Singing in Character: A Guide

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,809]

Singing is by far a huge phenomenon in MLP. However, what is most important is maintaining the character's original voice while singing. The biggest issue is keeping a great shape in your vocal cords to keep airflow not only strong but the voice you are performing must remain in top shape at all times. The #1 rule when it comes to singing in character is to NEVER lose your character voice. That's the worse possible thing that can happen. 

Now, every character's voice is different. The fact is the Mane 6 are the characters the most song time, along with the CMC, Princesses and other side characters. This means that whenever you sing like a character, you will have to shape your vocal cords in order to not only get the proper airflow, but also make your voice sound like that character. 

Before we go any further, there are some important guidelines you must follow in order to keep your voice healthy and avoid hurting it due to singing improperly or allowing too much or too little airflow. 

1. KNOW YOUR LIMITS: This is perhaps the most important rule when it comes to singing in general. Always know what you can and cannot sing. It is great when you have a partner who can test your range. You can also test your range yourself. Everypony has a range, which is basically the gap of pitches they are able to sing.
2. Don't Push Yourself Too Hard: This is a singer's greatest mistake. A lot of singers, including myself, want to be able to hit those higher notes, especially if you're at a concert with your favorite band, and you wanna be heard belting out the chorus of your favorite song. However, if the song is out of your range, don't push yourself to try to hit those notes, unless you use your head voice. We will talk about the head voice later. 
3. Maintain a Healthy Voice: Always drink before and after you sing. As a vocalist, you must keep your voice healthy at all times. Drink water preferably, but nothing with caffeine. Caffeine will dry you out quickly.  Drinks high in electrolytes are known to help the voice as well. 

Now that we've covered the guidelines, we will now go on the part you all have been waiting for: How To Sing In Character!

As you may know, there are many different MLP characters, but there are 9 mane characters that have singing roles. This includes the Mane 6 and the CMCs. The Princesses also have singing roles, but we will get to those later. Now, we will break down on how to hone the singing voice of each character. 

Princess Twilight Sparkle

Princess Twilight Sparkle has two voice actors: Tara Strong being the mane one and Rebecca Shoichet. Rebecca Shoichet is her singing voice. Twilight's voice is quite smooth in character, and her comfortable singing range, or tessitura is between Bb3 and about a D5 (Using Midnight In Me as a reference since a D5 is the highest pitch sung in the song). Twilight Sparkle has hit higher notes, like in Find A Way, but notice how the singer retains the vowel sounds and open voice. To sing like Twilight, you have to make sure your voice is smooth. Don't focus too much on trying to get the voice to "sing loud". You will lose it automatically. Instead, take the time to warm it up to it's upper range, especially if you're going to be covering a song like Winter Wrap-Up, which has that one big section where Twilight is hanging in the soprano range.

Fluttershy

Fluttershy's voice is a very delicate and gentle voice. What you need here is to make your voice sound airy. However, do not overdo this effect, as it will be much more difficult to hit higher notes. Fluttershy can hit pretty high notes, as witnessed in "Music in the Treetops", where she hits an A5. Some say Fluttershy is an alto, but she is really a mezzo-soprano. To sing like Fluttershy, you need a delicacy in your voice. Give it that angelic airy sound, but again, don't overdo the airy effect. You can add vibrato for effect, but it is recommended you reserve vibrato for only the higher notes. 

Rarity

Rarity's voice has a double whammy. Her voice not only has a bit of the airy voice like Fluttershy, but it also has somewhat of a British accent. This means that when Rarity sings, her vowels will be naturally taller. In singing, "taller vowels", does not refer to volume, but rather than the shape of the mouth and jaw. The sound will be much brighter and open sounding, which gives more room for expression. In comparison to singing songs in a normal contemporary fashion, Rarity uses the traditional chorale type of singing, which indeed enforces tall vowels. If you listen to any song or part that Rarity sings, you will hear the vowels sounding more open. To illustrate this, let's examine the first two lines of "Art of the Dress"

Thread by thread

Stitching it together

Now, as you can see, reading these two lines normally would produce a contemporary and bland voice. However, adding the tall vowels adds brightness, which means the words will be pronounced differently, as shown below

Threahd baui threahd

Stihtching it togethuhr

Notice the word "by" is pronounced with a stress on the sound "au". This is why Rarity has one of the most difficult singing voices to master, because you have to focus on formulating the tall vowels properly and deliver a smooth and pleasing tone. Remember, tall vowels does not equal louder singing, it means to enunciate and open your jaw. Think of Rarity's voice like an opera singer's voice, except it is not as projected and slightly held back, with some delicacy on top. 

