Golden Rule

Personal principles of attaining/determining healthy effortless, echanting extraordinary singing, across the board, aside from merely being able to carry a tune, with conceptual emotion:

-calm relaxed unaffected demeanor/attitude when interpreting a song

-clear diction

–loudness/tempo manipulation

-sustaining of real long notes

-having enough breath to exhale at the end of every line

-having room for sponteneous un-exaggerated/flamboyant ad-libs

-having a good decent lower range, optimal middle range, higher range

-having your own distinct voice/style with high recognizability and inimitability

-not heavily processed

–adaptable to non-tailor-made songs (“Be water my friend.”)

-unexampled memorable pre-00s Western exemplars: Patti Labelle, Brook Benton, Tony Bennett, Aretha Franklin, Andy Williams, Frank Sinatra, Ella Fizgerald, Ray Charles, Otis Redding, Marvin Gaye, Mary Wilson, Sam Cooke, Barry Manilow, Karen Carpenter, Anne Murray, Dionne Warwick, Barbra Streisand, Glady Knight, Sammy Davis Jr, Dusty Springfield, Nina Simone, Michael Ball, Elaine Paige, Kristin Chenoweth, Doris Day, The Emotions, Billie Holiday, The Shirelles, Shirley Bassey, Mary J. Blige, Percy Sledge, Anita Baker, Garth Brooks, Whitney, Michael Bolton, Tom Jones, etc.

“When one has reached maturity in the art, one will have a formless form. It is like ice dissolving in water. When one has no form, one can be all forms; when one has no style, he can fit in with any style.”

“The athlete who is building muscles though weight training should be very sure to work adequately on speed and flexibility at the same time. In combat, without the prior attributes, a strong man will be like the bull with its colossal strength futilely pursuing the matador or like a low-geared truck chasing a rabbit.”

“Always be yourself, express yourself, have faith in yourself, do not go out and look for a successful personality and duplicate it.”

~~~my idol, Bruce Lee