When I started producing rap music when I was 19 I was introduced by my rappers into the wonder that is the ‘doubled’ vocal.
I came from a world of rock music, where one Robert Plant was all you needed. What’s this deal with the doubled vocal?
It only took one track (well two really) for me to see the light. Why did TuPac sound so huge? How come Biggie Smalls never sounded small?
The unison doubled vocal was the key. Usually both panned center, for some reason having two of the same guy rapping the same thing added authority to the sound, made it not only bigger but more established.
I kind of forgot about it in the years that passed until a few years ago when I was recording a theme song I wrote for a cartoon. The producers wanted a pop sound, and without even thinking I had my wife sing the lead twice and BAM! Instant pop.
When you double vocals in unison it helps a lot if your singer can duplicate their timing and pitch well enoughto make it work. When you do it sounds like your fave Miley Cyrus or Britney track.
When you don’t do it as tightly it still sounds great, but comes off sounding more like Crosby Stills and Nash than Christina Aguilara. If you want to hear an excellent example of this check out Jose Gonzales singing ‘Crosses’ or ‘Futures’ from the album ‘The Garden’ by Zero 7. It sounds great and very homey, I love it!
A great variable you have when you record a unison doubled vocal is where you pan the recordings in the mix. The wider left and right the larger the sound. You can really play with this- maybe your lead vocal is just one voice but maybe you have a few words out of the chorus which are a doubled harmony, or maybe you want to double an octave and lay the high octave way back in the mix to create an angelic, ethereal sound.
It is SO much fun to experiment with. All I can say is start recording, and record it twice. You’ll have a blast!
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
What if I just use the same recording twice? Will I get the same sound? And what effects do you recommend to use? Echo, delay, auto-tune?
Absolutely not. Doubling the same vocal it makes it bigger, not louder. You CAN do a different effect recording two separate vocal takes make a natural delay and chorusing effect.
I’ve been using the double vocals for years and it has always worked great for my songs. It makes the vocals sound much fuller and if you add a little reverb to the first vocal track and leave the second track dry but alittle further back behind the first track, You’ll get a great effect also. Even try Vocal pitches Like alot of artist do thier own backing vocals a higher octave then thier main.
Just some input.