Cover Lover - Match #2
Jan 11th, 2008 by Derrick Fung
Due to overwhelming response from Cover Lover Match #1, a cover of John Mayer’s Heart of Life, I’m going to post more of this special ‘competition’. Many of you left some great remarks about the two performers - both good and bad. From the looks of it, I think Contestant #1 wins the contest, though many considered it a tie. Just like last time, please rate the following two videos on the following:
- Technical Ability: Did they play all the right notes, and were they on key?
- Star Potential: Can you see them actually making it big?
- Quality of their recording: Was it rushed, or did they put time into it?
- Replication of the Song: How close is it to the original?
Post what you think, and maybe I’ll send you access to our sheet music library 
If I’m in a good mood (hint hint).
You all know this song, so leave your comments on who you think did a better job, and get some sheet music!
Original: Lauryn Hill - Killing Me Softly
Contestant 1: jstizzel03 on YouTube
Contestant 2: whitneyraenan on YouTube
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In my opinion, Contestant #1 takes the prize. Both versions were technically good, and seemed to follow the original song pretty well. But Contestant #2’s voice isn’t cut out for a song like this… it’s just too pretty and sweet. Contestant #1 did a good job of replicating the roughness of Lauryn’s voice in the original song. She also seemed to have taken more time in actually preparing and filming, seeing as she had an intro and had done some amount of video editing. They both have a certain degree of star quality, but Contestant #1’s version was just a lot better.
both renditions are great. #1 had an instrumental background, and was able to keep in time and key pretty good for the most part. #2 had only a drum track to listen to. she kept in key with herself, with the exception of a few moments like around the 1 minute mark. You can tell that both were very familiar with the original (or should I say, the Lauryn Hill cover) as they both adapted a lot of the feeling from it, while trying to make it their own. In the end, I’ve gotta say that #1 takes the prize. The song and style suits her voice characteristics more than #2’s.
I have to give it to contestant #1 as well, but… grudgingly. The poppy licks are cool, but she over uses them and when she slides on the first note of the breakdown… the vocal director in my felt like my nails were being scraped on a chalkboard. The girl is clearly very talented, had a really nice tone, I just would love to hear her not use all those licks as a crutch… As for contestant #2, also talented, but used that scratchy voice scrape before every line and I found it very hard to listen to the entire song. That song is a woman’s song, not a teeny bopper school girl’s. I feel like the girl probably made herself seem younger than she is, and I respect her voice, just not any of the choices she made with that song. Sorry!
I think that Contestant 1 wins in this showdown. Both contestants did an okay job techically, but there were a few times when Contestant 2 seemed a little off. As for star potential, I really can’t be a judge, but to me contestant one had a more pleasant-sounding voice. Contestant 1’s recording was much better quality, with the instrumental background and it also sounded like she used a better microphone, whereas Contestant 2’s drum-beat wasn’t too wonderful and her voice, whether due to her actual skills or due to a poor micophone, didn’t come across very well. Lastly, I believe that Contestant 1 did a better job of replicating the song. Though both contestants may have been singing the same melody, contestant 1 did a much better job executing it. Therefore, I think that contestant 1 takes the gold medal in this pair-up.
Both girls had beautiful voices, but I liked contestant number two better. Even without an instrumental background, I thought she was better in tune than contestant number 1. I thought that Contestant 1 had a little bit too much nasality in her voice, and if she could open up her nasal passage she would have much more resonance in her voice, leading to more volume and better tuning. I don’t really think either of the girls stayed true to the song- Lauryn Hill never made it that poppy. On the other hand, it’s cool to put your own spin on things. Great job to both singers!
Both girls sounded good, but for me, Contestant #1 was a lot better. She was on key the entire time, possibly one of the most important things about singing, and her voice is round and full. She put emotion into the song and made it her own. Contestant #2 was off-key during a LOT of the riffs, although that may be because she only had a drum track to listen to. Also, I feel like #2’s voice is best suited to doing more upbeat pop songs than this R&B/Soul genre.
I actually listened to Contestant #2 first, and I was like wow this is pretty good, definitely a sweet girly voice and good potential. Then I clicked on Contestant #1.
Contestant #2 had a really sweet voice, she is more of a Taylor Swift “he’s the reason for the teardrops on my guitar” sound. Contestant #1 had a really full and rounded voice and I felt like I was watching a recording.
I feel like Contestant #1 had more of a womanly voice and Contestant #2 had more of a girly voice.
Technical Ability:
Contestant 1: I thought she kept pretty in tune, she had some really nice voice mechanisms good vibrato and kept in key. She had a lot of emotion that reflected in the quality of her song, but as aforementioned in other posts she had a better cover of the song that was an actual instrumental.
