Some Perspective on Perry's Voce & Relationship W/The Ba

[SF-Dano]

There is a whole lot of speculation being masked as fact here. But it does make for a great discussion.

are you new?

LOL. No just pointing that at for any newbies that may be lurking.

[Michigan Girl]

Fantastic read, Jeremy. Thank you for taking the time to break things down and sharing your perspective.
And keep in mind, the band was also pressured into doing a second leg stadium tour for Escape in '82. It is well documented that Perry was against this, and only gave in when Bill Graham himself came to the band on bended knee, begging for them to do so. If Perry couldn't get out of a second leg tour, there was no way he was gonna be able to cut dates for the Frontiers tour...especially when they were voted #1 rock band in America.

Good point also, Art ...missed this earlier!!




Oh, and Matty ...I don't feel sympathy for Perry, his legacy is what it is and nothing
is going to change what's already been accomplished. He's still making money=Fact
and he seems to be enjoying his life.
He does, however, have my utmost respect as a singer and
a businessperson and nothing said here will ever change that.

[Don]

Fantastic read, Jeremy. Thank you for taking the time to break things down and sharing your perspective.
And keep in mind, the band was also pressured into doing a second leg stadium tour for Escape in '82. It is well documented that Perry was against this, and only gave in when Bill Graham himself came to the band on bended knee, begging for them to do so. If Perry couldn't get out of a second leg tour, there was no way he was gonna be able to cut dates for the Frontiers tour...especially when they were voted #1 rock band in America.

Good point also, Art ...missed this earlier!!




Oh, and Matty ...I don't feel sympathy for Perry, his legacy is what it is and nothing
is going to change what's already been accomplished. He's still making money=Fact
and he seems to be enjoying his life.
He does, however, have my utmost respect as a singer and
a businessperson and nothing said here will ever change that.

I agree no need to feel sorry for the guy. He made millions doing what he loved and we still get to enjoy that gift 20 through the power of media. That he didn't blow all his earnings on drugs and failed relationships, I can applaud. Nothing wrong with retiring early either.

[Liquid_Drummer]

Thanks Jeremey. Great insight from you. The fault is not on Steve for his vocal demise, as he's human, for fucks sake. I don't think anyone has a problem with him for what took it's toll. I only have a problem with the way he has been baiting people for years about a comeback that most of us realists understand will never happen.

Yeah, that's a whole 'nother bag of yarn right there I'm sure, but no doubt it's a real issue for Steve seeing the demand for his voice and not being confident enough to live up to expectations (or his own demanding standards).

If you listen to the boots from that tour you can hear it coming. There was also a slight weight gain and I have been saying this for years. Steroids. Anyone that has taken them for even a short period will tell you that you can pack on 10-20 pounds in a heartbeat.. Correct me if I am wrong but that is about all you can do in that situation if you are forced to go out and perform.

The sudden but slight weight gain happened right around the summer of 83 and would coincide with the degradation that started to rear its head around the same time. Jeremey, they would have treated you no differently, shredded you till it was gone and discarded you. I have always blamed the "machine" be it management, the band or a combination of the two for what happened with Perry. You can hear the emotion in his interviews when he talks about missing it. It sounds like a painter talking about his career after losing his/her eyesight.

When Perry laughs you can hear the damage however I noticed that the rattle seems to have almost disappeared from hearing him talk and laugh in his most recent interviews. He also sounds much more clear when speaking but still a bit raspy. My guess is he had a vocal procedure. We may never know the truth but I would bet money one it. When you laugh your voice pitches upward and you could hear that terrible rattle from one side of his cords vibrating differently from the other and not closing together. Ever sing and have two notes come out at once when your voice was tired ?

I hope you get that area of your voice back. I too suffer from a small void in my range. For me it is from smoking and never drinking enough water. I can sing very, very high still and hit the high note in Sweet and Simple, I can sing Hopelessly In Love too with no problem. Dont stop believing however KILlS my voice every time because it is right on that line. Not the high notes or the low ones. It is the middle near my passaggio. It seems if you spent too much time near your passaggio or in it you can wear out very fast.. That is the way it works for me anyway... Get better man.

