I am struggling to find some singers for 1-off session jobs. I welcome suggestions as to where I might recruit from ? I have emailed the Brit school down the road, I have advertised in Bandit and SOS, and have told everyone I know. But nothing yet

The songs are very 'pop', ie aimed at the Magic FM and/or Radio 2 daytime playlist...

I have two specific requirements

Firstly for a young sounding female - think Nina Persson (Cardigans), Emma Bunton etc

Secondly a male soul singer who can layer BVs in the classic motown stlye - think Four Tops, Temptations etc

I am offering MU rates, £40 per hour, and rights signed to me on the standard MU M4 contract form.

PM if you can do it, or know someone who can. SE London.

You could try band sites as well -- bandmix, formingbands, joinmyband, partysounds, musofinder, musolist, etc (you might get a lot of talentless time-wasters that way, but worth a try if you're desperate).

I know a man who might know a man who... etc. Could the job be done remotely or would you need them on the spot?

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Ohm's Law states, "Your PA isn't as powerful as you think it is".

PM sent re a female singer. As much as I'd like a go at male BVs, I'm realistic on my abilities!

Female singer - Sue McLaren

Quote shufflebeat:

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I know a man who might know a man who... etc. Could the job be done remotely or would you need them on the spot?

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On the spot, which is currently SE London.

I am a London based singer-songwriter. I also perform at functions and events, as well as session stuff. My style is Soul/R&B/Pop, I have a good range and am very versatile. Here's a promo to one of my songs to give you an idea: http://youtu.be/iP5AH6DgOYA

I feel I would be suitable for what you are looking for.

Thanks,

Jordan

Hello, I am a singer and would love to do some vocal jobs. Here is my Soundcloud www.soundcloud.com: www.soundcloud.com/electro-valentino

Thank you,
Dan Helgi

Quote Helgi:

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Hello, I am a singer and would love to do some vocal jobs.

Thank you,
Dan Helgi

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Downright dandy - if I needed a vocalist right now, Dan Helgi might be my first choice.

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17ft here! Too deep for non divers.

Hello
I am a female vocalist living in London and I am very interested in the job, I have quite a powerful soulful voice, but I can tone it down if need be.
Could you please give me more details or send me links to your work?
Thanks

Hello my name is Kath and I am a female vocalist with a young sounding voice. I am at uni studying music. I'd love to be considered for this! I have samples of me singing if you need. Thansks!

Quote Kathmcgee33:

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Hello my name is Kath and I am a female vocalist with a young sounding voice. I am at uni studying music. I'd love to be considered for this! I have samples of me singing if you need. Thansks!

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Good! But I will need to hear what you sound like ! Please send me an MP3, as requested in my SOS ad, which is this one.

"Female pop singer required for 1-off session job, SE London. must have flawless pitching and sound young in the girlie-pop style; Nina Persson (Cardigans), Emma Bunton etc MU terms and conditions apply, cash on the day."

And make it soon, as the short list is filling up

Quote NikitaHollyM:

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Hello
I am a female vocalist living in London and I am very interested in the job, I have quite a powerful soulful voice, but I can tone it down if need be.
Could you please give me more details or send me links to your work?
Thanks

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OK, Please PM me with MP3 or YouTube link etc, or reply with an MP3 to my current SOS ad :

"Female pop singer required for 1-off session job, SE London. must have flawless pitching and sound young in the girlie-pop style; Nina Persson (Cardigans), Emma Bunton etc MU terms and conditions apply, cash on the day."

Didn't hear back from you - is my friend on your shortlist? If you're still waiting for her to contact you, I'll chase her up.

Quote grab:

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Didn't hear back from you - is my friend on your shortlist? If you're still waiting for her to contact you, I'll chase her up.

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No. Sorry, but I'm not a company, just a songwriter, so I don't have time to write lots of 'no thank you' notes...And to put it bluntly, I didn't think she sounded anything like Nina Persson or Emma Bunton....

OK, no worries. Just that she's often unresponsive on email, so I didn't want her missing a job opportunity.

Quote Gone To Lunch:

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No. Sorry, but I'm not a company, just a songwriter, so I don't have time to write lots of 'no thank you' notes...

