As cliché as it sounds – everyone can (or at least, can learn to) sing! As a vocal coach and singer, I witness firsthand the transformative nature singing and music can have on everyone: myself included. Singing has been so powerful in my life and has been influential on my mood, focus, and most of all, confidence! You honestly do NOT have to be Ariana Grande or Frank Sinatra to reap the rewards of singing. As long as you’re present, and giving it a red hot go, then your body, mind, and soul will thank you for it.
Mood and Affect
Singing is easily my favourite form of emotional release and it is so influential on your mood and affect. Whether it’s screaming out to The Veronicas or crying along with Phoebe Bridgers, it can have such a cathartic effect – allowing you to truly feel your emotions, help process what you’re feeling, or help get out of a funk. Singing increases the dopamine released in your brain and taps into the same parts of the brain that sex, drugs, and chocolate do – which not only makes us happier, but also makes us more addicted! That’s why you can be fixated on, or obsessed with, a song and just listen to or sing it over and over and over again – it’s because you’re fueling your pleasure centre, training yourself to be addicted to this feeling and craving it. Pretty cool! Singing is also super beneficial for broadening your expressive communication and is important for self-expression.
Focus and Memory
Singing is also so important for improving focus and mental alertness. It increases the nerve cell growth within the hippocampus – an area in your brain responsible for all things to do with memory! That’s why dementia patients benefit from singing and music so much; it connects them back to the time and place where they first heard the song. It can also allow patients to connect with themselves better. Singing creates structural changes within the brain allowing you to learn quicker and think faster – so your car singing sessions are actually beneficial for getting better marks at uni or work: science said so!
Confidence
One of the major changes I see in myself and my students is a genuine confidence increase. For students of all ages: the more they sing and perform, the greater their confidence gets. And this is so beneficial not just for their music lives, but for all aspects. This genuine sense of confidence flows over to all facets of life, whether it be school, uni, or work. For me, singing was crucial for my confidence at the end of high school. I worked really hard at it, so when I started to see results and felt truly proud within myself, an overwhelming genuine sense of confidence came over me and I never looked back! Sometimes we do have to ‘fake it till we make it’ to attain a short-term sense of confidence, but the impact singing and vocal training can have on long-term confidence is probably one of my favourite reasons why I love what I do and want EVERYONE to sing!
Music, and singing in particular, has had such a therapeutic effect on my life and the lives of my students, both physically and emotionally. So, just do it! Whether it’s in the car, shower, at karaoke, or on stage – sing your heart out, because it’s good for you!
I am a lover of all things music, creative and crime! I’m a Criminology and Psychology student who loves to analyses the world and share how much music can change the world. I strive to educate individuals about the crime, discrimination and injustices the world is facing in a palatable and interesting way.