Contestant 2: I thought she was also in tune, her voice seems like it’s originally high-ish, but at times she definitely had her slips and she wasn’t as ‘relaxed’ and full as Contestant 1. She just had a drum for the beat so she did a good job with what she had. Maybe she could have considered going acapella since the cover didn’t enhance the song too much.
Star Potential:
Contestant 1: I think she has an amazing voice and if she gets a voice coach she can throw in a lot of great voice mechanisms like Christina Aguilera because she definitely has the potential and voice to do it.
Contestant 2: I think she has something to work with definitely but she should get a voice coach and develop the fullness of her voice and some emotion. I think her voice is more recreational than it actually is making it big. She’s kind of like how there are artists and it’s not that they don’t have potential, but they’re more of the ‘edited’, fun songs like cascada has a great voice but mainly the beats make it really great, something like that.
Quality of their recording:
Contestant 1: I thought she took her time by speaking before recording, she wasn’t too fast but wasn’t too slow. I think she gave enough time for us to appreciate the beauty while following the appropriate speed for the cover.
Contestant 2: I thought she might have rushed just A BIT because her cover wasn’t as good and it was just drums so it’s hard to tell if it was rushed or not.
Replication of the Song:
I feel Contestant 1’s replication was closer to Lauryn Hill’s voice. Lauryn has a low-ish voice and Contestant 1 had a lower voice.
All in all, both contestants are really great singers and should continue to develop from the level they are currently at.
I think that Contestant #1 should win this contest because she had a nice rounded voice that was similar in tone with the original song. Contestant #2 was a bit hard to listen to because her voice wasn’t suitable for a song like this. You’re voice had to have a lot of soul and emotion in it and hers didn’t really have it. I think that since #1 had the actual song, she did pretty well with the tune, although she should tone the vibrato a bit because overdoing it makes people cringe a bit. Since #2 only had the drum track, she was a bit off tune some of the times. Her voice slips into different notes a little. As for making it big, I think that #1 has great potential because her voice sounds really nice and full of emotion. #2 also has potential in making it big, she sings well, but she still needs some more work with keeping in tune and smoothing out the tone of her voice. She’ll probably do better with something more upbeat.
Contestant 1
Technical Ability: She was always in tune & it really helped and sounded better with an actual instrumental recording instead of that weird drum beat track.
Star Potential: Somewhat, but not a big name. Maybe known to about a million people, which is a lot, but maybe not enough.
Quality of their recording & Replication of the Song: She definitely put time into this song. She knew it very well; enough to put her own twists and make it original for her, but she didn’t stray from from recognization of the song.
Overall: A bit too popish for me and swoops, but very nice. She has a full and well developed sounding voice.
Contestant 2
Technical Ability: Well, it sounded like it was in a different key. There was only a drum track in the background and that doesn’t really give you pitches, but kudos for knowing your pitches.
Star Potential: I think that she really has the star look & attitude. Her voice is the pop voice that the media craves right now, so she would do well in that catorgory as well.
Quality of their recording & Replication of the Song: Well, it wasn’t rushed. I think she should have searched for an actual instrumental background recording, like contestant 1 did. I think this one was a bit further away from the original. Contestant 1 was pushing it, but this is just to pop.
Overall: 1 had some pop, but this was a lot more than I could handle. The runs into some of the verses got annoying and overdone at times. Your voice sounds very young, I have a feeling it probably sounds more mature when you are not trying to imitate a pop star sound. You have a very nice voice though.
I’ll have to give it to #1 here. I agree with Mandz- she had a more womanly, full voice and it fit the piece better. Although I think her second “killing me softly” in the chorus was pushed a little too much, she also had much more of a stage presence and added her own embellishments that fit with the Rn’B-type sound. Of course, those should be used with care as the chorus got a little stale because she added them to early in the song. But overall very very nice.
As for #2, I just wasn’t buying it. She seemed like a little girl- there was no depth to her voice and she was way too happy about the song. Technically, it was just fine (but so was #1), and it wasn’t rushed (but neither was #1). So, it stacks up to how well she fit the piece and her “star quality,” neither of which cut it. She sounded like she was pushing a early Britney Spears sound (remember Crazy and Soda Pop?), and bopping around like a kid at a middle school dance. The fact that she didn’t introduce the piece either sealed the deal. I wasn’t exactly impressed.
I think Contestant #1, but only by a little. Both were on key, although 2 was sllliiiightly flat in some spots, but nothing major. #2 Has a better chance of making it big, just because she looks the Christina Agulera/Hillary Duff cute-white-girl-with-too-much-make-up part. Vocally, both of them have the potential to make it. Neither video seemed terribly labored over, but #1 had better quality. And in terms of resembling the song, I think #1 captures the inflections of the original much more closely than #2. But I wish both of them would use their eyes and facial expressions, neither seems to really feel what they’re singing and it isn’t as pleasant to watch.
