Backup Singing, Be A Shadow and Shine
If you want to be center stage and headliner of the show, you cannot sing backup. You must sing behind the idol, not overpower them. You must be able to play a supporting position to the star and not feel left out if you want to sing backup.
To sing backup is much harder than it looks. Backup singing requires a great amount of listening and being very sensitive to the main singer, much as an instrumental accompanist would. Listening and reacting to the main singers phrasing, you must begin and end as they do. You must, in effect be the singers shadow.
The best place on stage for a backup singer is wherever you can see the singers mouth at all times, this is the key. To sing backup effectively, this is very, very important to your job. Watch the singer to learn where they are going. The singer will change course or make a mistake and only if you are aware can you react. Your eyes must be glued to the singer. The singer may use a hand gesture to indicate a repeat from the top or even a modulation so be aware.
As the singer goes, so must you. Blend to their phrasing. If you want to blend in the proper way, start your melody just after the singer starts theirs. Sometimes you are not sure of how loud the singer will be so start quietly and gradually come up to the proper level after the line develops. Do not pronounce consonants too hard at the start of a phrase. If you pronounce a consonant too hard and it is slightly off from the main singers line, it will be very noticeable and disagreeable.
The end of phrases are just as vital as the beginning. If you gradually ease off your melody as the singer does the same, you will not end after they do and cause much embarrassment to yourself and the band as a whole. If you follow these singing tips, watch, listen and blend in; you can be a professional backup singer in very short order.
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