[The Sushi Hunter]

Age also has something to do with it along with alcohol and tabacco use. Even second hand smoke will effect it. But again, just the natural changes from aging will effect everyone's voice, with a very very few exceptions.

[Liquid_Drummer]

Jeremey:

This is all great stuff from a singing standpoint. But frankly, upon further research, you lost me at your general conclusion, which is that Perry performed on the schedule he did with Journey largely because of external pressures (whatever those pressures were and wherever they came from). Why? Because it appears he did a similar schedule nearly 12 years later on the FTLOSM tour. See http://steveperryfanclub.homestead.com/ ... edule.html

In the same 3 month time as the brutal Frontiers tour, there are several 3-in-a-rows (Oct 28-30; Dec 16-18; Jan 25-28 ), a 4-in-a-row (Nov 22-25), and even a stunning 5-in-a-row (Nov. 14-18 ).

Now, I haven't looked back at the Frontiers leg. I do understand there are a few 2 or 3-day breaks on this FTLOSM tour that may or may not have been built into the Frontiers schedule. But I've always heard from singers that anything more than 2 nights in a row really pushes their voices and causes real problems. So really, a few day break or not, the damage is already done when you push yourself that many nights in a row. Burton Cummings blogged at length about this "3-in-a-row phenomenon" a few years ago. Assuming he had this extensive history of "blowing vocal chords" out (according to your band source), it would seem very foolish for either him or his promoter/booking agent to book several 3-in-a-row stints, a 4-in-a-row stint, and a 5-in-a-row stint all in the very narrow 3~ month timeframe nearly 12 YEARS AFTER the alleged initial blowout.

So, while I find the rumors of him blowing his voice out (whatever that actually means medically) very credible (just listen to him after that), I don't find the notion that he did so out of pure outside pressure from the band, record label, Herbie etc. credible. Perry to some extent had to have willingly capitulated to whatever demands the road life was placing on him at that point.

I think the difference was, if Perry missed a show on the FTLOSM tour, it wasn't a big deal. On The Frontiers tour though, Herbie had negotiated it where, if you miss one show out of Four at the Forum or Blaisdell, you wouldn't get paid for other shows there until you came back and made up the missed performance. I'm sure guys didn't want to come back to L.A. or some other place at the end of a grueling tour not to mention the cost to drag the crews back across the country for potentially one or two shows only. I would imagine Herbie putting a lot of pressure on all of them not miss a single gig as it might affect his bottom line in the end.

Fuck, just noticed my post count. I need to really quit this shit and get a life.

Something interesting to note about the FTLOSM tour. If you are the proper loon you may have many different boots of that tour. What I have noticed is that right at the end was the best he sounded from the whole tour. I dont know which date but I know it was late 94 and a gig or two 95 where he was getting it back big time. Yes, he was a half step down but his voice was sounding more powerful, more clear and he was taking more liberties with ad-libbing as well. I noticed mostly on Separate ways, in the early tour boots he would sing, "Worlds apart, hearts broken in toe,two two. The rephrasing of the 1st "two" was because it was the highest one. Toward the end he was not doing that. Belting out a quick word like two at the note he was singing is not easy at all. Toe was easier. Even if you are not a singer it is easier to sing a high ewwwwwwwww than it is with ahhhhhhhhhhhh. Start low with ewwwwww and see how high you sing then do it again with ahhhhhhhhh and you will see what I mean.. Perry was a smart singer and knew how to "twist" the words to make it work when he had to do so. I think he was 10 steps ahead in his mind all the time.

[Liquid_Drummer]

Age also has something to do with it along with alcohol and tabacco use. Even second hand smoke will effect it. But again, just the natural changes from aging will effect everyone's voice, with a very very few exceptions.

Perry said he smoked a bit of grass "but not so much anymore." in an early interview around 80,81. Dont think he ever smoked cigs though did he ?

[brywool]

There was also a slight weight gain and I have been saying this for years. Steroids. Anyone that has taken them for even a short period will tell you that you can pack on 10-20 pounds in a heartbeat.. Correct me if I am wrong but that is about all you can do in that situation if you are forced to go out and perform.

