How you breath can play a big part in how you complete your rhymes. More so on the stage than in the booth. Some rappers who haven’t been performing long will find themselves running out of breath on stage on a constant basis. Which can then make you lose focus and concentration on your words and all together.
Some times when you write you have to keep in mind where exactly it is your going to need to take that long breath. Especially with the longer bars. Because breathing is something that we do constantly in everyday life, many aspiring rappers forget to take the need to breathe into consideration when first writing their lyrics. But the sort of breathing you need to be able to perform whilst on stage is very different to how you might breathe whilst watching a film or playing Fortnite online. You will find you are much more conscious of your breathing patterns, for a start, and they are likely to have an impact on your rhythm and intonation.
Breathe control can be an essential part of making your performance sounds as good as possible. It doesn’t feel to good when you run out of breath on the last few words of your lines. Especially with the longer bars. It doesn’t feel to good when you run out of breath on the last few words of your lines. Especially when your trying to let people know how nice your skills are. The crowd the beat and everything in between will block you out if your vocals are weak, and the listeners won’t be able to hear what you are saying.
With that said its good to do breathing exercises to help with breath control. Big Pun had unbelievable breath control. Its said he could spit 6 bars without taking a breath. Three is hard enough let alone six. Twister is another MC who I believe has supermanish breath control.
Breathing is the most natural thing we do everyday. Without proper breathing and breath control, the voice isn’t as efficient or as effective as it could be. Running out of air at the end of your lines can make you sound strained, weak, and breathy.
So lets do a few exercises that you can do to help with your breathing.
Breathing Exercises
- Inhale completely on a slow, silent five count. Hold for five. Exhale completely on five. Repeat until you can do it easily. (If you get dizzy, STOP) Increase to counts of 6,7 and 8.
- Lie on the floor with a book on your stomach. Make the book rise and fall as you breath.
Okay lets add some sound. Its better to stand because you get a more complete breath when you do.
- Take a good deep breath and sustain a “ah” sound on a single pitch that feels comfortable. It will sound like your singing. You should feel slight tension in your stomach muscles.
- Hold the “Ah” for a 10 count. Do not strain.
- Try it again for 12 seconds Note: Drop out if you can’t hold it for quite that long, before straining or gasping.
- Keep practicing as needed until your able to hold for atleast 15 seconds or longer.
Slow Breaths
- Take a deep breath and count slowly as far as you can without gasping.
- Repeat while trying to get a few more numbers each time. Aim for 60 seconds. Keep track of your progress.
Note: You can use alphabets or days of the week too. Also don’t waste breath as you count. F, S, V, Th are breath waisters. Give them only enough air to make the sound.
Hold a finger close to your lips and breathe out slowly. Your breath should feel warm and moist and notice the action of the diaphragm as you exhale. This is the correct amount of breath when singers sing. Most singers do not need to force or push are through the vocal chords to produce a good strong sound.
Well I hope these breath control exercises will help you be able to complete your lines when performing live.
Until next time….Good Luck
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Jamaal West is the author of The Official How To Rap Manual. He has over 15 years experience helping others improve rap skill and rhyming ability. Inventor of the How2rap Point-System & The Understanding Bars Tutorial his techniques on teaching others to rap have been regarded as one of the best of its kind since the year 2000.
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