Singing

The earliest forms of vocal amplification date back over 1000 years, but microphones as we know them are less than 100 years old. Cheddar looks at how mics changed the way vocalists perform when recording and in live shows, and how they put singers front and center.

(PG-13: Language) With his dapper outfit and handlebar moustache, musician Thomas Benjamin Wild Esq. seems like quite the gentleman. But don’t let his looks fool you. He’s got the mouth of a truck driver, and he’s not taking any guff from anyone.

You know those multi-track a capella videos where one person sings all the parts? Sure you do. Well this kid nailed what it must be like when all your singing personas are in conflict, and can’t play nice together.

Recently, a dog named Walter had a brush with viral fame due to his charming operatic howl. Now, some wiseacre named lyoug decided to add a little musical composition to accompany Walter’s beautiful voice, further enhancing his performance.

The members of Toronto ensemble Choir! Choir! Choir! were joined by a special guest performer, none other than pop legend Rick Astley. They provided harmonies and backup while Rick took on lead vocal duties. We’re impressed how great his voice is after all these years.

If you thought that Sophia the robot was creepy before, check this out, as the humanoid AI sings Bjork’s All Is Full of Love, which by no coincidence featured a singing robot in its video. Skip to 3:48 for the performance, which we suspect was aided by Vocaloid.

We love discovering new talent, and musician Briony Frater is a true diamond in the rough. Hit the play button and enjoy as this young woman performs a wonderfully warm acoustic version of Arctic Monkeys’ hit Why’d You Only Call Me When You’re High?

A fascinating look at inner workings of vocalist Anna-Maria Hefele’s head and neck as she performs in a mix of regular and overtone singing. University Medical Center Freiburg, Institute for Musician’s Medicine captured a whole DVD of various vocal techniques.

“I know a nice bar that has great booze… I’m a big fan of Tom Cruise.” Musician and YouTube star Rudy Mancuso likes to write original songs, but sometimes the lyrics aren’t the easiest things to come up with, as he proves in his video for “Musical Fiction.”

The Trinity College Accidentals perform an outstanding a capella cover version of LCD Soundsystem’s classic ode to the Big Apple, New York, I Love You But You’re Bringing Me Down, with senior soloist Connor Kennedy bringing on the lead vocals.

An absolutely incredible bit of archive footage of the late, great Dizzy Gillespie and Jon Hendricks performing at Lincoln Center back in 1980, using only their mouths, noses, hands, and a Jew’s harp to bring a tune to life.

Back when they were filming this season of Game of Thrones, actors Rory McCann and Kristofer Hivju took a moment away from their gruff but lovable characters Sandor “The Hound” Clegane and Tormund Giantsbane to serenade us with a little Yellow Bird.

We’ve been fans of Puddles Pity Party since he first hit the scene. Now, he’s about to break wide after appearing on America’s Got Talent. To kick off his almost certain domination of the competition, he performed a rendition of Sia’s Chandelier, arranged by Postmodern Jukebox.

Musician Louis Cole’s short song works on more levels than you’d expect. Most of us can relate to its lyrics, and while it starts out like a novelty tune, we quickly learn that Louis is a serious electrofunkmaster. And then there’s this. Louis, you’re our new hero.

Puddles Pity Party managed to mash up two unlikely tunes into one, combining the Johnny Cash classic Folsom Prison Blues with The Who’s Pinball Wizard. We’re not sure why it works, but Puddles always does a good job hypnotizing us with his voice.

(PG-13: Language) British late-night show The Nightly Show enlisted the talents of singer John Legend to perform a very special medley, consisting entirely of things that chef Gordon Ramsay has shouted at the well-deserved victims of his verbal abuse.

British artist Sampha Sisay has been around. Everyone from SBTRKT to Drake have asked him to be on their tracks because of his uniquely smooth yet passionate style of singing. But he’s more than ready to strike on his own with his debut album, Process.

Yoo Jei, a then 16 year-old Korean girl turns in an surprising and soulful performance of the Billy Joel classic New York State of Mind during her run for the title on the show KPOP STAR back in 2015. We can’t believe she didn’t win.

Roy Orbison’s classic track Crying already makes us weepy every time we hear it, but give it to the sad clown with the golden voice, and the emotional impact escalates to another level. Has somebody been cutting onions up in here?

♫ Iced hazelnut latte… with soy milk ♫ Vanity Fair managed to coax Michael Bolton into working behind the counter at Los Angeles coffee shop Alfred {Coffee + Kitchen}, where he was tasked with using his golden pipes to sing customers’ drink orders when they were ready.

Lamont Landers and his bandmates Bowen Robertson, Jaraven Moe Hill, and Kevin Canada turn in an awesome medley of Earth, Wind & Fire, Sly and the Family Stone, and a dash of funky love makin’ tossed in for good measure. Want some mo? Try on some Bill Withers.

We’re going to have to wait all the way until 2018 to find out what happens next on Westworld, but for today, we’ve got The Warp Zone’s richly-layered vocal rendition of Ramin Djawadi’s latest earworm of a theme song from our new favorite TV series.

The light and lilting voice of Daniela Andrade powers this welcome addition to the long list of cover versions we’ve heard of The Pixies 1988 classic, and is a wonderful introduction to this young woman’s incredible talent.

It’s been over a year since musician Hanbyul Kang last posted a song to his YouTube channel, but his back catalog of smooth and soulful covers is too good not to share. Here’s hoping we hear more from Hanbyul down the road.

While traveling through Berlin, vocalist EllandM spotted rapper INFIDELIX performing in the subway. She decided to join in and sing along with this awesome improv jam, backed by the beats of Phantogram’s When I’m Small.

One of the more emotionally powerful David Bowie tributes we’ve heard, as Toronto’s open choir of more than 500 singers convened to perform a wonderful cover of Bowie’s 1969 classic. Their rendition of The Man Who Sold the World is excellent as well.

Anthony Vincent of Ten Second Songs performs Survivor’s classic Eye of the Tiger in the styles of 20 Super Bowl halftime performers. And we are once again reminded that Prince should play the Super Bowl every year, and everyone else can go home.

While digging around YouTube, we stumbled onto a true talent. Musician Christian Cuevas has a smooth and powerful voice that will pierce you to the soul, and won’t let go. Seriously folks, this guy deserves a major record deal. Check out more of his tracks here.

Vocalist Mike Tompkins teamed up with members of The Harlem Globetrotters to put together this fun a capella version of their theme song, using nothing more than voices, bouncing basketballs, and foot stomping to create the multilayered track.

Comedian and voiceover artist Daniel “Slash” Barker turns in an impressive series of musical impressions, ranging from David Bowie to Busta Rhymes and everyone in between. There are a couple of clunkers (Michael Stipe and Johnny Cash), but most of them are spot on.