On American Idol last night Chaka Khan looks great with her weight loss, but sounded bad all flat on "Im Every Woman", what is up with that?

She's trying not to upstage the Idols

For one thing, Chaka is notorious for not showing up for rehearsals and sound checks. Yeah, I have to admit, she looked incredible but the vocal performance was lacking.

Didn't Chaka have nodules at one point? Maybe it had an affect on her voice? Plus she was a drug user for a long time..

Terrib3Towel said:

Didn't Chaka have nodules at one point? Maybe it had an affect on her voice? Plus she was a drug user for a long time..

Not sure and yes. Saw her in March and she was on it.

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

Terrib3Towel said:

Didn't Chaka have nodules at one point? Maybe it had an affect on her voice? Plus she was a drug user for a long time..

Not sure and yes. Saw her in March and she was on it.

I heard her sing last year and her voice sounded incredible live. No false notes at that performance.

Terrib3Towel said:

Didn't Chaka have nodules at one point? Maybe it had an affect on her voice? Plus she was a drug user for a long time..

She had nodules on her vocal chords in the 80s. And her drug usage was heaviest in the 70's and 80s. Vocally, the 90's was her best decade. And I'm getting too many reports of her sounding better in concert lately than she has in years. Again, it all boils down to rehearsals and her being on top of her game. I've personally seen some awful performances from her over the past few years but, at the same time, I've seen many flawless live TV performances from her over the past few years. Since day one, Chaka has always been unpredictable and extremely fickle as a live performer.

Another thing about Chaka, as she has gotten older, she sounds best when she gives a very controlled performance. The problem is when she ends up screaming, she often sounds flat and off-key. She cant do the same vocal acrobats she performed when she was younger without sounding all over the place. But, she knows that's what people react to. That's what people want to hear from her, the screaming. Personally, I don't need to hear that from her anymore because I know her controlled performances are just as strong as her more aggressive performances used to be.

I remember being horrified during that tribute on the BET Awards a few years ago with Prince and Stevie Wonder. She was doing so much off-key, flat screaming. She sounded awful. But, a year or two later, when she was making the TV talk show rounds promoting "Funk This", all of her performances were controlled and they were pure perfection! There was one particular performance that she did in '07 on Late Night With David Letterman and she performed "Do You Love Me" that was heavenly!!!!

I don't mind the flat vocals. I just love her voice.

I don't like listening to her live. She always sounds like a bleating goat.

Terrib3Towel said:

Didn't Chaka have nodules at one point? Maybe it had an affect on her voice? Plus she was a drug user for a long time..

That should only effect her tone, not her pitch.

Pitch problems are more likely either the vocalist being lazy with their control, or they haven't got a monitor that works for them - aka they can't hear themselves, or the instruments they're pitching against properly (usually the guitar or keyboard).

nd33 said:

Terrib3Towel said:

Didn't Chaka have nodules at one point? Maybe it had an affect on her voice? Plus she was a drug user for a long time..

That should only effect her tone, not her pitch.

Pitch problems are more likely either the vocalist being lazy with their control, or they haven't got a monitor that works for them - aka they can't hear themselves, or the instruments they're pitching against properly (usually the guitar or keyboard).

You are absolutely correct! When the monitors are not at the proper level, especially for the front person/lead vocalist, you may sing flat! Also, a singer should have time to warm up their vocal chords as well

Awwww, I have seen her live twice, and I thought she sounded great! I work with the Hollywood Bowl and she is coming here this summer (http://hbowl.com/OpeningNight2012) so I will get to see her for the 2nd time at this venue - if you've never been to a Hollywood Bowl show, Chaka or otherwise, I highly recommend! Yes, I am biased, but lots of good rock, jazz, blues, and classical here this summer....

madhattter said:

nd33 said:

That should only effect her tone, not her pitch.

Pitch problems are more likely either the vocalist being lazy with their control, or they haven't got a monitor that works for them - aka they can't hear themselves, or the instruments they're pitching against properly (usually the guitar or keyboard).

You are absolutely correct! When the monitors are not at the proper level, especially for the front person/lead vocalist, you may sing flat! Also, a singer should have time to warm up their vocal chords as well

This is very well the case so often with Chaka. Many times she's being apathetic or she's just not prepared. Anyone who has followed her knows she is notorious for not showing up for rehearsals. Chaka's live performances are really like a crap shoot. You just never know what's going to happen. Here's a performance from a few days ago. This proves that when she is prepared and has control over her voice, she can still command the stage.

^^

These recent CK performances people have been posting on YouTube are jaw-dropping. If ever there was evidence of God's existence, it's the return of THE VOICE.

The run she does here @ 5:36... I know she did it on the record in 1984. But 28 years later after all her voice has been through...

yanowha said:

^^

These recent CK performances people have been posting on YouTube are jaw-dropping. If ever there was evidence of God's existence, it's the return of THE VOICE.

The run she does here @ 5:36... I know she did it on the record in 1984. But 28 years later after all her voice has been through...

that's cruel of her to make those girls wear those outfits just to accentuate her own weight loss

errant said:

yanowha said:

^^

These recent CK performances people have been posting on YouTube are jaw-dropping. If ever there was evidence of God's existence, it's the return of THE VOICE.

The run she does here @ 5:36... I know she did it on the record in 1984. But 28 years later after all her voice has been through...

that's cruel of her to make those girls wear those outfits just to accentuate her own weight loss

The one in the middle is Will Downing's wife, Audrey Wheeler. She probably should have covered up a bit more.

i remember when chaka when on toyr with patti labelle and she kick patti ass almost from half the tour and everybody in the industry and on the streets were talking about it for days.

jackson35 said:

i remember when chaka when on toyr with patti labelle and she kick patti ass almost from half the tour and everybody in the industry and on the streets were talking about it for days.

Say...what?

Gotta love Chaka's new style She has that "nouveau weight loss" mentality

check out the slit in this damn dress!

[img:$uid]http://cdn.concreteloop.com/wp-content/uploads/144998329_10.jpg[/img:$uid]

[img:$uid]http://cdn.concreteloop.com/wp-content/uploads/144983792_10.jpg[/img:$uid]

kitbradley said:

Another thing about Chaka, as she has gotten older, she sounds best when she gives a very controlled performance. The problem is when she ends up screaming, she often sounds flat and off-key. She cant do the same vocal acrobats she performed when she was younger without sounding all over the place. But, she knows that's what people react to. That's what people want to hear from her, the screaming. Personally, I don't need to hear that from her anymore because I know her controlled performances are just as strong as her more aggressive performances used to be.

I remember being horrified during that tribute on the BET Awards a few years ago with Prince and Stevie Wonder. She was doing so much off-key, flat screaming. She sounded awful. But, a year or two later, when she was making the TV talk show rounds promoting "Funk This", all of her performances were controlled and they were pure perfection! There was one particular performance that she did in '07 on Late Night With David Letterman and she performed "Do You Love Me" that was heavenly!!!!

agreed its all that! she does fine controlled when she goes off....she needs to go off the damn stage! it sounds reallly bad! i mean bad, i watch it and go NO NO not that note!!

Shard said:

Gotta love Chaka's new style She has that "nouveau weight loss" mentality

check out the slit in this damn dress!

[img:$uid]http://cdn.concreteloop.com/wp-content/uploads/144998329_10.jpg[/img:$uid]

[img:$uid]http://cdn.concreteloop.com/wp-content/uploads/144983792_10.jpg[/img:$uid]

I think she looks absolutely ravishing and that fiery dress is da BOMB! Sexy lady!