If you want to learn how to record a singing video for YouTube then you´ve come to the right place!
How to be a YouTube singer depends on how willing you are to put in the time to craft a good quality video, whether that means a 4k video with professional lighting set up or a homemade clip that has really good sound it doesn´t matter as long as it is engaging to listen to and watch.
Now, how do you that? Let´s see!
1. Perfect Video Shooting
The very first step you need to take in order to record a singing video for YouTube is to get a better understanding of some video basic concepts and strategies.
If you look at some of the most successful music YouTube videos done by people like you then you´ll start finding some patterns you can (easily) replicate on your own work.
For example, there are two kinds of cover videos on YouTube, people usually shoot themselves singing along in a kinda low-budget and “raw” style, although there´s more to it than what´s shown, or they make a really high-quality production to make their videos really stand out.
So, the first thing you want to do is to choose one of these strategies, most people will go for the first one and it´s (actually) a great place to start because you´ll learn a ton in the process and it won´t take as much time and/or money to get started with.
Now, here are a few tips and tricks you want to apply to make your “low-budget” video look like a million bucks:
- Pro Camera Use. First, learn where to place your camera, it should be at eye-level, with you in the middle of the frame and make sure to have enough light to shoot with. Also, recording at 1080p is a MUST, most phones can do that without a problem. You can use (almost) anything as a tripod, and make sure to NOT look directly into the lens too much, it´s not necessary and it can, sometimes, be awkward.
- Sync Audio In Post. You should always try to record your singing separately from your video so that you are able to focus on each thing to give your best. Then, syncing your audio with an editing software takes just a few clicks as pretty much any type of software will have the corresponding feature. Also, getting rid of noise and maybe learning how to adjust a couple of things in post-production would be a good idea, but more on that later.
- Better Edit By Doing. Now, this applies not only to editing raw footage in post-production but also recording your best performance on camera and learning how to capture and edit great-sounding audio. So, don´t expect to be good at first, learn to edit better videos by doing it over and over again, you´ll find there are plenty of ways to make your content stand out, whether that means color correcting your footage, color grading it, shooting from a different angle or with a different lens, as I said… plenty of ways. 😉
On the other hand, if you want to make a high-quality music video then consider the 180-degree rule as a good way to start.
I have helped singers on YouTube to record their videos before and I´ve used the 180-degree rule to film them while they were playing.
It works like this:
You record ONE side of the subject, you can move and pan slowly however you want, as long as you stay on the same side, the 180 degrees on the right or the left, whichever you happen to be filming.
And if you want to start filming on the other side of the subject you should have, at least, one continuous camera movement that goes from one side to the other.
I´ve learned that from Parker Walbeck, a very professional filmmaker you can also learn a ton from:
2. Singing Recording Tips
The other important aspect of making a great YouTube video of you singing your favorite songs is learning how to properly record vocals.
So, for that matter, here are some tips for a great singing recording session:
- Prepare Yourself. You can actually hear the difference between someone who´s tired, unfocused, or simply unprepared for the recording session. Make sure to warm up a little up, take it seriously, drink a cup of tea with some honey if you think it can help, put yourself into the right mood and start recording ONLY when you feel prepared.
- DIY Portable Vocal Booth. You can customize your entire room/studio by using cheap foams and soundproofing curtains or you can simply create a small but effective vocal booth yourself that you can carry with you and use anywhere you want. Check it out:
- Sweet Spot Mic Distance. The distance you put between you and the mic depends on the characteristics of the mic itself, so learn more about it online if you need to and start testing it out by making various recording clips. Find your sweet spot by trying to find how far or close you want to be in order to capture the best sound possible depending on what you want to accomplish with your singing.
- Post-Production Basics. You HAVE TO take the time to learn how to “noise reduce” your audio clips and practice equalization, compression, normalization, and other different uses and strategies to make your singing sound the exact way you want it when you get to the post-production phase. Now, most software can do the same kinds of things so you won´t have a problem whether you use something like Audacity (which is free) or a more professional option like Audition by Adobe.
- Mic investing. Finally, invest in a mic, you can start with your phone´s headphones but it might not work, especially nowadays when there´s more competition than ever on YouTube.
3. YouTube SEO Basics
When it comes to YouTube singing recording you have two options.
You either are going to shoot a video about a song that you´ve written yourself or you are going to cover another artist song, but…
…there are a few common little-known rules between both you MUST learn before you start.
For example, on YouTube, you can be found through search, which is really hard unless you are already a well-established channel with lots of subscribers and you make really original videos or you can appear as a suggested video on people´s feeds.
Now, in order to do that, you have to get some views and subs right from the get-go as it is a way YouTube´s algorithm will promote your videos that much more.
And you can get those views and sub by uploading native video clips on social media.
Here´s how it works:
It´s been proven that native content, which is video clips that are being uploaded directly to Facebook, Twitter, or whatever other platforms you wish to be featured on, get promoted a lot more than videos that you link to.
In fact.
According to Quintly, a social media analytics provider, native videos on Facebook get shared 10x more than YouTube videos. (source)
“Facebook native videos received a 1055.41% higher average share rate than Youtube videos” – Quintly Team.
Which is crazy, and something that can´t be ignored if you want to grow on YouTube through social media promotion.
