charged Life, debuted at #1 on iTunes across all categories in the United States and several other countries, and his blog posts rank as the most liked and shared in the history of the motivational genre. All of this success started with an idea, a dream, and, most of all, a voice to carry his message to the public. I’ll show you how he creates that powerful presence.

Special Help for People with Speech Disorders

Finally, in a new chapter, I’ll share techniques I’ve developed to help individuals with speech disorders for which effective treatments have been hard to find: stuttering and a condition called spasmodic dysphonia, in which the voice becomes choked off, making it almost impossible to speak. There’s no cure for these conditions, but by starting with basic vocal technique and tweaking the tools in my teaching toolbox, I’ve been able to offer relief to many of the people who come to see me.

What I Believe about the Power of the Voice

I think the public has a different kind of respect for the voice than it did back in 1999. Singing competitions and videos that go viral have changed the landscape for singers, offering them new opportunities, feeding their dreams, and opening the public’s imagination to the possibilities of where our voices can take us.

The revolution came when The Voice asked its judges to do blind auditions, in which they faced away from the contestants who were performing for them. The voice alone did the selling, and if a short, chubby barista had a voice like Amy Winehouse, we and the judges were ready to fall in love. All of us realized that no matter what you look like, no matter what your age or background, if you can create the right sounds, people will see the beauty, kindness, intelligence, and uniqueness in you. We were ready to see all that based entirely on the voices we heard.

That is the power of the voice, your voice. And with this new edition, I hope you’ll find every reason to discover it, and Set Your Voice Free.