* Technical Ability: Did they play all the right notes, and were they on key?- Both Contestants played all the right notes and sound mostly on key. Contestant 1 has more of the vocal style to match Lauryn Hills voice, so it seemed more believable as a cover of the song. Constant 2’s voice, is more quiet and while she hit the right notes it just didn’t sound quite right. Her voice belongs on some sugary pop song, or even a musical.
* Star Potential: Can you see them actually making it big? Contestant 1 has the star potential. Contestant 2 is a little to shy to make it big right now.
* Quality of their recording: Was it rushed, or did they put time into it?
Contestant 1 takes this hands down. The music and vocals were pretty even and you could hear both without one overbearing the other. She also looked like she put a lot of time and effort into it as noticed by some of the editing that was done throughout.
Contestant 2’s video seemed just thrown together, you could hardly hear her. I had my volume up as loud as it could go and it was still quiet. It just felt like it was a last minute decision for her to do this.
* Replication of the Song: How close is it to the original?
Again Contestant 1 wins this one. She sounded like Lauryn Hill and it just made the song that much more believable. Contestant 2 was too sweet of a voice for this gritty type song.
Overall Contestant 1 impressed me the most.
Contestant # 1 for sure..
Lauryn Hill is my all-time favorite singer and to sing one of her songs (or singers like her with strong & deep voices) you have to BRING IT..although #1 could have brought it a little bit more, she still rocked that better than #2…#2 still has a great voice, but to sing one of Lauryn Hill’s songs, your voice not only has to be nice, it has to be STRONG… good luck to both of you! =) I’m glad to see that Lauryn’s music is still alive in other people…
Contestant #1 definitely had the right quality when it came to voice! She had a beautiful melody and was on key the whole song while contestant #2 was off on a couple of key notes, although that could have been because #2 was only singing with a drum track.. I liked how #1 sang though with the true meaning of the song- contestant #2 didn’t sing it with near the emotion it is supposed to have! It was like she just sat down and read the lyrics without understanding what the singer was feeling and what the words meant! I think #2 had more “star quality” though. Even though we are moving into a generation of music where talent is being valued over everything else, looks are still very important- as superficial as it may sound- the truth is, a prettier singer still draws a lot more attention and #2 was prettier in the generic American looks the majority of people prefer..
Seeing as i cannot sing for the life of me, i am impressed with both contestants; however, contestant 1 is definitely the winner. She seems to pour her heart into the song and was sure she was hitting every note, unlike contestant 2 who seems to worry about hitting the notes too much and didn’t sing with nearly as much emotion as i would have liked. contestant 1 defintely has a better voice for this song, and it sounded very much like the original, but she added her own style to it, which i liked a lot. This song to me seems more sultry, and not as cutsy as it sounded when contestant 2 sang it. I think it was the wrong song for her voice, Contestant 1 definitely the winner here.
contestant 1 wins no doubt.
* Technical Ability:Both were fairly in tune, hitting at least 95% of the notes. This aspect I think both deserve top scores on.
* Star Potential: Number one was much more emotional- more natural and flowing, whereas i feel as if number two was restrained and had much less emotion. I hate to reiterate, but i agree with the many other viewers, number one had a more suiting voice for the song.
* Quality of their recording: Both recordings were fairly good- considering that it seems as though both used “normal” digital cameras or camcorders to record. Since neither of them used professional equipment, its fair to judge their recording quality equal. However, It seems as if number two spent more time preparing for the shoot- she seems much more dressy and formal, compared to number one.
* Replication of the Song: Number one definitely won this category- she sang soulfully, with the same “air” and “aura” that Lauryn Hill performs with.
Though both these singers are great, I think that number one prevails!
=)
lauryn hill does the best for me. she has that soul and strength in her voice that really ‘kills softly’. contestent 2 was really good too! and 3. i guess its the different styles. i would say that lauryn hill is most soulful and controlled and 2 has a great voice and 3 is very pop and sweet. too sweet.
Contestant #1, although she may have been helped by the better quality of her recording.
Though I agree with most of the comments already posted in that Contestant 1 clearly took this match, I still think Contestant 2 had some virtues to hers. Though Contestant 1 definitely had the maturer sound, emotionally capable and well rounded, I thought her breakdown section was lacking a little. She seemed to be holding back and that disappointed me a bit, because I was expecting a lot more with her vocal capabilities seen throughout the rest of the song.
I personally thought Contestant 2’s breakdown was more impressive, but I agree with the fact that her voice was too sweet for Lauryn Hill’s rugged, r&b style.
All in all, I tend to agree with the masses that Contestant 1 did take this one, but only because her natural voice sounded closer to Lauryn Hill’s. Both have potential in their own genres. =)
defintly number one