Finding Your Head Voice
Welcome to Lesson 2. Now that you know what head voice is, it’s time to find it in your own voice. This lesson is all about exploration—not perfection.
If you’re still not 100% sure what head voice is, feel free to rewatch Lesson 1—it’s foundational.
Exploration Exercise
Let’s walk through the process of finding your head voice—and then give you some tools to start exploring it on purpose.
Step 1: Start in Chest Voice and Slide Up
Begin in a comfortable chest voice tone—something low and easy. Use an “oo” vowel like in “food,” and slide slowly upward like a siren.
You’re listening for a shift, sometimes called a “flip”—that moment when the voice gets noticeably lighter or thinner. For many singers, that’s the first access point into head voice.
Step 2: If You Don’t Flip, Try Starting Higher
If you don’t feel a shift, that’s okay! It can take time, especially if you’ve been singing mostly in chest voice.
Here’s the trick: go back to the highest note you sang comfortably, and start there with a lighter, sigh-like tone—almost like an owl hoot or a gentle sigh. You may find the coordination more easily from above than below.
Once you locate it, stay there. That light, lifted sound? That’s your head voice starting to emerge.
Deepening Exploration
Now that you’ve found a starting point, let’s keep exploring:
- Sustain a tone
Pick that pitch and hold the sound for 3–5 seconds on “oo.” Don’t worry about volume. Focus on ease and clarity. - Try small slides
From that note, slide down a few notes and then come back up. This helps you build flexibility and begin blending into surrounding pitches. - Try different vowels
Switch between “oo,” “ee,” and “uh.” Some vowels make head voice easier to access than others, and this will teach you how your vocal tract shape impacts resonance and ease. - Try short patterns
Once you feel more stable, try a simple descending 3-note or 5-note pattern, staying light and relaxed. Don’t push for volume—think of it like vocal yoga, not vocal weightlifting (yet). - Try alternate entry points
Not every voice finds head voice the same way. You can also experiment with:
- Low to high sirens
- High to low sirens
- A “witch’s cackle” imitation
- Puppy whimpers or light squeaky sounds
If none of these work—or if you’re unsure whether you’ve found it—reach out to the VoSci community. This is the most common place singers get stuck, and there’s help available.
What to Notice
As you work:
- Do you feel vibration in a different place—maybe higher in the face or skull?
- Does your breath feel supported and steady, or do you run out quickly?
- Is the tone clear, or is it breathy or wobbly?
There are no wrong answers here—just data. The goal is to get familiar with this coordination and start building trust in it.
Important Note:
Early head voice often feels small, weak, or airy—that’s normal. You’re using undertrained muscles. Over time, we’ll build strength, clarity, and range—but it starts here, with exploration and consistency.
Optional Bonus: Two Common Mistakes
- Too much airflow: this causes a breathy sound.
- Too little airflow: often accompanied by tension or squeezing.
It’s better to err on the side of too much air at first. It keeps you relaxed and helps avoid unnecessary tension.
So here’s your mission for today:
Play. Explore. Don’t judge.
Try those slides a few times a day this week. Stay curious, not critical. Every voice discovers their head voice a little differently, and that’s okay.
Before you move on, make sure you can reliably access some version of your head voice. It doesn’t need to be strong or perfect yet—but you should be able to find it on purpose, even if it still feels small or unfamiliar.
In the next lesson, we’ll bust some of the biggest myths about head voice so you can move forward with clarity and confidence.
I’ll see you there.