YUP. Posted that a few years ago. Look at the Oh Sherrie video. By SP standards, he was big. Compare that to say, the Lovin Touchin Squeezin video where he coulda been Karen Carpenter. However, if he's had his arthritis issues back then, that could also account for the steroids.

One thing that over steroiding will do is eat your hips. I've known guys that had hip replacements because of other health conditions where they've needed to use steroids.

[tater1977]

Even if you are not a singer it is easier to sing a high ewwwwwwwww than it is with ahhhhhhhhhhhh. Start low with ewwwwww and see how high you sing then do it again with ahhhhhhhhh and you will see what I mean.. Perry was a smart singer and knew how to "twist" the words to make it work when he had to do so. I think he was 10 steps ahead in his mind all the time.

Umm...I errr...tried that.... ...
One question.... ..Were my dogs supposed to howl, then run & hide??

[Art Vandelay]

There was also a slight weight gain and I have been saying this for years. Steroids. Anyone that has taken them for even a short period will tell you that you can pack on 10-20 pounds in a heartbeat.. Correct me if I am wrong but that is about all you can do in that situation if you are forced to go out and perform.

YUP. Posted that a few years ago. Look at the Oh Sherrie video. By SP standards, he was big. Compare that to say, the Lovin Touchin Squeezin video where he coulda been Karen Carpenter. However, if he's had his arthritis issues back then, that could also account for the steroids.

One thing that over steroiding will do is eat your hips. I've known guys that had hip replacements because of other health conditions where they've needed to use steroids.

Yeah, but this was also the first time since 1978 that the guy was off the road for an extended period of time, not running around on stage and from town to town. There's a good chance that the guy was enjoying home life a bit in '84. He was a big fan of cooking, no? And there was another good samaritan Perry story that I read years ago about him signing something left in a menu for someone in a restaurant that he went to all the time. Dude may have just packed on a few healthy pasta pounds.

[Eric]

Thanks for a great post, Jeremey.

These aren't necessarily in any kind of response to Jeremey's original post, more so the entire flavor of the thread:

1. I feel like Perry does dangle "that carrot" to his fans. BTM was filmed 12 years ago now...and he said then that he'd been thinking a lot about touring. Well, I feel like the longer he does nothing - and we're at 14 years - the more Journey was right not to wait for him. 10 years was a long wait...but had they just kept waiting we'd be at 26 years with no Journey tour it looks like. Whether or not they should have banded together and toured less in 78-83 is moot.

2. While hip surgery is not a "band decision" I've always felt like since they were technically back together that he still owed the band and its employees a reasonable timeline. Even if it was I need 6-12 months to decide what to do, I need 6-12 months to pick a surgeon and I need 12-24 months to recover. You know..something like that.

3. IF Perry knows he can't OR won't tour, why not reach out to the band, its fans and its legacy.....with honesty.....and remain a part of it in the writing process, selection of the singer, scheduling tour, studio work...and even select appearances? I know this is idealistic, but after all these years...can't it get to that place? I don't feel like his tenure should be all that is considered Journey, when the magic of the band clearly carries on. Why not make it happen in the best way possible.

4. And by the way...YES..I'm jealous I never saw Perry with the band. Very. Although, the worst Journey show I've seen was 10x better than the Perry solo show I saw.

[FamilyMan]

Also thanks to Jeremey for one of the few posts here in a long time that's had this long a thread.

[annie89509]

This was the Voice where I grew up....in 1971. He and Elvis were competitors. Neil won.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gtd8stZP ... re=related

Cool find for me.

Yeah...cool find, so7.... . I had such a crush on the guy. What a great songwriter...and powerful voice. To think, he got his start writing songs for other people before he broke through as a singer.

[Rick]

This was the Voice where I grew up....in 1971. He and Elvis were competitors. Neil won.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gtd8stZP ... re=related

Cool find for me.

Yeah...cool find, so7.... . I had such a crush on the guy. What a great songwriter...and powerful voice. To think, he got his start writing songs for other people before he broke through as a singer.

Same here. He was kind of "the voice" of my childhood years as well. There were a few. Neil Diamond, Burt Bacharach and Tom Jones.

