As a voiceover artist, your voice is your tool, a very powerful tool that must be well taken care of. It’s not all kinds of food or drink you should take into your body system as the voice is fragile and can be easily injured. We will be looking at things you should eat and drink, and vice versa.
- Water
Your Favourite Drink as a VoiceOver Artist should be water, staying hydrated is huge so drink lots and lots of room-temperature water it keeps your throat and vocal cords in tip-top shape. Avoid ice water if you can.
- Apple juice
A glass with half apple juice and half water will keep you hydrated throughout a long voiceover. If apple drink isn’t your thing, eat a raw green apple or drink some fresh veggie juice instead.
- Warm Herbal Tea
While Caffeine does nothing good for your voice, decaf tea is wonderful for it. Herbal teas that are naturally decaffeinated work like Sauna in your throat to get your vocal cords comfortable and warm. Add a little honey and your voice will thank you.
- Chicken
Protein is critical for a voiceover artist. It fills us up and gives us the energy we need for a long time. Chicken is lean protein. It will fill you up, burn longer, and keep your vocal cords from being overwhelmed with fat and oils.
- Fish
Just like chicken, fish is a lean source of protein. Baking or broiling fish in the oven allows you to use less oil than frying, and while it’s cooking you’ll have time to get some fresh veggies ready on the side.
- Nuts
Nuts are a great snack for singers to have on hand at shows. Opt for unsalted or lightly salted options, if possible. And be sure to wash them down with a swig of room temperature water to keep the salt from drying out your throat.
- Peanut butter
A good, old fashioned PB ‘n’ J (with a banana!) is a great breakfast or lunch meal on show days. Go for natural peanut butter or anything with less sugar and salt than conventional. The protein will help you stay full, and a little bit of sugar from the jam and carbs from the bread will give you the energy to get through a long performance
This are a list of what is healthy and not healthy for your voice, now let’s look at the Don’ts.
- Milk
As a Voice Artist drinking Milk Increases Mucus in the back of your nose and throat so avoid it or go easy.
- Ice Cream.
Eating Ice Cream can also make your vocal cords feel funky because of the high lactose and sugar. If you’re dying for some sugar take some candies.
- Bacon
Sorry to Bacon lovers out there but bacon isn’t good for your voice. Its high salt content is too drying. If you’re dying for Bacon lower the salt varieties.
- Citrus fruits
There is nothing as refreshing as a fresh orange however citrus fruits are very drying and they can get you dehydrated very quickly.
- Alcohol
Maybe you think you sound better after alcohol but chances are you don’t. Not only is alcohol drying but if you drink too much of it, you can lose control of your vocal cords.
- Spicy foods
Can you say heartburn? You may be used to eating spicy food in your daily life, but do your voice a flavour and put it aside in the hours before your show.
- Soda
A double whammy soda is not only full of sugar (and sugar substitutes), but it’s also carbonated, a.k.a. bubblified! This can cause burping at inopportune times. Trust me, you don’t want to belch in front of a microphone. It’s not fun.
- Fried foods
Anything that has been deep-fried or prepared in a lot of oil tends to gunk up your vocal cords with too much fat. Fried food is also another heartburn trigger — you don’t want indigestion right before a voiceover performance.
- Butter
Like fried food, butter is oily and tends to grease up your throat. It’s also a dairy product, so it can cause a thickening of the mucus that’s already present in your throat.
- Chocolate
Chocolate is a triple threat. It naturally contains caffeine, which will dry you out and constrict the muscles around your vocal cords. It’s also an acid reflux trigger. And, chocolate usually contains a lot of sugar. Pass on this guy till after the show.
When you avoid some of these things, you stand a chance of being the best voiceover artist among your contemporaries. Remember the difference between Ordinary and Extraordinary is the “EXTRA”.
