Member Since: May 1, 2010
Answers: 3
Last Update: May 2, 2010
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Can you smoke weed and still be a good singer? Someone told me that it makes your lungs stronger- because it makes you build up something or whatever- dont know how true that is.please don't lecture me about not smoking weed, thanks. (link)
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Can you smoke weed and still be a good singer? Someone told me that it makes your lungs stronger- because it makes you build up something or whatever- dont know how true that is.please don't lecture me about not smoking weed, thanks.
OK, I'm going to give you an answer from experience as a voice teacher (27 years), a writer, and a singer... that's me.
The short answer is...
There is no short answer.
Over 25 years I've discovered that the human voice is like a fingerprint... no two are the same. I've taught chain smokers who defied every rule I thought I knew of.
I do know where the breathing thing came from... I stumbled on it myself years ago. It's the thing people do when they take a puff and then pull in an "extra bit of breath" to get the smoke as deep as they can. Holding the breath, NOT with your throat closed, but by using your diaphragm, you strengthen that muscle. I converted this into actual breathing exercises, without the smoke, actually. This form of slow intake.. hold with mouth and throat open, then pull a bit, pull a bit, pull a bit more air will increase your lung capacity as well as strengthen the muscle that controls breathing.
You are the only one that can determine what MJ does or does not do to your voice. As a rule (and I hate rules) the professional singer mentioned above is the most nearly correct. The hot air crossing over your vocal chords is by far the most irritating and potentially voice damaging thing about smoking. But there are ways around that too. Water pipes for one. And especially the newer vaporizers will deal with the heat and the smoke to a good extent.. BUT!
If your vocal chords are sensitive, almost anything foreign may irritate them.
MJ opened up my writing when I was younger, and I'm better for it. I came from such a screwed up, uptight background.. being screamed at daily, I'd NEVER ever have written a word had I not read some Carlos Casteneda books about the proper use of "power plants", and how not to abuse them.
In moderation for me, the upside is greater than the downside. HOWEVER, when I'm performing or in the studio, it's no smoke for two weeks prior.. and if you can't do that, well then that's it's own problem.. know what I mean?
So really, lectures and good intentions aside, YOU will be the best judge. Experiment as a scientist would... Try partaking a certain amount for 2 weeks, & record yourself. Then stop for two weeks and record yourself. You'll see how your voice responds.
Some people, (I used to use the example of Bruce Springsteen back in the day) have what I call "leather vocal chords". Bruce would do 4 hour shows for months on end, year after year.. no vocal training, nothing. He never lost his voice for any concert I ever saw in the 70's, 80' 90's.
Students would come in and ask "Can you teach me how to sing like him?" .. Answer... I can't. He's a genetic freak of nature... a good one. I'm not so lucky. Smoke filled clubs bother my voice terribly, they always did, WAY more than my own personal casual & careful MJ use.
But I never preach one size fits all.
The choice comes down to a basic cost/benefit analysis.
In the end smoke is smoke. Your throat and all the vocal piping before the lungs are lined with tiny hairs called cilia. They are designed to recognize things like smoke & make you cough. That's what I'm sure you've seen when people are passing around a joint. If you smoke ANYTHING regularly, these cilia kinda sorta burn away & become desensitized. That's why when someone quits cigarettes you often see them coughing uncontrollably for weeks. The cilia are growing back. But that's chronic daily usage. If one uses a water pipe etc or even smokes maybe half a MJ "ciggie" once a day, this will probably not happen.
The tar thing while technically true is well, not technically true. No one has done good multiple, unbiased controlled studies of MJ users, heck they can't even agree about cigarette smokers, because even cigarette smokers can't be categorized by a controlled lab study.. people act completely differently in their day to day life: some barely puff, some inhale deeply and hold, some inhale and immediately exhale etc... and they do it differnetly from the lab to the real world, and from month to month. Cigarettes also vary wildly in tar and nicotine content.... same as MJ does. "North California death weed" is going to be 10 times more irritating than "regular". It's like trying to quantify caffeine in coffee.. how strong is the oil?... how fine is the grind?... how long does it percolate?... yadah yadah.
THE KEY:
"Know thyself"... or or at least start getting to.
"Everything in moderation" and...
Listen to your body.
You'll find the balance that's right for you, as opposed to me or the next person.
Lastly, Drink TONS of good clear water every day.
3 quarts MINIMUM for men, and close to that for women. More if you sweat a lot. I drink a gallon a day.... yup.
UNKNOWINGLY DEHYDRATED STUDENTS account for far more vocal problems (from dry mucus membranes... death to a singer), than a few cigarettes, even a bit of MJ. Just listen to your body. ;-)
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Rating: 5
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Wow, you're awesome, you actually gave an answering worth rating- and a good one too. Thanks a lot for the help
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