[annie89509]

Hi Rick....Burt Bacharach? I thought he was(is) always a composer....did he sing any songs? He and Hal David made a good team writing all those hit songs...Dionne Warwick being an early favorite of mine. And...Tom Jones....my older sister had a crush on him. ...he didn't do anything for me, though . I remember he had variety show in the 60's for a short time. They showed women screaming and throwing their underwear up to him. Think I was just a teeny too young at the time to fall for a guy like Tom Jones....my impression of him at the time was he was old and sweaty and his singing/songs didn't appeal to me....haha.

Well, I have some thoughts on this discussion about SP....but I seemed to have pulled an almost, all-nighter, again. I'll get back to this next time...

[eshepherd2000]

Great insight Jeremey....I understand much of what you're saying here. I know you've lived this yourself in many ways. I have an idea about it myself on a much smaller scale. For last 4 shows I just wasn't feeling well but the pressure to perform is there so you chew on cough drops and drink throat coat and you do the best you can do. And that's just not feeling well. Nothing like what you and Steve went through. If I feel pressure to play for 200 people what must steve felt?
You write the truth about knowing when to call it an say I can't do this...it's something all singers must learn. Sometimes it's better to say no I can't and heal. Great post!

Thanks Ernie, I've definitely been in uncomfortable situations since last July and especially since there was no way of knowing how my voice was going to react early on...stress definitely makes the muscles tighten up and clamp down, so there were definitely nights more stressful than others - ironically mostly when a club failed to promote a show and there would be a light crowd. The idea of having to sing with a damaged voice and doing more damage is pretty fucking stressful when you realize you're only doing it for 40 people because the club didn't know how to market the show. But they paid their money so you do what you got to do I guess. The best thing would have been to take the 6 months off immediately but then I wouldn't have been able to experience all of the good that has come out of it.

PS I will send your CD this week - have not been out of my office for most of last week but I will get it out tomorrow hopefully!

Thanks Jeremey for the CD...Very cool...I was at the Lincoln Theatre in Raleigh and I pitched your Tom Petty Tribute to them and they seemed very interested, although Im sure youd have no problem getting that gig people will constantly ask me how you are and what you are up to....Crazy world!... we played with a Heart Tribute and a respectable crowd for our first time headlining...

[Yoda]

You know, I've seen the light! In retrospect, it (assuming our speculations are/were true) it would have been better for Steve Perry to have left/quit/gotten fired, from Journey right after the Frontiers tour. In the long run, Perry could have saved his voice from more damage, he could have saved himself a lot of physical and mental strain, and probably could have had a much more fruitful, active career. Journey would have been forced to have moved on without him, but at least it would have been during an era where the music was at the height of popularity. Personally, I don't think Journey would have ever had as much success without Perry, but I think they would have had enough commercial success to have made it worthwhile. I would have loved to have heard three more Frontiers like albums with someone like Chalfant, rather than the one Raised on Radio. And don't get me wrong, I love Raised on Radio, but its not nearly in the same ball park as Escape and Frontiers.

[journey361]

Bottom line to all the research concerning this subject in my opinion is simply this:
Individually, man or woman in Perry's frame of mind at the time the vocaal devil was approaching should have noticed a growing concern and should have dealt with it like this "(Iv'e had enough of this f_____g s__t, i'm gone you f_____g d___s), bye bye, f_____s, get my drift.
Perry did not, he stayed and decided he could deal with it and it would be fine and he would get through this with the grace of god. Steve Perry made the wrong decision and that decision costs i'n my opinion, the greatest heart-to-heart vocalist of all time to fall to corporate bullshit and the vocal devil.
I saw him some 10 times with Journey and no other singer has touched me like he could. He did not walk away when noticiable changes were beginning to rear its ugly head. Love him, he was the best, but he should have said FUCK YOU YOU DICK. BYE BYE. He simply made the wrong decison.

[scarygirl]

There is a whole lot of speculation being masked as fact here. But it does make for a great discussion.

That's never stopped us before.

In fact, if we speculate hard enough, I bet we can imagine a Journey reunion before our very eyes. I just have to wrestle away my life size Steve Perry cut out from my cats first.

