Backing vocals (BVs or BGVs) support the lead and the song. They add harmony, energy, emotion and hooks. Arranged well, they make a song feel bigger and more polished; arranged badly, they clutter the most important part of the record.
What backing vocals are for
- Support - thickening and reinforcing the lead.
- Harmony - adding chords that the instruments may not play.
- Emphasis - highlighting key words and lines, especially the title.
- Energy - lifting a chorus or final section.
- Hooks - backing vocal parts can become the most memorable part of a song.
- Contrast - changing the texture between sections.
Types of backing vocal
- Harmonies - lines that follow the lead melody at different pitches, singing the same words. The most common type.
- Pads - oohs and aahs - sustained vowels singing chord tones under the lead. Smooth, warm, gospel and soul. Great for filling space without adding words.
- Call and response - the backing vocals answer the lead. Rooted in gospel and blues, and a staple of soul, Motown and pop.
- Unison doubles - the same melody and words, reinforcing the lead.
- Gang vocals - a group shouting or singing together. Chants, claps, anthemic hooks. Recording several people, or the same person many times, gives a crowd effect.
- Ad-libs - improvised phrases, interjections and runs around the main melody. Essential in R&B, gospel and hip-hop.
- Vocal chops - fragments of vocal sliced and re-sequenced as an instrument. A signature of electronic music.
Arranging across the song
Backing vocals should build with the song:
- Verse 1 - often lead only, or a tight double. Intimate.
- Pre-chorus - a harmony or pad entering to build tension.
- Chorus 1 - harmonies on key lines, doubles, perhaps a pad.
- Verse 2 - slightly more than verse 1 - a harmony on the last line, or a few ad-libs.
- Chorus 2 - more than chorus 1.
- Bridge - something different: a stripped section, or a new backing vocal texture.
- Final choruses - the fullest stack, with ad-libs over the top.
Every section should have a reason for what it has.
Writing harmonies that work
- Follow the chords. Harmony notes should belong to the chord underneath at that moment.
- Do not harmonise everything. Harmonise the most important words and lines - the title, the end of phrases.
- Keep harmonies simple and singable. Smooth lines with mostly stepwise movement.
- Mind the vowels. Backing singers should match the lead's vowel shapes and word endings exactly.
Leaving space
The lead vocal must always be clear. Backing vocals that are too loud, too busy, or in the same register as the lead compete with it. Pads and harmonies above or below the lead's range sit more easily. Ad-libs belong in gaps between lead lines, not on top of them.
Do this now
- Map the backing vocals in a song you love, section by section.
- For your own song, write an arrangement plan: which backing vocal type appears in each section.
- Record a pad of oohs on chord tones under a chorus, and a call-and-response part answering the lead in the second verse.
- Add three ad-libs to the final chorus, placed in gaps in the lead.