Rainbow Dash

Rainbow Dash may seem like an easy one to master, but don't forget about her raspy and somewhat scratchy voice. Her singing range is of an alto. The biggest mistake a singer can make when trying to imitate Rainbow Dash is that they make their voice so raspy and scratchy that either their throat starts to itch a lot, or they suffer multiple voice cracks. Rainbow Dash's voice does crack during regular speech, but is 100% clear. To sing like Rainbow, you've got to grasp the balance of raspiness and clarity of voice. Pronunciation should be that of everyday speech. Make sure you have enough airflow and breath control to sustain longer notes. Vibrato should only be reserved for long notes that last 3 or more beats. 

Applejack

Applejack has that thick country accent that affects all vowel sounds. This means that all articulators will be used. The articulators include, the tip of the tongue, roof of the mouth, lips and teeth. The country accent adds twang to the sound of each word. Some vowel sounds are more affected my others. The most noticeable changed vowel sound is the short e sound "eh". It's sound changes to "eeye" or "ee-yeh". Therefore, the word "generation", would sound like "geeyeneration". If you listen to Applejack's speech closely, you can even hear this outside of singing. Therefore, to sing like Applejack, you must adopt to a thick country accent. However, don't try to force it out. It will end up becoming sloppy. Instead, let it come natural and use your articulators to help you with the pronunciation. Applejack's range is quite comfortable, from middle c to the b right below treble c. 

Pinkie Pie

Pinkie Pie has that tricky voice that hangs in the mid-upper alto range. It is quite loud and squeaky. Still, this doesn't mean you completely forget about all you learned in this thread. Pinkie's voice requires control and balancing. Pinkie's voice also has what is called a glottal attack. This means that when Pinkie says a vowel sound, it is sharp and instant. The glottis opens up on a whim and air flows through. This is not necessarily a good thing because it can wear out the vocal cords faster because they open up quickly. Her range starts at the Bb right below middle C. Pinkie's singing is actually slightly lower than her speaking voice. To sing like Pinkie Pie, you'll need to adapt to a sort of squeaky voice. The one cautionary point you need to take in is that you must not emphasize the squeak or else you'll wear your voice out and may even cause damage. 

Applebloom

 Applebloom is a foal, but she's growing up, so her voice has gotten a little deeper, but not much. Her voice is in the alto range but more of the upper alto range. Some could say she's a mezzo-soprano but I'd say she's alto 1. Again, Applebloom like Applejack has that country accent. Everything from Applejack's voice should apply to Applebloom, but Applebloom must sound more childlike. 

Sweetie Belle

Sweetie Belle has one of those "mixed" voices. This means that the character of her voice sort of "borrows" from other characters I have explained. Younger Sweetie Belle has a more squeaky voice. However, now that both Sweetie Belle and her voice actor are growing up, Sweetie's voice has lost some of it's squeakiness, which makes things a little easier. Sweetie Belle has two distinguished types of singing voices, her soft singing voice and her power singing voice. To sing Sweetie's soft voice, adapt a somewhat childlike tone, but not as childlike as Applebloom, unless you're doing younger Sweetie Belle's voice. For the power voice, the one thing you have to make sure is you have total control, Sweetie Belle doesn't sing that high unless you're doing one of those crazy songs like 99 Buckets of Oats on the Wall. Even then, when Sweetie Belle is singing this high (C5 to G5, the range for 99 Buckets of Oats on The Wall), you still have to have some degree of control, especially if you're singing that high and that loud. Sweetie Belle's voice range sits right in the mezzo-soprano range. 

Scootaloo

Scootaloo's voice is quite tomboyish. Because of this, it is hard for Scootaloo herself to hit those higher notes, which is why her range ends at the B right below C5 or treble C. Some of the raspiness from Scootaloo's tomboyish voice carries over to her singing voice. To sing like Scootaloo, you gotta make your voice slightly scratchy, but not too much. Remember, a scratchy voice can contribute to an itchy throat, which can wear out your vocal cords. 

Princess Luna

Princess Luna's voice is quite smooth, but it can become quite powerful. Princess Luna is an absolute alto. Some can argue that she can be a filly tenor, because of the characteristics of her voice. I say, that if she was placed in a choir, she would most like be an alto 2. Though we've only heard Luna sing twice in the show, we can now distinguish two different singing voices of Princess Luna. The first voice is found in "You'll Play Your Part" where her voice is warm and both. The second of the voices is found in "Luna's Future", where her voice takes on a darker and more airy character. Remember, an airy voice cannot be too airy. Plus, Luna's darker voice is not as airy as Fluttershy's voice. To sing like warm Luna, you'll need to focus on pronouncing your words clear and maintain a delicate and sweet tone. To sing like dark Luna, take on an airy character and somewhat operatic voice. However, the biggest thing is that Luna's vowel sounds are not as tall as other voices. 