[Jeremey]

You know, I've seen the light! In retrospect, it (assuming our speculations are/were true) it would have been better for Steve Perry to have left/quit/gotten fired, from Journey right after the Frontiers tour. In the long run, Perry could have saved his voice from more damage, he could have saved himself a lot of physical and mental strain, and probably could have had a much more fruitful, active career. Journey would have been forced to have moved on without him, but at least it would have been during an era where the music was at the height of popularity. Personally, I don't think Journey would have ever had as much success without Perry, but I think they would have had enough commercial success to have made it worthwhile. I would have loved to have heard three more Frontiers like albums with someone like Chalfant, rather than the one Raised on Radio. And don't get me wrong, I love Raised on Radio, but its not nearly in the same ball park as Escape and Frontiers.

My opinion on it is that if they would have canceled the second leg of the tour and come back in the winter of 1983 and finished those dates, the band would have been healthier mentally, Perry would have been stronger, and there would have been a lot less permanent damage that happened to Perry, additionally there probably wouldn't have been so much animosity between him and the other players in the band. But as I mentioned before, Perry was in no position to do that. When Herbie decided that the band would be a modern day Grateful Dead, touring for 9 months and recording for 3 months year after year, Perry was doomed.

[Jeremey]

Thanks Jeremey for the CD...Very cool...I was at the Lincoln Theatre in Raleigh and I pitched your Tom Petty Tribute to them and they seemed very interested, although Im sure youd have no problem getting that gig people will constantly ask me how you are and what you are up to....Crazy world!... we played with a Heart Tribute and a respectable crowd for our first time headlining...

Thanks man, glad you guys had a good time at LT. I think The Waiting will go over well there, we also will probably be hiring a couple people from that area for keys and 2nd guitar so we will hopefully have a "local" presence there as well. I wasn't too pleased with LT the last time we played there - Not to get too technical but we had a deal where we got a % of ticket sales after several hundred dollars that the venue was supposed to put into advertising. When I got there and asked how the ads were working out I was told the owner decided he didn't want to advertise for the show, because there was never any guarantee that advertising worked to promote shows (???) Naturally there were about 60 people there and I was pretty chokey that night. I'll know better what to expect if we go back with the Petty show though....Thanks for giving us a plug there!

[Aaron]

Jeremey,

Thanks for making the most interesting, educated post I've seen on here in a long time. It's really nice to see someone put some analysis behind the situation that has the experience as a singer, in the same range, which makes your analysis very meaningful. I think your analysis is right on. The rate at which Perry had to sing had to take its toll on his voice. He's a small dude who should reduce the amount of time he spent in mixed/head voice but it still had to be very difficult. I've thought about it a lot and it's clear why he was distant and didn't meet fans after shows. I little tweak to the voice with just a hair of the cold putting flem on the chords throws the whole thing out of the window. I didn't realize how big of a deal it was until I started singing a couple of times a week with my band. As you know, it's a big big deal. I'm not sure how you do it day in and day out being the size of guy you are. Anyhow, your post was very insightful and spot on in analysis. Thanks for a great, insightful, educated post.

Keep rockin and get the voice healed soon,

Aaron

[JSS]

It was a very good read Jeremey...and sadly, one that is shared by many singers, known and unknown! It is not commonly understood by John Q Public the torment we suffer as singers and before anyone thinks I am asking for a river to be cried for 'us', I speak for 'us', the ones who truly care about our craft and the audiences who give so much to allow us to do what we do for a living, a singers life really is one filled with concern, worry and hope that we'll wake up each day on a tour whether it be a week or 6 months, and be able to deliver whats expected of us.

I have relied on this so-called 'B-12' shot many a time in the past, when there is no other alternative and you either go out and deliver or get a D or worse, F on your report card that night! I can name a list on both hands from the top of my head, singers who did and 'blew their voices' out because of it. The results of getting that A for the night down the road can be devastating for the continuation of ones' career...or at least how folks remembered it.

