How To Make Vocals Like Post Malone (Video tutorial)

How are we doing everybody? It's Aaron again from R-Loops & TheDrumBank. Today we are going to learn how to make vocals like Post Malone (and other pitch corrected artists) for absolutely free!

First things first, you will want to download a Plugin called G-Snap. It's free & easy to use pitch correction software that I still use on many of my vocal tracks today.

Once you have this installed and you have updated your DAW, we are now ready to begin our vocal editing.

Now I am no singer in any way, shape or form. Just take a listen to this clip without any effects. Horrible right? But when we add the effects it sounds like a completely different person.

Here's what I did:
First & foremost, we need to record your vocals. Don't try to hard to sing. Just go with whatever comes to you and let our editing do the rest. Most of the time, I just harmonize my vocals with flow & soft tone that sounds good on the song.

Then, duplicate your track 2 times so you have a total of 3 tracks. Pan the 1st track to the right, the 2nd track to the left and leave the 3rd track in the center. I would pan the first 2 tracks hard but don't put them at the same exact width. Group these 3 tracks together.

Next, you will want to turn the volume of the third track VERY low compared to your first tracks. This is because we are going to add a compressor and SLAM the SH*T out of it! This will give your underlying vocal a very aggressive drive, making the vocals sound more full in the mix. To do this, drag a simple compressor on the 3rd vocal track, turn the Ratio all the way up while the Attack & Release are all the way down. Now move your Threshold until your Gain Reduction reaches about the midway point. Your vocal should sound a little distorted, this is perfect! Adjust the volume to fit well within the other 2 panned vocals.

Now its time to add effects to the entire vocal. Select the Vocal Group you have created containing all 3 vocals.

The first effect to add is GSnap. Drag GSnap on your Vocal Group and enter the settings below.

GSnap Autotune Settings:

• Key & Scale: The key & scale of your song
• Min Freq: 40Hz
• Max Freq: 2000Hz
• Gate: -80
• Speed: 1
• Snap To Selected Notes: Yes
• Threshold: 320
• Amount: 100%
• Attack: 1ms
• Release: 1ms
• Pitch Bend: 0 cents
• Vibrato: 0 cents
• Vib Speed: 0.1
• Calibrate: 440

Next, you will want to add some EQ. This will just be a quick EQ to decrease low-end frequencies we do not want and increase the mid/highs to increase clarity and brightness.

Then we will add a quick compressor. Again, it doesn't have to be anything crazy, just enough to kind of pull the vocals back together.

Next, we will jump into the reverb. To me, this is one of the more important aspects of getting that New School vocal sound. The vocals have a ton of reverb to add space and width. You can add different reverbs to your first initial tracks (panned left and right) to give a better feel but we will keep it easy. Add Reverb to your Vocal Group. I typically add between 2-2.5 seconds. I decrease the density to 40% and the Dry/Wet from 25% - 35%.

Lastly, we will add a Delay. I used a simple delay to give the vocals a little bounce back forth between the left and right channels. I also made it not so heavy that it overpowers the vocals it echoes over but still loud enough to add value to the track.

And there you have it, a quick, easy & FREE way to get vocals similar to Post Malone & other new school artists. You can also adjust these settings however you see fit, this video was specifically to get you started and on your way. I hope you enjoy these tips!

Keep creating and we will see you next time!