Top 19 Vocal Cords Quotes

Michael Jackson carried urban America and eventually American society on his vocal cords for a good 25 to 30 years before even hip-hop became the vox populi of America, and then as an adult he shattered racial barriers.

There is one thing I should say, and it’s important: Young Broadway singers and anybody who is an orator of any kind – lawyers who have to speak in court or pastors or anyone who has a lot of stress on their vocal cords: You should do the maintenance. You should do whatever it takes to feel fresh and good.

Dysphonia is not a singing problem. It’s a voice box issue in the muscle on the voice, very different from having a nodule on the vocal cords, which I’ve never had. I’m lucky that I’ve never had that. It needs a long renewal time, and even today, I am still addressing it.

The way I sing is extremely physical, and it was causing acid from my stomach to wash up to my vocal cords and burn them.

When we’re upset, our vocal cords tighten and we can’t speak. And when I lie – well, I can’t lie, because the same thing happens – everyone who knows me knows that when I start squeaking, I’ve started lying.

I am fussy, about my diet and straining my voice. I know, sounds a bit over the top. But I’m not as bad as I used to be. These days I don’t drink alcohol for five days before a show – very dehydrating for the vocal cords, and all that acid reflux. I used to ban it for a fortnight. Nightmare.

I try to be cognisant of when and how and what I eat and get as much rest as I possibly can, as that helps the vocal cords.

If you actually relax your vocal cords they actually work better.

The vocal cords are a muscle, and like any other muscle in the body, they can be strained. So you have to warm up.

It’s not like you have two sets of vocal cords. You only have one, and if you exhaust it from talking, then you’re also affecting your singing.

You can’t imitate; all our faces are constructed differently… and the vocal cords; otherwise, we’d all sound alike. I don’t think anybody should ever teach by imitating.

And singing is a physical thing – your vocal cords are these muscles.

I always take a hot shower before I go onstage. It’s so refreshing. I let the steam into my throat. That’s the way I warm up my vocal cords – in the shower. I start by humming and then finally singing.

To be honest, until I started dubbing, I didn’t realize the amount of work of a dubbing artiste puts in. Especially the artistes that dub for villains. They really stretch their vocal cords to a different dimension.

If you go to the gym every day, it’s not really good. Your muscles get fatigued. Your vocal cords are muscles – they get burned out, they get tired, so you’ve got to give them the chance to recover and repair during the night.

I could imagine at a certain age, when I have no vocal cords left, that I would find a young man who could sing my parts for me. But I don’t see why I would stop.

A banal poem is never more than a banal poem. A banal or trite lyric, however, can be – with the right vocal cords – brilliantly and shatteringly conveyed.

I remember my doctors examining my vocal cords and asking if I had an eating disorder, and I instantly said no. But then my mom, who was in the room with me, said my name in her ‘mom voice,’ and I just lost it. I didn’t realize that she knew or that anyone knew.

I have as many pictures of my vocal cords as I do of my children. I have a great ear, nose and throat doctor, and we look at them – if there’s some redness, maybe I’ll take a little time off.