If this indeed were the case of Mr Perry, in that his voice, schedule, B-12, etc., were the result of how or why he left everyone in limbo as to when he would return, then more power to him for bowing out with the rest of the world assuming he walked away because of it being his decision and not because he couldnt live up to the standard of what folks expected or remembered. Should he reveal all of the details to why he doesnt nail high B's or C's with ease anymore? I dont think so, let John Q think he can belt those songs and notes out like he did when he was 25, go out on top the way deceased celebrities did who actually passed away too young to threaten the legacies they left by not possibly hitting the wall should they have survived....Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, James Dean, Jim Morrison....isnt it better to celebrate what these people pioneered than if they were still alive today and possibly, somewhere along the way, tarnished their images to be remembered as 'damn, they used to be so good'.

Based on Jeremey's thesis here, it really does come down to what might be the reasons things were or rather, are what they are...but he speaks from experience of having to deliver these incredible vocals when he sang them, and I too have lived the perils of being the one to deliver the lyrics and melodies for many years...so I have to say kudos for enlightening folks!

[JohnH]

The closest I think Perry came to admitting it was a couple of years ago during DSB mania he said he "wouldn't sing it now to keep the memory of how it was alive."

[AR]

I wish that Cain could force Schon to play guitar so often that his fingers would fall off so he couldn't take pictures of his junk.

[portland]

I wish that Cain could force Schon to play guitar so often that his fingers would fall off so he couldn't take pictures of his junk.

I just wish it would shrivel up and fall off all together

[Gideon]

I wish that Cain could force Schon to play guitar so often that his fingers would fall off so he couldn't take pictures of his junk.

I just wish it would shrivel up and fall off all together

Is it really on your mind that often?

[yulog]

I wish that Cain could force Schon to play guitar so often that his fingers would fall off so he couldn't take pictures of his junk.

I just wish it would shrivel up and fall off all together

Is it really on your mind that often?

Gid you are INCORRIGIBLE!

[Deb]

It was a very good read Jeremey...and sadly, one that is shared by many singers, known and unknown! It is not commonly understood by John Q Public the torment we suffer as singers and before anyone thinks I am asking for a river to be cried for 'us', I speak for 'us', the ones who truly care about our craft and the audiences who give so much to allow us to do what we do for a living, a singers life really is one filled with concern, worry and hope that we'll wake up each day on a tour whether it be a week or 6 months, and be able to deliver whats expected of us.

I have relied on this so-called 'B-12' shot many a time in the past, when there is no other alternative and you either go out and deliver or get a D or worse, F on your report card that night! I can name a list on both hands from the top of my head, singers who did and 'blew their voices' out because of it. The results of getting that A for the night down the road can be devastating for the continuation of ones' career...or at least how folks remembered it.

Maybe you or Jeremey could answer this for me. I recall watching a Bon Jovi BTM and he mentioned having to get shots (in his neck) for the last leg of the New Jersey tour to even be able to vocally finish the tour, he was completely physically and vocally spent near the end.......after the back to back Slippery and New Jersey album tours.......of a year and half each (that's craaaazy!). For some reason I thought he said (steroid) shots. Or is this B-12 given in the neck? Or have you heard of the shot he was talking about?

[slucero]

It was a very good read Jeremey...and sadly, one that is shared by many singers, known and unknown! It is not commonly understood by John Q Public the torment we suffer as singers and before anyone thinks I am asking for a river to be cried for 'us', I speak for 'us', the ones who truly care about our craft and the audiences who give so much to allow us to do what we do for a living, a singers life really is one filled with concern, worry and hope that we'll wake up each day on a tour whether it be a week or 6 months, and be able to deliver whats expected of us.

I have relied on this so-called 'B-12' shot many a time in the past, when there is no other alternative and you either go out and deliver or get a D or worse, F on your report card that night! I can name a list on both hands from the top of my head, singers who did and 'blew their voices' out because of it. The results of getting that A for the night down the road can be devastating for the continuation of ones' career...or at least how folks remembered it.

Maybe you or Jeremey could answer this for me. I recall watching a Bon Jovi BTM and he mentioned having to get shots (in his neck) for the last leg of the New Jersey tour to even be able to vocally finish the tour, he was completely physically and vocally spent near the end.......after the back to back Slippery and New Jersey album tours.......of a year and half each (that's craaaazy!). For some reason I thought he said (steroid) shots. Or is this B-12 given in the neck? Or have you heard of the shot he was talking about?

