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Paul Sykes

Neil Diamond’s Vocals

from your unique and authentic sound? It’s
tricky and the simple answer is to get a great
coach. It’s virtually impossible to self assess.

Everything you’re doing is too invisible to you
and too automatic. You’re too close to your-
self. You need an external observer because
they’re not invested in your insecurities. Their
listening of your voice is completely impartial
and if they also have the experience to know Michael Ochs Archives / Getty Images
what to change and what to leave, you’ll be
into a voice that’s uniquely yours whilst also

sounding authentic.

What makes Neil Diamond so special vocally is
he is entirely himself. Not contrived. Authentic.
He sings with the voice he has and maximised
it to his full potential.

He discovered that the unique sound of his
voice is his strength. It’s his market advan-
tage. Instead of pushing his sound away
through trying to sound like someone else,
he embraced it and went on to be one of the

worlds biggest performers of all time. Such is
the power of this that he also created a gen-
eration of performers who now try to sing like
him and not themselves.

If you’re feeling embarrassed about your
voice, try to identify exactly what it is you don’t
like. Maybe ask a few trusted musician friends

for honest feedback (tell them you want bru-
tal honesty and you promise not to be upset).
Embrace your authentic sound as your unique-
ness. It’s your strength, not your weakness -
and it’s exactly what the listener wants to hear
from you. They want YOU.
Paul Sykes Vocal Pro

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