Singing Guide: Lifehouse

Singing Guide: Lifehouse

Vocal technique, exercises, tips and relevant resources

Are you a beginner or advanced singer?

Lifehouse is an American rock band that formed in the late 90s. Their sound is characterized by catchy melodies and relatable lyrics that resonate with a wide audience. If you're interested in learning to sing like Lifehouse, there are a few key techniques you'll want to focus on.

One of the hallmarks of Lifehouse's sound is lead singer Jason Wade's smooth, emotive voice. To emulate this, you'll want to focus on developing your vocal control and range. Singers with a high range may find Lifehouse's songs easier to sing, but even if you have a lower voice, there are still plenty of ways to incorporate their techniques into your own singing.

Breath Control and Stability:

First and foremost, Lifehouse's music demands strong breath control to hit sustained notes and maintain the smooth flow in their melodies. To develop this, breathing exercises are important, such as the Farinelli Breathing exercise. Breath support is also integral in maintaining stability in long phrases and notes, as is outlined in this breathing basics article.

Posture and Alignment:

Since breath is generated through your core, your posture and alignment are also key elements in maintaining a strong voice for extended periods of time. Review how posture affects your singing from Singing Carrots' resource pages and how to incorporate proper posture into your daily life routine.

Vocal Registers:

One of the main techniques Lifehouse employs is integrating vocal registers throughout the songs. Knowledge on voice registers & vocal break is essential in being able to deliver the best sound quality. Wade's vocals often go between the chest voice and the mixed voice within the same songs. Singers must learn to distinguish between the different vocal registers, and to develop a healthy transition between them.

Vocal Placement:

Jason Wade prioritizes vocal placement techniques with an intentional and specific placement of his sound, giving it a classic-comforting-barn-style-rich tone. You can achieve this by doing an open mouth & throat exercise to bring your sound forward and not muffled back in your throat.

Expressive Singing:

Lifehouse's music is deeply emotional, and conveying that emotion is another important element in replicating their style. Achieving control in your voice takes practice, but once you've mastered it, you can start paying attention to the inflections and phrasing of the song to really bring it to life. Check out this article on singing with intuition, skills, emotion, and thinking to learn more about how to incorporate emotion into your singing.

Key Songs:

If you're looking to practice singing like Lifehouse, there are a few songs that really showcase their unique style. One is "You and Me," which has a smooth but powerful melody that allows for a lot of vocal variation. Another song is "Hanging By a Moment," which features big, soaring choruses that require control over your range and dynamics.

Singing Carrots Resources:

Some pitch training exercises could be helpful in assessing your harmonic range, while song search can help you discover other Lifehouse songs that might interest you and cater to your range. The vocal range test is another useful tool for discovering your vocal range and comparing it with any one of your preferred Lifehouse vocalist. Once you know where you fall within that range, you can start practicing the techniques that will allow you to sing like your Lifehouse singing inspirations.

Overall, there's no easy way to learn to sing like Lifehouse, but with practice and dedication, you can start to develop the techniques and style necessary to replicate their unique sound.

Learn more about this artist vocal range, voice type and repertoire.