Steroid Use in the Voice Care of Singers: When Is It Appropriate?
http://blog.voicewize.com/2011/06/20/st ... propriate/

Continuing with my discussion of Lauren Alaina’s voice care as an example for others to learn from, I will now discuss the practice of the use of steroid injection for allowing injured singers to perform. To help me out with this task, I have interviewed Thomas Carroll, MD, laryngologist and Director of the Center for Voice & Swallowing at Tufts Medical Center in Boston. Being a “laryngologist” means that Dr. Carroll is a voice-specialized doctor. So, he sees a wide variety of people with voice problems, including injured singers.

For the sake of brevity, I have edited Dr. Carroll’s responses. For the full text of his replies to my questions, please see the Voice & Speech Library on my web site. Any errors introduced in the editing process are my misunderstanding.

1) How is it that a steroid injection acts to help a singer who is experiencing difficulty? How does it work? Does it stay localized or does it spread systemically in the body once injected?

The steroids used in voice care are corticosteroids, which are medications that stop inflammation. These are in very different from sex hormones like testosterone. The steroid shot is usually injected into a larger muscle group, such as the arm, rather than directly into the vocal folds themselves. Since the medication is “systemic” it has an influence throughout the whole body once injected.The steroid will result in a reduction of swelling in the vocal folds, but will not help injuries such as hemorrhage or polyps.

2) Under what circumstances do you consider providing a singer with an injection? Are there contraindications or situations where you would not recommend it?

“For non-professional singers whose life won’t change if they miss a performance, I usually tell patients to rest, hydrate and avoid steroids. If, and only if, a missed performance will lead to significant problems financially, personally or professionally for a singer and there is no sign of bleeding in the vocal folds (i.e. swelling and inflammation are the main issue) I will give steroids….I will also require a second look exam within 48 hours to see if the vocal folds have changed”

3) What are the potential consequences of using steroid injections regularly to get through performances?

Potential side effects are numerous and are often related to the length of time that steroids are in use. It is usually not advisable to stop taking steroids suddenly. In terms of short-term use, there can be changes in mood, appetite and sleeping. Rarely, a condition called “avascular necrosis” on top of the large thigh bone (femur) can occur. Also, the application of steroids may actually slow down the healing process from a cold or virus.

4) Is there a recommended maximum frequency of steroid injection for vocal injury?

“I do not have a recommended maximum or minimum frequency of steroid injection. I don’t think recommending persistent steroid injections in a struggling singer could be a good thing.” It is better to get the singer of of the steroids and into a period of vocal rest, with or without voice therapy depending on their circumstance.

5) How do you counsel singers who are considering a steroid injection? What is your general advice to an injured singer who has a performance coming up?

“First of all I ask them how important the performance is to their career. I try to steer them away from steroids and to take the night/a few days off if possible. Despite giving steroids, singers can cause more injury to their vocal cords if they sing on top of an already inflamed voice. I give singers all the warnings I have already discussed about the risks of steroids. I let them know that they will need another exam tomorrow or the next day. I tell them to go on absolute vocal rest if at any time they have a sudden voice change while speaking or singing through the period after the steroid injection. I also tell them to only talk/sing if they are getting paid to do so. People cause more trauma to the vocal folds speaking than they do singing….If there is a bleed or other acute and potentially permanently damaging injury I tell them they cannot perform and then we deal with the aftermath from promoters, directors, managers etc. This is in the best interest of the performer who often is under significant pressure from these entities.”

6) What follow up do you recommend after a steroid injection?

“I look at the larynx again the next day or at least within 48 hours and adjust our plan according to how they look and feel.”

Thank you Dr. Carroll!

Now back to our regular presenter:

I would like to reiterate here that I completely understand why Lauren Alaina and her voice care professionals would use steroids if appropriate in order to allow her to participate in the American Idol finals. An event like that certainly fits into the category of a high stakes performance where there could be negative consequences to having to cancel.

My objection to the way in which her injury was handled was primarily in the way it was communicated and therefore the dangerous message that it sent to amateur singers around the world. Treatment for a vocal injury in a singer is a complex thing wherein mistakes made can lead to a life of vocal debilitation and perhaps loss of the ability to sing all together. I want y’all to sing for life!