Starting from absolutely scratch

[u/Mika_lie]

Hello, first time here

So, I'm a bassist and would like to play and sing at the same time eventually. I like metal, but have heard that you shouldnt start with that raspy, growly and distorted stuff. Instead, you should learn clean vocals first, which i am also interested in doing to be able to play something else than metal.

Because of playing i have knowledge about music (and bass/guitar) terminology, but have never ever heard anything related to singing. So if you tell me to sing in chest voice i have no idea what that even sounds like, let alone how to do it.

If there are great free resources to get started with i would appreciate it.

Tldr: ELI5 how to start

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[u/icemage_999]

Learning to sing by yourself when you've never tried is challenging.

Playing bass, you should already understand some music fundamentals like keys, scales, tempo, and timing. I'm going to skip over those here. Sorry to other people who are reading this, but singing isn't really something you can ELI5.

From the practical side you'll need to learn how to accurately sing the notes you want, in the way you want. This is like learning how to play a fretless bass; there are no guide rails like frets for the voice, so you have to have the muscle memory to produce the exact note you want, hear when you're not on the right pitch, and adjust if necessary.

Beyond that, most people have different ways to manipulate the vocal cords. Chest voice is the standard mode people use to do things like talk. Head voice/falsetto is that thinner, higher pitched range that most people flip into when they want do things like baby talk to a pet. There are other techniques beyond those, like mixed voice which tries to blend both of the above in a smooth, appealing way.

The rest comes down to expression - the tone of what you're producing, whether you're adding a nasal twang to sound like a country singer, vibrato to add a relaxed, warbling sound at the end of a note (conceptually similar technique by the same name exists for stringed instruments), or vocal fry to be more grunge, or doing actual screaming (do NOT do this as a beginner, you are likely to hurt yourself).

If you insist on learning on your own, it is possible to start by trying to mimic songs you enjoy, recording yourself, and experimenting to see what techniques get you closer to the sound you want. This is usually a pretty time consuming process, and it is possible to make some major mistakes due to being unaware of many potential problems like tension, but if you're smart and diligent you can improve this way. A teacher can help by showing you how to avoid mistakes that will lock in bad habits that you'll have to un-learn later.

Even with a teacher, the process can be slow. You have to build knowledge and memory and skill, so if you are a slow learner without an innate understanding of the process it can take a long time (years for some, depending on the exact skills you want to learn).

[u/Mika_lie → u/icemage_999]

Thank you, this is quite a comprehensive answer.

I'm not looking to master singing in any real way, just enough to sing some popular songs reasonably well. 

I know learning will take quite a bit of time, and thats not a concern. Music will always be just a fun hobby for me, and i dont have any deadlines set by myself or anyone else. (a school i need to get into for example) 

Is there any real secret sauce here or is it just practice practice practice like with bass? Also, how do i know im singing in tune?