BIG PROBLEM!!!!!please check it out guitarists!!I need your help.

[jmusic4every]

i'm the singer and rhythm guitarist for my band but the thing is i can't play rhythm at the same time while singing melody of the song...it just confuses me especially with not a lot of experience....how do you guys do it??...and tell me if i'm not making any sense because i don't know how to explain my problem...

[paulm12]

practice...it'll come

[neatobassman]

like everything, it just takes practice. Learn the part so that you can play it while having a conversation. Then learn the lyrics by heart. Then put them together. Just keep practicing.

[dustyboy316]

Practice.

I heard if you chew gum while playing it helps. Just a word of advice afriend gave me.

[Innertiac]

yes, i concur. practice. you should be able to play the song with close to no effort, or at least no conscious thought payed to your guitaring. then the singing will be easy, and get ready for musical love.

[jmusic4every]

thanks...for the tips...i know practice is the key but sometimes i wish it was easier ....oh and i'm gonna definitely try chewing gum at the same time...it seems funny wonder if it'll work...

[Merkaba]

I can do that and I dont really play guitar. Practice. Its like you have to find how use two parts of your brain at once. Just like drumming.

[eug008]

u need to practise heaps and make sure you can play the guitar by heart and sing by heart.

[ElKapitan]

u need to practise heaps and make sure you can play the guitar by heart and sing by heart.
yep, u need to get to the level of confidence with the piece so that u don't actually have to worry about or concentrate on it
it'll come

good luck :thumb:

[Independent_CA]

i'm the singer and rhythm guitarist for my band but the thing is i can't play rhythm at the same time while singing melody of the song...it just confuses me especially with not a lot of experience....how do you guys do it??...and tell me if i'm not making any sense because i don't know how to explain my problem...
Practice, practice, practice.

And don't be worried to screw up every know and then or about how good of a singer you are, being confident is one of the most important things. It took me forever to be able to sing "Dammit" and a few other songs while playing, but now I have them down and make my own. I still have trouble sometimes if I have to play a complicated riff and sing, but once I practice it to death, I usually get it.

[Trigger_003]

http://www.musicianforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=201244
Goes into a few more techniques and stuff. It'd be a good idea to check this link out :thumb:.

[Peg Dizzler]

i'm the singer and rhythm guitarist for my band but the thing is i can't play rhythm at the same time while singing melody of the song...it just confuses me especially with not a lot of experience....how do you guys do it??...and tell me if i'm not making any sense because i don't know how to explain my problem...

1. Then why are you the rhythm guitarist/singer for your band?
2. Use the search function first... you'll find alot of threads on this subject, especially in the guitar forum, many of which I gave good advice on.
3. Practice.

If you really can't do both at the same time, then decide if you're better at rhythm or singing and find another member to do the other; but don't give up easily. It takes alot of time and effort.

[Independent_CA]

Just a question in general for guitarists and bassists (cause that's all I play), but anyone can answer.

Do you find that you may have difficulty playing songs made by other musicians and bands, but when it comes to making your own songs, you can sing and play much easier?

I don't know why, but with me I can initially have difficulty with some songs that aren't even that hard, and then make up my own song with a harder rythym or faster lyrics and not screw up nearly as much.

[Alustle]

Ye man I definitely get that...the guitar stuff in my band is way harder than most and I can play and sing at the same time. When I try other bands that are easier I sometimes find it harder. I suppose it's becuase I couldn't make up vocals that I couldn't play guitar to at the same time cause I couldn't hv played it in the first place...confusing lol ..hope u know what i mean.

[Independent_CA]

Yeah, I think it's maybe just being able to play something you created rather than something you are covering because it's your work. You know exactly how you want it to sound, and exactly where you want to change chords or rythym, since you are the creator of the piece. Get what I'm saying?

[Ozduck]

yeh, and that would end up being the same as if u practice a cover to death... the song will become your own and you will know how you want it to sound with chord changes/rhytm etc

[Trigger_003]

Plus (relating to independent ca's topic), since you created the song, you would know all the techniques used in it. Would you go out and create a song for performance use with vocal techniques you just know you can't do? Or make a song with say 6 finger tapping, when you can't even explain what that is to someone?
A lot of people don't (remembering this is for performance purposes). They stick to what they know, or are kind of familiar with, and that's why they find their songs easier.

[bighambino]

How are you rhythm guitarist and singer in a band if you can't sing and play guitar? Have you guys been together long?

[Nicko_Shmicko]

^^^^ i was thinking the same thing