Princess Celestia

Princess Celestia has that beautiful and warm motherly voice, which is why she is one of the easiest characters to sing as. She is best placed in the contralto range, due to her voice being able to reach some of the mid baritone range. In Celestia's Ballad, Celestia's highest note is a B right below C5 (treble C). This is the highest note she has sang so far. In "You'll Play Your Part", due to polyphony (many voices singing different melodies), she takes the lower range of the song. To sing like Celestia, the most important thing you must do is to have that warm and motherly voice. Be delicate with it. Celestia's voice wasn't meant to be powerful, unless there's a situation going on. Also, Celestia's voice wasn't designed to lurk in the soprano and upper alto range, so try to stay between E3 and A4. You may go up to C5 but cap it at there, or else you'll lose the warm and motherly voice as you try to take it up in range. 

Princess Cadence

Princess Cadence's voice is more of a sisterly voice. It is caring and is classified as a soprano, specifically 1st soprano if she were placed in a choir. The highest note we have heard Cadence sing was in This Day Aria, where Cadence hit an F#5. When Cadence sings, she mixes her contemporary sisterly voice, with an operatic voice that consists of tall vowels. Like Rarity's voice, the tall vowels should be open and clear. Every "ah" should sound like "auh", "e" like "eh" and so forth. Also, when Cadence goes beyond C5, she starts to use her head voice, also known as falsetto, especially when she hits the F#5 in This Day Aria. Singing like Cadence is quite the challenge, for you have to not only be able to be clear in your tessitura but also make sure you have a strong falsetto, especially if you're writing a song that exercises the higher soprano range. 

Now I know what you stallions are thinking: "Hay what about us males? Don't we get any characters?" You certainly do...three...for now. Spike may be a boy, but his voice actor is a female. 

Big Mac

Eeyup, you stallions saw him coming. Big Macintosh would considered a bass, for the highest note we have heard him sing was in "Find The Music In You", an F3. Big Mac has a little bit of a country accent but not as much as his sister Applejack. To sing like Big Mac, you really just have to have that natural deep voice for him. Your voice must be classified either as a bass or baritone, but bass is highly recommended. Like Applejack, you gotta have that country accent, but remember, it is not as heavy as hers. 

Feather Bangs

A very new character, introduced in Season 7, Feather bangs has that "cool guy" type of voice. He is fit in the upper tenor range. In comparison to many of the other singing voices, Feather Bang's voice is of the contemporary era. You can hear some of that heavy accented "Michael Jackson" flare. Also, Feather Bangs exhibits what's known as a "glottal attack". This means that the glottis, the slit-like opening between the vocal cords and the airway is opened forcefully, causing an instant sound. This can become unhealthy and cause the vocal cords stress due to how quickly they open. The biggest mistake one can do with singing like Feather Bangs is that they glottal attack to the point where the upper notes of the voice become thin and soon, they will be lost. 

Rumble

Rumble, who spoke for the very first time in Season 7, has a somewhat teenage jazzy voice, which he may strain at certain times, like in the song "Blank Flanks Forever", which is the only song we've heard him perform thus far in the series. Rumble's highest note sung is a G#4, which is just about his limit. To sing like Rumbler, make sure you have plenty of water on you, as you gotta combine a strong tenor voice with a childlike edge, which means you may have to strain, but try not to. 

And lastly...but certainly not least...

Spike

Spike is voiced by a female, which is understandable. Spike's voice has that childlike edge, which makes it somewhat difficult to sing. Spike's voice is considered mezzo-soprano in a full choir setting, but mid-upper voice in child's singing settings. Spike can hit an A4 very comfortably, but somewhat struggles to hit a C5 even though his voice is capable of doing it. Spike's tessitura is most likely from middle C to A4. To sing like Spike, you'll need a childlike voice along with a little bit of edge. Just try not to strain and go above Spike's normal tessitura. 

 

Well folks, we've reached the end of our journey on exploring the singing voices of our favorite pony characters. There may have been characters I've left off, but I will certainly update this guide in the future to include movie characters and other ponies that gain singing roles. As always, if you have any questions, feel free to PM me at anytime and I'll get back to you when I can.