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Haven't you got that the wrong way round? Perhaps you meant to say "can't be arsed", easy mistake to make.

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Ohm's Law states, "Your PA isn't as powerful as you think it is".

Ok, Just to make myself clear...

My requirement for these singers is essentially open ended; there is no external deadline I have to meet, other than to get them done before my life is over hehe... On the other hand, I would very much prefer to do them sooner rather than later, as I would like to get my work out there.

Actually, I am ALWAYS looking for good singers for these 1-off session jobs...I am only a writer, not a singer, which gives me the freedom to use whatever voice I choose for my songs, which are different genres alot of the time, well so far at least.

I also apologise for my accidental rudeness in my OP, I neglected to include the message: "Thanks for your interest, but if you do not hear from us, it means you have not been chosen. I regret we do not have the resources to reply to all applicants". And when I advertise in Bandit, I always say 'Your CD will only be returned if you supply an SAE"...

Though these days I ask for an MP3 instead, as it is just so much easier.

And finally, there is little point in applying if you do not fit my specific requirements. Tina Turner or Janis Joplin soundalikes are not required if I am asking for young sounding girlie pop like Emma Bunton and Nina Persson of the Cardigans. (For those who don't recognise these names, YouTube can certainly provide the necessary.)

Thanks....

Hi,

If you haven't already found someone for session work on your songs I may be able to help. I'm currently doing a degree in commercial music performance at the University of Westminster. I'm based in Harrow but can travel.

I'm in the process of setting up a soundcloud account but you can access some of my songs at www.myspace.com/natalielane1 Click on the tab that says "All 8". The songs "Give Me What I Need" and "The Dawn" are the most recent songs I have on here and my voice has developed more since recording these a couple of years ago.

If my voice doesn't suit for this particular project, please keep me in mind for future opportunities.

Thanks,

Natalie

For those of you following this...

We found a great soul singer who did a great job on the BVs yesterday...

BUT I am still open to hearing from other singers for future jobs

And we still haven't decided on the Girlie-pop Nina Persson/Emma Bunton type voice job.

I don't want to be overly blunt here, but are you going about this the right way?

You haven't said whether you want a higher soprano voice instead of a mezzo, or whether you want the ability to do lots of melisma, or anything like that. Just name-checking a pair of technically-very-bad singers is not really an accurate guide. If you want breathy little-girl vocals, most decent experienced singers should be able to put that on.

In my friend's case, all the demos on our website are rock. She may well be able to sling you a demo which is more varied - but you never asked her. BTW, she's toured Europe with shows, teaches musical theatre at a Stagecoach school, and has been auditioning (unsuccessfully over the last few months, but it's a tough market) for lead roles in stuff like We Will Rock You and Jersey Boys. You've got at least a half-dozen more on here too, several of whom say they're in formal music training so are probably equally good. And you're not after a lifetime relationship - all you want is someone to lay down the vocals in an hour or two and bugger off again. If they're not right, you'll know inside five minutes.

And then there's the "no replies" thing. How many people have contacted you? If you had a hundred replies, fair enough. But if you only have a dozen, not replying is pretty rude. And maybe you'll want a singer more like these ones in future - but all these ones will probably tell you where to stick it if they didn't even get a courtesy reply this time.

Mr Grab -

I asked for breathy young-sounding female vocals, because as the songwriter and producer and the person offering the fee, that is what I want for my song.

If I had wanted soprano, mezzo, rock chick with melisma, or whatever, I would have said so.

I offered Nina Persson and Emma Bunton as broad style references; I don't need a clone as such, they are just my way of indicating the style or performance I want, and the type of song it is.

If your friend can do that, then she is welcome to send me an example.

It is easier, cheaper quicker and more convenient to audition via mp3, demo, youtube etc, than have them turn up and have a go. My position is if they cant deliver on their mp3, demo, youtube whatever, then they are most likey below the high standard I seek, and therefore not short listed.

I have received a few really superb voices that are not right for these two tracks, and I have contacted them to say, not this one, but can we keep your details and contact you when we are doing something in your style.

I also have a small but growing 'A' list of preferred excellent singers who are happy with how I work.

Thats just the way it is in my world today.