A good singer to me -- besides having the pre-requisite pitch and a good sounding voice - is a person that takes "ownership" of a song: someone that makes the song 'theirs".....You can tell on a recording when that vocalist is taking ownership by the little inflections ( the "uhs", "whoos", grunts, etc) that they put into it that gives a melody-line that soulful flavor -
its them telling you "I dont give a damn how this song was written, this is how I'M doing it!"
Music, be it a musician or a singer, is as much about salesmanship as it is talent and art. Its how well a person can sell what they do....when a singer "owns" a song and calls it theirs is one of the best ways for them to sell it
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