# Is There A Word For This Vocal Technique? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 9, 2014, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-this-vocal-technique/704163 "2014-11-09T17:13:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2014, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-this-vocal-technique/704163/1 "2014-11-09T17:13:46Z")
[![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=flBuQ8ZZ7Bs) Listen at about :14 as Snoop says “Ready to make an entrance…” and at about :19 as he says “Gimme the microphone…” I’m not sure of how to describe what he’s doing, except to say that he sort-of “clips” his words, similar to how an auctioneer might do. Seems to be a common thing in Hip Hop - Snoop does it all the time, and Dr. Dré himself does it in the very song I linked to up above, at about 1:27 (“With a producer…”) Anyway, does this vocal technique have a specific name? ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2014, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-this-vocal-technique/704163/2 "2014-11-09T17:24:51Z")
It is a stutter. I don’t know if it is a real stutter by the singer, or an artificial stutter made via a stutter edit. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2014, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-this-vocal-technique/704163/3 "2014-11-09T18:52:48Z")
I don’t believe that is a stutter. He not saying “G-G-Give me the microphone” - he is using one type of talky flow, then slips into a rhythmic, beat flow that takes advantage of the syllables and consonants of the words. Another example that immediately jumps to mind is Anthony Kiedis saying “Give it Away” in the chorus of that song. I don’t know of an official jargon name for it. I would be very interested if a rapper can share if there is. I would say the person is popping the pronunciation - hitting a set of syllables that serve the song. ---
**Author:** ![Flywheel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/eb8c5e/32.png) [@Flywheel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flywheel)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2014, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-this-vocal-technique/704163/4 "2014-11-09T20:29:23Z")
Patter? ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2014, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-this-vocal-technique/704163/5 "2014-11-09T23:03:56Z")
Yeh, your right – it’s not a repetition. Thanks. Paging **Le Ministre de l’au-delà**. If no one finds the term for it, I’m copyrighting “ornamento tuplet prestissimo staccato” and hope it catches on and brings me millions in royalties. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![DooWahDiddy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e9bcb4/32.png) [@DooWahDiddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DooWahDiddy)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2014, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-this-vocal-technique/704163/6 "2014-11-10T00:12:55Z")
It just a triplet. Meaning, in a 4/4 song like that one, where there are four beats per measure, he’s putting three notes in a beat (well, half a beat, for those familiar with music theory, but that’s not relevant). It sounds weird to us because 3 is an odd number, and we’re used to hearing 2 or 4 in that type of beat. Sorry, “triplet” is already copyrighted. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![JSexton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/96bed5/32.png) [@JSexton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JSexton)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2014, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-this-vocal-technique/704163/7 "2014-11-10T16:39:02Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > I don’t believe that is a stutter. He not saying “G-G-Give me the microphone” - he is using one type of talky flow, then slips into a rhythmic, beat flow that takes advantage of the syllables and consonants of the words. > > Another example that immediately jumps to mind is Anthony Kiedis saying “Give it Away” in the chorus of that song. > > I don’t know of an official jargon name for it. I would be very interested if a rapper can share if there is. I would say the person is popping the pronunciation - hitting a set of syllables that serve the song. In Give It Away, Kiedis is very nearly rolling his T’s the way you roll your R’s in Spanish. ---
**Author:** ![fachverwirrt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/94ad74/32.png) [@fachverwirrt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fachverwirrt)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2014, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-this-vocal-technique/704163/8 "2014-11-10T17:11:10Z")
The closest thing I could think to call it would be “patter”. Most famously used in [Modern Major General](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hlTisI_HSgw). ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2014, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-this-vocal-technique/704163/9 "2014-11-10T17:35:09Z")
