My singing career started at the age of 11. I landed a gig with a really cool vocal group called The Choralaires at South Hills Acadamy Private Christian School where I sang soprano. I could sing high notes easily with excellent tone and intonation in falsetto which is pretty much why I landed the part. Vocal range in falsetto wasn’t an issue for me. And although I could barely sing above a D4 in full voice, it didn’t matter because all of my parts were in falsetto. The Choralaires played all over southern California and many times on the television show Church In the Home. When I was 12 I recorded a record album with The Choralaires released on Cornerstone Records. At age 13 I started taking guitar lessons and formed my first band, Love’s Perfection, with local neighborhood friends. Our first paid gig was at a Taco Bell where we got free food in exchange for performing in front of the restaurant.
After high school I still performed with local musicians, singing and playing guitar while going to college at California State Polytechnich University, Pomona, CA where I graduated with a Bachelor of science degree in engineering and a minor in music. I played bass and acoustic guitar for a really good group called The Overtones at First Baptist Church, Pomona. Sold out Christmas shows with the Overtones drew audiences of around 10,000 people!
At age 22 I formed a band called US101, named after the highway that goes up the California coast. We performed covers of popular surf music by groups like the Beach Boys. There were lots of vocals and I picked the members based on their ability to sing really good harmonies. I auditioned a 15 year old drummer named Tom Bass aka Tommy Lee (who later became the drummer for Motley Crue) and gave him the spot. Within a few months of Lee joining my band, US101 evolved into a popular local rock band playing covers and some really good originals. I played about a hundred gigs with Tommy Lee.
I wanted to front the band as a singer so I began taking voice lessons with Martin Greene, a choral instructor at Citrus College in Glendora, CA. My primary focus was learning how to sing high notes in full voice. I also took lessons with Los Angeles vocal coach Roger Love. Roger has a great voice and it intrigued me how he could hit really high notes in full voice so easily. I also took some lessons with Roger’s vocal coach, Seth Riggs. These were likely two of the best vocal coaches in the world at the time, but even after training with them I still had questions. I became determined to figure out exactly how singers can comfortably produce high notes in full voice (not falsetto), initially so I could do it better myself and also so I could share that knowledge with others.
I began researching vocal physiology and with God’s help had the epiphany of a lifetime when I deduced how high notes are produced by the vocal folds. Armed with this knowledge, solid guitar and music production chops, voice lessons, tons of live performance experience and my college degree with an emphasis on science and music theory made me a perfect candidate for being a vocal coach, so I ditched my engineering career to become a vocal coach full time.
Since making that discovery I’ve trained more than 4,000 singers how to sing a HIGH C without straining. My book, Can You Sing a HIGH C Without Straining? was the first book in publishing history that explains how high notes are produced by the vocal folds (cords) and why anyone with a healthy voice can extend the range of their full voice comfortably and safely. I also developed exercises for learning how to sing with vibrato, breath and tone control. Singers have flown from around the world to train with me and I thank God daily for the wisdom He’s given me to be able to teach so effectively.
This is the short version of how my vocal coaching career began. The long version is a super good story and you can watch me tell it by clicking here.
I wrote a kid’s book based on my experience titled Johnny Truth and the Stolen Statue which you can watch by clicking here.