It´s simple, Facebook wants you to stay on Facebook, and dues do too the other social media platforms, that´s why native video works so well.
So, take advantage of this information for your next video!
CTR Hacks You Can Benefit From!
In case you didn´t know, CTR (Click-Through Rate) is a big thing on YouTube.
It refers to the percentage of people that clicks on your videos whenever they show up on a search, their homepage, or as a suggested video.
The goal is simple, you want to get as many clicks as possible!
That will tell YouTube your video is good, if it makes people want to click it must have something to offer to them, therefore it should be promoted by the algorithm, as simple as that.
Now, how can you improve CTR in order to grow your channel?
The Triple T Formula!
This formula consists of a simple 3-step process where you optimize your thumbnails, titles, and tags in a particular way.
If you work on your thumbnails, titles, and tags in that particular order you´ll be able to “manipulate” the algorithm to further promote your videos.
Here´s how it works:
- Eye-Grabbing Thumbnails. Your thumbnail comes first, as it happens, people (more often than not) don´t even read the title, but they´ll, for sure, check out your thumbnail, even for a second, and that can make them want to click or just scrolling. That´s why working on your thumbnails is the first thing you have to do once you´ve finished your video. Here are a few things you can do: use non-YouTube colors, meaning avoiding black, white, and red for any part of your thumbnail design, try to take advantage of the depth of field your camera can capture when you take a picture of yourself, human faces get more clicks, and last, use a fewer words as possible and choose a readable font. It can be something as simple as this:
- Enticing-Titles. Your main keywords (the name of the song) should be first, your name or any other words should be second. Plus, enticing the audience with a between brackets phrase like “top 10 performances”, “reggae version”, “ukulele cover”, or things of that sort can work on your favor it´ll make people curious about your video.
- Common-Sense Tags. Last but not least, work on making your tags sensable. That means you shouldn´t confuse YouTube by using 50 different tags so that your video gets in front of every possible human being, it doesn´t work that way. The more concise you are, the less and more directed your tags the higher you´ll rank for that precise keyword. Use between 7 and 15 tags, that´s what I do. The same keyword that goes on your title comes first, the song´s name plus cover, or “ed sheeran cover”, then a few more keywords that are related to it, and finally a more general, broader tag like “song cover”.
4. Effective Video Editing
The fourth step you MUST take to record a singing video for YouTube is applying effective video editing techniques.
This doesn´t mean that you need to learn how to create cinematic footage and have the best lens possible to capture really neat scenes that make your subject look great.
It just means that you have to do a few specific things right enough and you´ll get a professional video as a result.
Let me tell you how:
- Add LUTs. Using the right LUT can be one of the best things you could do to improve the way your videos look when it comes to editing your content in post-production. What this does is, basically, beautify how your video looks like giving it a certain look, a particular style, depending on the LUT you use. If you want to add that “extra” layer of style and creativity to your singing videos then consider using one.
- Creative Camera Movements. Using some camera movements to help the viewer hold their attention right until the end is one of the most effective ways YouTubers are able to increase their watch time and therefore make YouTube further promote their videos. Zooming and panning are some of the most simple ways you can create some simple movement when editing your videos in post. You can also ask help from a friend if you want to make your shots look a certain way or you want the camera to move around you while you are singing.
- Simple Works Best. Whether you are going to cover a popular song or want to film yourself singing one of your own creations trying to simplify things tends to work best. Shooting a video of yourself signing at home makes it real and authentic, relatable, which is important. That being said, this doesn´t mean you shouldn´t work on your background, making the room where you are going to film presentable is key, as well as using the best camera you can and making sure you are shooting with proper lighting.
Leroy Sanchez used to do (mostly) homemade videos that he uploaded to YouTube when he got first started with his channel a few years back.
The truth is that how your video sounds is what really matters, not that much your video quality and/or production.
That being said, working a bit more on your footage can be an added value you provide to your audience in order to distinguish yourself from other artists.
People want to be entertained when they click on a music video, and that doesn´t only apply to the music itself.
5. Cover Songs On YouTube
How to shoot a cover song video on YouTube is one of the most popular search phrases on the platform as it is a great strategy to get discovered as an artist and (even) make a quick buck or two in the process.
Now, there´s a wrong and a right way to do it as cover songs have to deal with copyright issues and can turn in such a headache if you don´t know what you are doing.
Therefore, getting a better understanding of copyright laws for music and what does fair use mean for each situation would be a good idea.
Youtube cover recording implies that you already know you are using other people´s material or art and turning it into something new, and as a result, you are entirely responsible for the creative work you make with it.
Now, to learn more about this I would suggest you check out this:
That being said, you should also read more about fair use laws on YouTube as it is a great way to get to know more about how you can monetize a channel that only makes covers about other people´s songs.
The bottom line?
You CAN earn money by doing covers on YouTube, it will only cost you a fair percentage of your earnings, which will go to the artist and/or record label that owns the rights for that particular song.
Now It´s Your Turn!
Now that you know how to get started with your YouTube singing video I want you to start taking some action.
People panic when they realize how many other great singers are out there, but what they don´t think about is that everybody is different and you can (easily) stand out if you are able to use that, your uniqueness.
I hope this information has helped you, if you have any questions feel free to leave a comment, I´ll respond as soon as I can.
Have a nice one!
Matt Porta.