Ken Tamplin Vocal Academy Review – One of the Best!

Ken Tamplin is one of the most authoritative figures in the online vocal training communities.

His YouTube channel has over 1 million subscribers with millions of views on his videos.

There is a reason for Ken’s success, and I’m going to share some of my observations with you.

If you are interested in Ken Tamplin and his vocal training, you are in this for a treat.

I will be giving you an in-depth review on his flagship course How to Sing Better Than Anyone Else 3.0 offered in the Ken Tamplin Vocal Academy.

So, if you’re ready, let’s begin:

Why This is One of the Most Authoritative Singing Courses

I have reviewed many singing programs over the years.

I tried to analyze what the teacher is teaching technically and the track record they have as a teacher or singer.

And then, I give my recommendation for aspiring singers for them to decide whether the program is best for them.

There are a couple of reason why I think this is one of the most authoritative vocal training programs:

Reason #1 – Ken Tamplin is an established singer and musician

Ken Tamplin has established authority in the world of singing and vocal training over the years.

He is a veteran singer, guitarist, and performer who’s released over 40 music albums and performed across a variety of musical genres.

There are not a lot of online vocal coaches who have the kind of professional experience as a singer, artist, and performer that Ken Tamplin has.

Reason #2 – Ken Tamplin can demo with his own voice

His vocal training videos on YouTube are very convincing because he demonstrates everything he teaches, including some amazing high notes, vocal chops, and cover songs.

When you listen to him sing, you will be blown away.

His famous motto is “The proof is in the singing” which I absolutely love, because not many vocal coaches can do what he does vocally. Listen to this Ken Tamplin cover:

Reason #3 – Ken Tamplin is a vocal training expert

Not only is he a great singer, Ken is also a very qualified voice teacher who is very knowledgeable in vocal pedagogy. 

He is able to explain very extensively the vocal concepts that he is teaching. If you watch one of his instructional videos, you’ll know what I mean.

Reason #4 – Ken has produced tremendous results

Ken Tamplin is one of the best vocal coaches in the online world.

Many of Ken’s students have gone on to excel in the professional music industry, including an American Idol winner, YouTube sensations, a Czech Idol finalist, The Voice and X-factor contestants, and many more.

Let’s listen to a before-and-after result that Ken produced:

What is Offered in This Vocal Training Program

Ken Tamplin’s flagship singing program How to Sing Better Than Anyone Else is now in its 3.0 version.

The 2.0 version is still available as a digital download on his website for $199. Although it was his earlier production in which the video and audio quality was not very high, the vocal training materials are still top-notch.

In the 3.0 version, Ken Tamplin practically re-made the entire training program with higher video production quality and even more extensive teaching materials.

Here are some of the amazing things about this singing program:

Thing #1 – Crazy Amount of Training Content

As I am writing this review, I am enrolled in Volume 1 of How to Sing Better Than Anyone Else 3.0. 

I am absolutely amazed at the huge amount of training content in just Volume 1. 

Ken takes you through daily training routines from Day 1 all the way to Day 79, and each day is jam packed with video lessons and audio mp3 training tracks.

As soon as I realized the vast amount of content in Volume 1, I checked the full curriculum of the entire program and found that there are a total of FIVE major volumes!

I started by going through the Introductory section of the BEFORE Day 1 training. 

You know what…the “Quickstart” video lesson is a half-hour training, and the regular introductory lessons are a total of more than 2 hours of video lessons taught by Ken himself.

This is one man who is passionate about vocal training and teaching. He can talk endlessly about the voice, definitely a vocal professional that I look up to.

I think it is safe to say that this is the most extensive online vocal training program with the huge amount of training materials in it.

Thing #2 – Effective Singing Methodology

There are different schools of thought when it comes to vocal methodology. 

I have learned many of them over the years and have benefited and been victimized by many of them as well.

After learning about what Ken teaches, I can tell you that his vocal methods is effective and correct.

Here are the highlights of his vocal methodology:

Technique #1 – Bright, pingy AH sound

Ken Tamplin is famous for teaching the bright, pingy AH sound. He uses it to build vocal power and range.

He advocates that the bright, pingy AH is the only sound that is going to grow the voice.

I don’t totally understand why he says that, but this technique is similar to the buzz sensation that I use for correct vowel placement.

(Suggested reading: 13 Best Vocal Techniques to Improve Your Singing Instantly)

Ken demonstrates how to utilize this sound pretty well in his videos.

Technique #2 – Diaphragmatic support

Ken’s singing method relies heavily on low diaphragmatic support.

This is how it works:

Step #1: Breathe in and allow the stomach to expand.

Step #2: Support the voice by pushing down on the abdomen.

This is similar to what I do, so I can tell you that it works.

This is the technique that is different from Speech Level Singing and the Mixed Voice Singing Methods in which diaphragmatic support serves as an “additional” vocal technique.

But, different vocal methods do work for different people. If you’re into the Mixed Voice singing method, the best training program for that is John Henny’s New Science of Singing 2.0.

John explains how to apply Practical Vocal Science to sing Mixed Voice very effectively in that flagship singing course.

Technique #3 – Vowel Modifications

Ken’s vocal methods are based on the Italian Bel Canto school of singing, and Vowel Modification is one of those techniques.

This is the technique that modifies the shape of the vowel as we sing higher crossing the vocal bridges. 

It is said that Vowel Modification adjusts the acoustical space, so the singer can sing high notes more easily.

I personally do not use Vowel Modification to hit high notes unless for stylistic expression, because I believe you can sing pure vowels for any note in your range. 