And then there’s the [induction form instruction](http://youtu.be/b0a6iWHSWbA?t=3m10s) in Arlo Gutherie’s _Alice’s Restaurant Massacree_. ---
**Author:** ![DooWahDiddy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e9bcb4/32.png) [@DooWahDiddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DooWahDiddy)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2014, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-this-vocal-technique/704163/10 "2014-11-10T17:38:38Z")
Guys. Again, it’s called a triplet. It’s not patter. “Modern Major General” _is_ a good example of what patter is, but that’s not what we’re talking about in this thread. Patter is just a stream of quick notes that usually don’t fall on a specific pitch, but the _rhythms_ of those notes are usually consistent (i.e. mostly 8th notes, as in MMG). What we have in the Dr. Dre song the OP linked to is nothing more than a musical tool called a triplet. It’s not a vocal technique; it’s simply putting 3 notes into a beat that’s usually reserved for 2. ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2014, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-this-vocal-technique/704163/11 "2014-11-10T18:12:00Z")
> [@DooWahDiddy](#): > > It’s not a vocal technique; it’s simply putting 3 notes into a beat that’s usually reserved for 2. Exactly. It’s just like a drum going rat-a-tat tat. ---
**Author:** ![fachverwirrt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/94ad74/32.png) [@fachverwirrt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fachverwirrt)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2014, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-this-vocal-technique/704163/12 "2014-11-10T19:50:55Z")
The examples in question are indeed on triplets. But the general technique of fitting a lot of syllables into a short time is [patter](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patter). The rhythm is irrelevant. The auctioneer analogy employed by the OP is actually spot on > [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](#): > > Exactly. It’s just like a drum going rat-a-tat tat. I think of a stereotypical rat-a-tat-tat as two sixteenths and an eighth (plus whatever the next beat is; probably a quarter). ---
**Author:** ![DooWahDiddy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e9bcb4/32.png) [@DooWahDiddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DooWahDiddy)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2014, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-this-vocal-technique/704163/13 "2014-11-10T22:52:16Z")
> [@fachverwirrt](#): > > The examples in question are indeed on triplets. But the general technique of fitting a lot of syllables into a short time is [patter](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patter). The rhythm is irrelevant. The auctioneer analogy employed by the OP is actually spot on Sorry, but I still respectfully disagree. If the rhythm was irrelevant, the OP would have linked to a performance of “Modern Major General”, and we all would have said “Oh, that’s a patter song”. End of story, do not pass Go. But as it happens, he was specifically asking about this one particular song where the performer employed the use of a 16th-note triplet figure, which is what gave it the peculiar characteristic the OP was asking about. If you want to bend the meaning of the word–and I don’t mean that in a snarky way at all–but if you want to stretch the meaning of “patter” to include that song, then fine, I’ll concede to that. But that doesn’t change the fact that what’s making that particular moment sound the way it does is the triplet figure, not the fact that it’s a patter song (i.e. not all patter songs will have triplet figures in them). ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2014, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-this-vocal-technique/704163/14 "2014-11-10T23:11:11Z")
orn-a-men-to 1-2-3-4 are-at-the-do tu/p/let-stac-ca-to (1/2/3)-2-3-4 (rea/dy/to)-make-an-entrance pre-stis-si-mo 1-2-3-4 so-back-on-up ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2014, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-this-vocal-technique/704163/15 "2014-11-10T23:17:48Z")
nm ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2014, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-this-vocal-technique/704163/16 "2014-11-10T23:20:42Z")
> [@Muffin](#): > > tu/p/let-stac-ca-to > (1/2/3)-2-3-4 > (rea/dy/to)-make-an-entrance Whoops. Was trying for: (1/2/3)-2-3-4 (rea/dy/to)-makean-en-trance ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2014, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-this-vocal-technique/704163/17 "2014-11-11T00:56:35Z")
