If you're into pop and rock style singing, you are wondering how those singers belt those high notes so clear, strong and just blow your mind. Belting means to basically take the chest voice quality up to the higher notes.
I don’t like “pretty singing”. That is just a way for most of us to make extra effort and get a less satisfying sound. But if you learn to incorporate your chest voice function, which is what we will learn here today, you will get a more powerful sound with less effort.
And here is the scoop: taking the chest voice function to high notes - that’s belting! The more of it you do, the more “belty” the sound will be. It will have more volume and resemble a more poppy/rocky sound.
This article is part of my Singing Techniques & Exercises guide, where I break down the skills that make your voice easier to control and more expressive. Here, we’ll zoom in on belting.
First things first: belting is not shouting
The number one fear about belting: “won’t I wreck my voice?” Here’s the secret. A good belt sounds big, but the singer is not exerting herself, straining her throat, or using tons of air. If she were, her voice would soon hang up its coat and disappear.
The power comes from a small, focused, twangy sound inside a wide-open space, not from pushing. That also means: no chest-heaving “getting ready” breaths. If belting ever feels like hard work in your throat, that’s not belting — that’s straining, and it’s fixable.
It’s the secret behind good belting: the belt sounds big, but the singer (let’s imagine Christina) is not exerting herself, straining her throat, or using tons of air. If she was, her voice would soon hang up its coat and disappear.”
Don’t breathe too much… The chest-heaving breaths you take when you’re ‘getting ready’ are too much!
Belting = extreme version of speaking voice
Well, this will sound too simple to be true. The way there might not be simple, though: All good singers use an extreme version of their speaking voice (with some twang in it, as in a squeaky quality) on the high notes, and don’t try to “coat it” with extra air, or try to make it sound pretty.
They keep it raw, very speaky and almost ugly (actually inside one’s head it may very well sound ugly. If it happens to you - you are on the right track!). Then they also use their badass face.
THE BELT SELF-CHECK
“If it feels easy and sounds bad in your head, you get a thumbs up. If it feels like hard work and sounds great in your head, you’re probably pushing.
Belting sounds ugly in your own ears. You’re making a lot of noise very close to your own head, with a lot of twang, so of course it sounds terrible from the inside. Many of my students try a belt, say ‘that sounded like crap,’ and give up. But what actually came out was good.”
This is the short version — the full belting method is in my book Sing Anyway.
How good singers don’t belt:
- They don’t try to make a big sound
- They don’t push the sound out (Xtina says otherwise, but I don’t buy it).
- They don’t use extra air.
Here is how to get a good, chesty, belting sound, knock yourself out!
1. Belting exercise: Tarzan
0:30 in the above video. First things first. The chest cavity: that's a space in which you want to feel vibrations. Mostly in the upper chest. Start by tapping there with a flat hand, or bang on it with your fist. Make noises - no loud noises - but feel the boom box you have there. Now we'll do the exercise bam bam bam 1-2-3-2-1 while tapping. Did you feel some relaxation happening in your neck/jaw/shoulders? That would be great, as it will give you more access to this resonance.
Not sure? Look in the mirror and do what I call chin-to-chest: make sure that your chin is not pointing forward, which would result in a crooked neck. The chin should be pointing towards the chest - but not the whole head! Just the chin.
As you go up, at a certain point your voice will want to change to a softer quality. If that happens, and you want to keep the chest quality, tap your chest and make sure you SAY bam-bam-bam on the note.
After doing this exercise a few times, you can also put your hand on your upper chest and feel the vibrations. That's one way to make sure it's working.
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2. Belting exercise: Speaky / squeaky voice
5:22 in the above video. Whenever you want more chest voice, make sure your voice has the quality of the speaking voice. That helps close the vocal cords fully without tension, which gets you the chest voice quality.
Put your hand on the chest and just say 'Hi'. Make sure that you don't use too much air, don't try to exhale too much. Do the chin-to-chest also here, to get more access to the chest.
Now the exercise: hi hi hi, 1-3-1. Just speak and put it on the notes. INSIST on the speaking voice.
Why does the squeaky quality give you so much power for so little effort? Twang.
“When you make the twang sound, the epiglottis moves and makes the funnel narrower. Think of your airflow here like water moving through a garden hose. When the hose is open wide, the water spreads out and loses force. But when you narrow the opening, the water stream becomes stronger, faster, more efficient. More focus of the airflow equals more power to your sound.”
Kayla struggled with strain, high notes, and self-doubt before joining the program. I helped her shift her approach and build body awareness, and now she sings with more freedom, confidence, and control.
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Maybe you feel it's time to stop shushing your own voice and take your desire to sing seriously. My weekly 'Belting Mouse' mail shows you how. It gets you on track with stories and insights from my life as a singer and that of my students.
