Vocal Training News
Justin Timberlake has surgery for Vocal Nodules in 2005, cancels shows in 2018
Justin Timberlake's Vocal Surgery Story
By Gil Kaufman for Billboard.com 10/25/2018
Justin Timberlake fans in New York were probably super bummed this week when the singer was forced to postpone his Wednesday night show at Madison Square Garden due to what his team called “severely bruised vocal cords.” And while the singer quickly promised to make it up to them when he returns to NYC on his birthday next year, Jan. 31, the news about his vocal injury was concerning.
To find out what this setback could mean for the rest of Timberlake’s Man of the Woods tour, Billboard reached out to esteemed laryngeal surgeon Dr. Steven Zeitels, the Eugene B. Casey professor of laryngeal surgery at Harvard best known for his career-saving vocal surgeries on Adele, Steven Tyler and Sam Smith, among many others.
First off, Zeitels — who has no first-hand knowledge of Timberlake’s case but was speaking in more general terms about vocal bleeding — says he would not use the phrase “severely bruised” to describe possible damage to vocal cords. “My presumption when I hear that is that he had a substantial amount of vocal use, presumably because he’s on tour, and maybe he had a cold or some other event, so the ‘bruising’ could refer to bleeding in his vocal cords,” says Zeitels.
In a case like this, Zeitels would counsel a client to go on immediate, complete vocal rest and cancel shows, because if you have bleeding or ruptures in blood vessels in your vocal cords, the more you use your voice, the more damage you could cause. “This is not a situation that will solve itself,” he says. “When blood goes to the vocal membranes, they don’t vibrate properly.”
Depending on the amount of damage, Zeitels says that a week or two of vocal rest is the recommended course of action in order to let the cords heal, at which point an artist could resume touring; at press time a spokesperson for Timberlake tells Billboard that in addition to the postponed Wednesday show in New York, an upcoming gig at the KeyBank Center in Buffalo, New York, on Sunday (Oct. 28) has been rescheduled for Dec. 19 and a Pepsi Center show in Denver originally scheduled for Jan. 29 has been moved up a day to Jan. 28 due to the new date for the MSG gig. Tickets for the previously scheduled events will be honored on the new dates. The spokesperson did not provide any additional information on Timberlake’s vocal injury.
After training hundreds of vocalists, I have concluded that voice problems like Vocal Nodules can be avoided by learning and applying the fundamentals of vocal support and natural delivery techniques
Contact me below for FREE VOICE EVALUATION
I am Jonathan Morgan Jenkins. I started coaching individuals and groups of singers in 1992 and have coached hundreds of singers and public speakers. Through the years, I have seen a disturbing trend of celebrity singers who have endured some form of surgery on their larynx, mostly vocal nodules. At the same time, I did not see this trend in Classical and Musical Theater singers. Why was this? It had to be poor technique. While I was searching for ways to train my own limited vocal instrument, I discovered techniques that can create a healthy and powerful voice. My favorite moment is when a new students voice begins to come alive at the 1st lesson.
Vocal Nodules
Vocal Nodule symptoms include:
- Hoarseness
- Breathiness
- A “rough” voice
- A “scratchy” voice
- A harsh-sounding voice
- Shooting pain from ear to ear
- Feeling like you have a “lump in your throat”
- Neck pain
- Less ability to change your pitch voice
Vocal abuse can occur from:
- Allergies
- Smoking
- Tense muscles
- Singing Incorrectly
- Coaching Sports
- Cheerleading
- Talking Loudly
- Sore Throat not treated
- Drinking caffeine and alcohol, which dries out the throat and vocal folds
Treatments for Vocal Fold Nodules
Treatment depends on what caused the nodules, how big they are, and what problems you have. You may require surgery to remove the nodules. This is usually done only when they are large or have been there for a long time. Children do not usually have surgery.
Prevention
Prevention involves proper coaching techniques that apply to all vocalists. After coaching hundreds of vocalists, I have discovered that the main problem is the initial techniques involving proper breathing and vocal support. The FUEL of the Voice is air. If that air is not of a sufficient quantity and it is not delivered to the larynx under proper pressure, the larynx becomes tight, stressed and unable to deliver sound in a free and powerful manner. This continued stress on the Larnyx can produce pain and eventually Vocal Nodules
Vocal Coaching
At Your Voice Is Your Life, I offer all vocalists a Free Vocal Review to determine the best individual vocal training approach for each student. I offer a 3 month intensive of weekly 1 hour coaching sessions in studio and virtual that are normally sufficient to coach a vocalist to produce sound in a healthy and powerful manner without creating vocal cord damage.