> [@DooWahDiddy](#): > > Sorry, but I still respectfully disagree. If the rhythm was irrelevant, the OP would have linked to a performance of “Modern Major General”, and we all would have said “Oh, that’s a patter song”. End of story, do not pass Go. > > But as it happens, he was specifically asking about this one particular song where the performer employed the use of a 16th-note triplet figure, which is what gave it the peculiar characteristic the OP was asking about. > > If you want to bend the meaning of the word–and I don’t mean that in a snarky way at all–but if you want to stretch the meaning of “patter” to include that song, then fine, I’ll concede to that. But that doesn’t change the fact that what’s making that particular moment sound the way it does is the triplet figure, not the fact that it’s a patter song (i.e. not all patter songs will have triplet figures in them). As a musician who doesn’t know formal music theory and terms, this seems to make sense. I think my voice teacher, er, **fachverwirrt** (he helped a few of us wannabee singers with an Ask the Vocal Coach thread) is framing the whole style. I would never have thought of them as triplets, but as I hear you guys talk shop, it makes sense. Reminds me of the rapid-fire tongue exercises I know trumpet players do to hit triplets on their horns. How does one pick up that rhythm? How do you train for that? I can play triplets for days on my guitar, but couldn’t flow that into a lyric flow if my life depended on it. ---
**Author:** ![DooWahDiddy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e9bcb4/32.png) [@DooWahDiddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DooWahDiddy)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2014, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-this-vocal-technique/704163/18 "2014-11-11T01:32:51Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > I can play triplets for days on my guitar, but couldn’t flow that into a lyric flow if my life depended on it. Sure you can. Tap your foot or clap your hands at a speed of 120 beats per minute (in other words, double the speed of one second–use a watch if you want). Now say the word “nevertheless”, where the syllables “nev-” and “-less” fall on the claps. Now speed up your clapping, still keeping the accents on those syllables. If you go fast enough, you’ll be saying it as fast as he says “Ready to make…”. _Voilà_, you’ve conquered triplets, and now you’re a rapper! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2014, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-this-vocal-technique/704163/19 "2014-11-11T01:41:15Z")
> [@DooWahDiddy](#): > > Sure you can. Tap your foot or clap your hands at a speed of 120 beats per minute (in other words, double the speed of one second–use a watch if you want). Now say the word “nevertheless”, where the syllables “nev-” and “-less” fall on the claps. Now speed up your clapping, still keeping the accents on those syllables. If you go fast enough, you’ll be saying it as fast as he says “Ready to make…”. > > _Voilà_, you’ve conquered triplets, and now you’re a rapper! 🙂 Cool - thanks. I will try it. If you don’t mind my asking, I can’t recall what your vocal background is, but you seem to have some 😉 how do you come by your know-how? ---
**Author:** ![fachverwirrt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/94ad74/32.png) [@fachverwirrt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fachverwirrt)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2014, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-this-vocal-technique/704163/20 "2014-11-11T02:01:54Z")
> [@DooWahDiddy](#): > > Sorry, but I still respectfully disagree. If the rhythm was irrelevant, the OP would have linked to a performance of “Modern Major General”, and we all would have said “Oh, that’s a patter song”. End of story, do not pass Go. > > But as it happens, he was specifically asking about this one particular song where the performer employed the use of a 16th-note triplet figure, which is what gave it the peculiar characteristic the OP was asking about. > > If you want to bend the meaning of the word–and I don’t mean that in a snarky way at all–but if you want to stretch the meaning of “patter” to include that song, then fine, I’ll concede to that. But that doesn’t change the fact that what’s making that particular moment sound the way it does is the triplet figure, not the fact that it’s a patter song (i.e. not all patter songs will have triplet figures in them). I think you’re fixating on the specific example. The question the OP had was about how > [@HeyHomie](#): > > he sort-of “clips” his words, similar to how an auctioneer might do. That sort of rapid fire chattering is, in a general sense, patter. I’m not really calling it a “patter song” (and perhaps it was a mistake to bring Modern Major General into it), just going by the dictionary definition of the word: > [@Merriam Webster](#): > > **Patter** > transitive verb > : to say or speak in a rapid or mechanical manner > intransitive verb > 1 > : to recite prayers (as paternosters) rapidly or mechanically > 2 > : to talk glibly and volubly > 3 > : to speak or sing rapid-fire words in a theatrical performance They could be triplets, quintuplets, sixteenth notes, whatever. Perhaps the OP could clarify whether he means this specific rhythmic pattern or the more general idea of rapid, clipped wordplay. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-word-for-this-vocal-technique/704163.md?page=2)