But I do not oppose the use of Vowel Modification as it comes from the Bel Canto tradition, and it seems to work for many singers.

Technique #4 – Building Vocal Muscles

Ken advocates building muscles for singing, which I totally agree with. 

Singing is almost like a sport in which you need muscular strength to perform.

Being trained for skills is different than being trained for strength.

If you want to expand your vocal range, you need to build stronger muscles for singing.

But you need to know that it takes a lot of skills and experience to build vocal muscles as they hide inside your throat. 

You can very easily grunt or squeeze if you or your training don’t know what you’re doing.

I believe that Ken Tamplin is highly skilled in this kind of vocal weight training.

Thing #3 – Extensive Day-to-Day Training Routine

There is so much material included in the daily training routines.

I almost feel like it can be a little overwhelming if you’re just starting out.

But Ken delivers tremendous value in these very extensive training.

My advice is that you do this at your own pace, or just take it slowly as you digest and practice what Ken is teaching.

The good thing is you will never be lost as the curriculum is easy to follow. It’s just a lot of content for you to study.

Thing #4 – Active KTVA Community Forum

As we know, forums can be very active or just dead silent.

What sets the Ken Tamplin Vocal Academy community forum apart is that there are a total of eight professional moderators helping the students.

Of course, there are other more experienced students giving their inputs too.

Students are able to get their questions answered in the forum.

There’s value in this because vocal questions can be abstract and difficult to answer, but this forum gets those questions answered.

Thing #5 – Live Q & A Zoom Meetings

This came as a surprise when I first enrolled in How to Sing Better Than Anyone Else 3.0.

I got an invitation to join a Live Q & A Zoom meeting conducted by Ken Tamplin where you can ask him questions.

Sadly, I didn’t get to join this Zoom meeting because of time zone difference, but this is the coolest thing for all the students, because Ken is one of the highest paid vocal coaches in the world – $525 for a private lesson.

While I don’t believe in charging that much for singing lessons, I see great value in the Zoom meetings where Ken is available for you.

Thing #6 – Affordable Price

So now you know how expensive Ken’s private lessons are. 

Surprisingly, Ken’s singing program How to Sing Better Than Anyone Else 3.0 is very affordable for students.

The enrollment fee is $149 that you pay up front, then there is a monthly membership fee of $19.95.

Believe me, this is cheap for vocal training. 

I take singing lessons with coaches who charge $150-200 for a single lesson.

I wished I had online vocal training programs like this when I started in the 90s. It would have made life a lot easier for me as a singer.

Further reading: 105 Online Singing Courses: The Complete List

What I Love About This Program

The first thing you look for in a vocal training program is who the teacher is.

I love vocal coaches who can demonstrate and execute what they’re teaching.

Ken Tamplin is awesome in this respect. He sees the problem that many vocal coaches are all talk and cannot sing that well themselves.

I used to speak for coaches who are not good singers for the reason that teaching is a different skill set than singing.

Ken changed my opinion about that with his motto “The proof is in the singing” and how he “proves it.”

Now I believe that if you want to teach something, you need to be able to do it, and do it well.

What I love about this program is that Ken Tamplin is teaching it, and he is teaching something that is of tremendous value to the singers.

What I Don’t Like About This Program

Of course, there’s no perfect program, including this one.

I think that one of the biggest strengths of this program can be its weakness as well – there’s too much content.

As a singer and coach, I know that you only need to master a couple of essential skills and practice them with repetition to be a proficient singer.

You don’t need a huge amount of instructions to become a good singer.

I believe this training program can be more concise so that it doesn’t become overwhelming for some of the students.

Other than that, I love what Ken is offering in this program.

Pros and Cons

So now, I’d like to offer the Pros and Cons of this singing program in a nutshell.

As you can see, I have mostly good things to say about this singing course.

Here they are:

Is Ken the right coach for you? Some things to consider

I’m giving Ken tremendous praise and recognition as a vocal coach. I also need to point out that different vocal coaches work for different singers. 

Vocal training is a very personal matter. Other than professional skills, the personality and teaching style of the vocal coach makes a lot of difference in training.

For example, I do not use the singing methods that my first voice teacher Eunice taught me when I was 19 years old, but I give her most of the credits of my success as a vocal professional, because I was heavily influenced by her.

Eunice is not the best coach I’ve had over the years, but she influenced me the most for my development as a singer. 

So, having the best skills is only one part of being a vocal coach. You need to take a lot into account when you choose a vocal trainer.

Further reading: 10 Best Online Vocal Coaches – Top Recommended List

Should You Invest in This Course? My Recommendation

After all that’s said, Ken Tamplin’s How to Sing Better Than Anyone Else 3.0 is an elite vocal training program – I highly recommend it!

I still remember when I bought the 2.0 version that the price was a couple of hundred dollars.

With the more extended and better-produced 3.0 version, I don’t think the overall pricing is that much different when you add them up. 

But, you do get one of the best-quality vocal training in the market right now.

If you are really serious about vocal training, Ken Tamplin’s program is the whole package. You could really consider making an investment here.

On the other hand, if you need more of a beginner-friendly singing course, my best recommendation would be 30 Day Singer. I think it is the best beginner singing course online right now.

So, What Do You Think about This Review? Let Me Know

I have offered my opinion and professional analysis about this vocal product.

Is there anything I missed or any input you would like to add?

Leave a comment below if you have anything to say about Ken Tamplin’s training.

I would love to hear from you and maybe discuss further with you.

Best of luck to your singing,

Rex