To find your voice, first define your style,

Lis Lewis explains

What you sing and how you sing it defines who you are.

All your life you've listened to music. At various times you've turned to different artists and different styles to give you comfort or make you dance. There isn't one style that meets all of your needs, so when it comes time to record your own record, you might feel that you want to demonstrate your versatility and sing a variety of styles.

If you are aiming for a record deal you will need to narrow down what you present to its essence. Instead of a little of this and a little of that, you must show the world one strong complete package that makes a clear statement: one style.

Choose Your Identity

Most singers love more than one style of music. Maybe you've heard Gwen Stefani sing her brand of ska music and then branch out to hip-hop, or Garth Brooks defining himself with country music and then making a rock and roll album as his alter ego Chris Gaines.

"While you are developing your audience and your fan base, you need to have a clear, strong vision of who you are and what you represent"

Every artist would like to be able to explore different types of music. But even these two artists who are so talented and flexible started with one remarkable personal statement in one style. No Doubt's first record wasn't a little ska and a little hip-hop. It was all the same brand of exuberant, savvy pop/ska.

While you are developing your audience and your fan base, you need to have a clear, strong vision of who you are and what you represent. Are you a folky pop poet like Jewel or a young, light-hearted dancer like Britney Spears? Are you putting out aggressive rock/rap like Linkin Park or a romantic soul/R&B singer like Brian McKnight? Your audience needs to know who you are and be able to recognize you. If you are a "jack of many trades" you have no clear identity.

Choose Your Voice

What style is the best one for you?

Start by looking at what you love. You can't sing something you don't you have a passion for.

Second, the songs you sing best will be the kind of songs you have listened to all of your life. These are the ones you understand the best. In other words, if you have never listened to blues, you can probably cross blues off your list of potential styles.

But just because you love to listen to a certain type of music doesn't mean you can sing it. Be discerning about the difference between what you love to listen to and what you sing well. Even though I've listened to Aretha Franklin all of my life, and even learned to sing a lot of her runs and licks, I would never try to sing a song in her style. I just wouldn't sound right doing it.

If you can, be objective. If you can't, ask someone who you can trust to be honest with you. Each style has conventional ways of using the voice. When do you use vibrato? Should you use your head voice? When do you slide? How elaborate are the runs? Is your voice rough or sweet?

If you could hear Sarah McLachlan sing a Sheryl Crow song, she would sing it in a lighter and prettier style. She would use her head voice where Sheryl Crow would belt it out. Sheryl Crow sounds tougher-there's more gravel in her voice.

You learn these conventions and absorb them through years of listening and imitating the artists you admire. If you've been listening to Christina Aguilera then you will be used to singing long strings of notes and working with syncopated rhythms. You'd be learning entirely different licks and sounds if you've been singing with Alanis Morissette. All styles have characteristics of their own. When you understand what makes a style unique you can learn how to sing it.

The Song Remains the Same

Another major factor is your selection of songs. If you are writing your own songs they will influence your direction. Each genre of music has a specific approach to lyrical content and rhythmic and harmonic elements. If you write complex, intimate lyrics like Tori Amos then you probably aren't going to sing romantic R&B. Pop/folk songs won't have the kind of driving rhythm elements as a rock or hip-hop track. Of course, there is a lot of overlap, which is why every now and then an artist in one genre will cover a song from another genre. Ray Charles did an album of country songs. Shawn Colvin did a record of mostly rock songs. They blur the lines between styles.

Each style still has its own attributes. Your job as the singer is to know what they are. As you explore various styles in search of the one that's perfect for you, you may find that you want to combine elements from different styles into one. This is the mark of a creative person. Can you sing a hip-hop melody over a crunchier rock guitar sound? What about combining an electronica track with an aggressive rock melody? It can be done. But that doesn't mean you will have a record that has a rock song and then an electronica song on it.

All the songs should share a common concept and stylistic approach. They should express your vision, your stories and your soul. The songs will call for a distinctive sound on your vocal and instrumental tracks. Your creative efforts will succeed if you establish a unique but consistent style that is all yours.

Lis Lewis is publisher of Angel City Voice, News For the Pro Singer and owner of The Singer's Workshop. Reach her at www.thesingersworkshop.com or to her e-mail newsletter at TheSingersWorkshop-subscribe@topica.com.