For 'little mice' who are tired of squeaking and want to start belting...
3. Belting exercise: The Taylor Swift exercise
10:34 in the above video. For belting / chest voice I like what Taylor Swift did in a video I saw on YouTube (below). My version is a bit simpler, so it's more accessible. We open our mouth and put on our badass face: dropped jaw and lifted cheeks. And we will say: aah aah aah. We're looking for a tiny aah aah aah. Put that small sound in a big space. The end result will probably be a big sound, but don't MAKE it a big sound.
Ah ah ah nya nya nyaa ah aah...
“Sing a phrase of a song, but instead of using the words, say ‘nya’ on each syllable. To do this, first make the ng sound, as in the end of the word ‘sing.’ And then add ‘ya.’ … The more annoyingly squeaky you are, the more effective the twang will be.”
Taylor Swift's warm-up below. It starts with the exercise we just discussed. Watch her badass face, and watch her release the muscles and jaw every single time. It's all really squeaky, and can get her to very high notes! I think that's super cool.
"
"Belting isn’t about shouting higher. It’s about letting your chest voice rise with confidence, not force.”
The challenge
Especially if you go higher, you have to keep reminding yourself to keep speaking on the notes. It might feel weird in the high register. We're not used to speaking on high pitches. But as long as your throat doesn't hurt, you're fine.
Tip as you go up: think about your sound being uglier and uglier. As we sing, we often try to make our sound pretty. We add air and muscle tension to it. Instead, imagine an ugly voice, which will help closing the vocal cords, and use less effort.
For the highest belt notes: the Compensation Policy
“While the melody goes up, think down. You can even move a hand or finger downwards as you sing. This tricks your brain out of lifting all those throat muscles in vain.”
The full high-notes method — space, twang, badass face and this trick — lives on my page about how to sing high notes.
One last safety net: belting takes your chest-voice quality up high, so it’s chest-dominant — but adding a touch of cry or head-voice “mix” keeps it safe and stops it becoming a pure yell. If you don’t know your mix yet, start with my mixed voice exercises.
Where in my practice session does this come in?
I always tell my students to follow a 4 part practice structure, to keep them motivated and on a clear path:
You can read more on the article: how to practice singing at home.
This video tutorial counts as the technique part, so the above part 3. So you need to warm up before.
“You will almost never need this level [lower abs] unless you’re singing opera or belting out extremely powerful passages.”
One more prerequisite: belting is one of the few things that genuinely demands breath support — the deep, low kind you rarely need elsewhere. The power comes from that support, never from blasting extra air.
You can do the tutorial then as your part 3 or in addition to working on your song. And don’t forget part 4 - singing through for the joy, that’s very important!
If belting is new for you - beware: this will feel very foreign in the beginning. The methods here are strange so you need to keep an open mind. Don’t stick to your comfort zone, or you will stick with your current abilities and never find better ones.
Enjoy belting! Or the other vocal exercises.
Silvia thought singing wasn’t for her, but through the program she gained proper technique, and confidence. Now she can stretch her range and belt songs she once thought were unreachable.
About the author
I’m Linor Oren, founder of SingWell. I have an opera background and in the past I've performed on stage. I've taught hundreds of students how to find their authentic voice. What I’ve learned is that singing isn’t about being “born with it” — it’s about unlocking what’s already inside you with the right tools and guidance. My passion is helping singers at every level grow in confidence, technique, and joy, so they can sing with freedom and expression.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Is belting bad for your voice?
Not at all, as long as you’re doing it the right way. Belting doesn’t mean yelling or forcing your voice. It’s about learning how to use your chest voice function safely and efficiently. When you find that balance, belting actually becomes easier and more sustainable for your voice.
How can I tell if I’m using my chest voice correctly?
You should feel vibrations in your upper chest, not tightness in your throat. Try placing your hand on your chest as you make a sound. If you feel it resonate there, you’re on the right track. Keep your jaw relaxed and make sure you’re not using extra air.
Why does my voice sound “ugly” when I try to belt?
That’s actually a good sign! Belting often sounds raw or strange in your own head because you’re using stronger vocal cord closure. Don’t worry about sounding pretty, focus on keeping it real, speaky, and relaxed. The “ugly” stage usually means your voice is getting stronger and more expressive.
How do I belt high notes without shouting?
Belting is an extreme version of your speaking voice plus twang and an open space (the “badass face”), not a louder push. Keep the sound small and focused inside a big, open space, add twang for power, and as the note climbs, think down instead of reaching up.
Do I belt in chest voice or mixed voice?
Belting takes your chest-voice quality up to high notes, so it’s chest-dominant. But adding a touch of cry or head-voice “mix” keeps it safe and stops it becoming a pure yell.