We want those things as well. Speaking just for myself, it’s what I’ve always wanted in one form or another, although my career as a writer isn’t the one I was preparing for as a Voice Major at New York City’s LaGuardia High School for Music and the Arts.

Of course, most fledgling singing careers don’t make it too far out of the nest. Mine crashed abruptly the day the grand and glorious Edith Del Valle, Chairman of the Vocal Department, ambushed me after Senior Chorus to say she was thinking I could have a career in music if I really wanted one. In fact, she said, with a rare and slightly terrifying smile, I might actually have the chops to be a studio backup singer. That was the moment my teenage brain, still light years away from a mature prefrontal cortex, regrettably swerved to “Backup? I guess I don’t have a very good voice after all.”

Note to any and all backup singers reading this: I fully get how ridiculous my teenage self was.

And the truth is, singing backup is what I’ve done for almost my entire career. On the page, not on the stage, but it’s been a wonderful run. Because there’s always deep satisfaction to be had in supporting a great endeavor. At The Pensery, we’re here to support your brand—the star—in a way that allows you to be as great as you know you are, and to become as great as you’re capable of being.

One of the ways we do that is through copy that sings. Not just for splashy campaigns, high-profile launches and ta-da rebranding, but for the workhorse support materials as well. Even when the tone is intentionally deliberate and understated. Even when the copy’s principal role is to convey information.The words need to flow in a clear, well-modulated, distinctive voice so the perpetually distracted audience will pause to attention. Let’s call it what it is—a performance. We do, and we give it the attention it deserves.

If logos are created to be S.M.A.R.T. (see April 2021), a brand voice should feel alive, created with the same tools as a vocal performance: Breath. Support. Context. Tone. And a deep respect for and connection with the audience.

Breath

Your yoga (and voice) teacher was right: everything rides on the breath. At The Pensery we bs-test copy by reading it out loud, whether it’s an ad campaign, website or brand guidelines. It needs to feel unforced and alive; not a canned speech or stiff presentation but a conversation with someone you feel disposed to like and trust. It needs to sound rhythmic when you hear it in your head, encouraging you to keep on reading.

Visually, the copy needs to breathe on the page. That vaunted “white space” creatives talk about? It’s both a pause for effect and breathing room for the eyes and mind. Readers relax right into it. And a relaxed reader is a happy reader.

Support

For a singer, support comes from the diaphragm and core: a musculature that’s developed over time. The muscle in good copy—what gives it presence and strength—comes from a deep understanding of your brand’s personality and the core elements that need to be conveyed. That’s why we take the time at the beginning of each project to map out strategy, messaging and specific copy points.

Context

Who are the players in your market, and where does your brand sit amongst them? Who are you when you’re being completely true to yourself? Who are you to your audience? And what are their expectations? If you’re not completely sure about one or more answers, let’s think it through or find it out so we both place you in context and set you apart from it. Your voice should be in sync with your environment yet true to your identity; wholly appropriate yet easily distinguished from the crowd.

Tone and audience

One of the first questions we ask our clients is “Who are we speaking to—really?” The reason we do it is that the answer isn’t always immediately obvious, or might in fact bear some challenging, broadening or refining. For us to keep our tone pitched just right, and for you to reap the rewards, we need to know on whose ears it will fall. Ultimately, like all the best conversations and performances as well, finding the right tone that connects with the audience is an exercise in empathy, awareness and respect. It’s where everything starts for us, and a good place to wrap up.

But before you go: if you haven’t yet seen it, check out 20 Feet from Stardom, starring some of the greatest backup singers of all time including Darlene Love and Merry Clayton. As Lisa Fisher says in the film, “I reject the notion that the job you excel at is somehow not enough to aspire to, that there has to be something more. … Some people will do anything to be famous. I just wanted to sing.”

Same, girl. Same.