My Ears Have Something To Say

What is it about a man's voice that entices my ears so?

I can already tell that this is going to be difficult to explain. Well, there's a reason why I always rant and dote over those singers (Josh Groban, Il Divo, and The Ten Tenors). I know you constantly hear me giggling, "Oh, he's so cute!" and, "I love him!" when I talk about certain singing men, but I hope you know that that actually means very little. Sure, all of those guys are very attractive and have sweet personalities, but it's nothing compared to their voices.

There's just something about a man's voice. I love hearing the male singing voice. I don't know why. Maybe it's because it's deeper, more soothing. Or because its masculinity can be heard through certain words and tones. Perhaps because most men are less expressive than women. Women are much more emotional, and they tend to change tones and emotions as quickly as they blink. I know I do. I think the male voice is not made to change and fluctuate so easily. It's wonderful to me to hear emotion in a man's voice. I think that most men today are so boring and bland. Lots of them are posers and try so hard to be cool, but through music you can easily see through that cloud of ego. There are few men that I have heard such purity and selflessness in their voices. They are simply enchanting. Yes, enchanting. I like that word. It encompasses everything I feel when I listen to them, those baritones and tenors.

Now not all male voices are so enchanting. There are definitely voices I can't stand to hear. Most about every other male artist out there today sucks, for lack of a better word. But those few enchanting voices make everything worthwhile. So few voices are so expressive and masculine simultaneously, and they are incredibly rare to come upon. Specifically, my two favorites voices are, of course, Mr. Josh Groban, and a rather young voice, Mr. Shannon Brown, one of the Ten Tenors. I don't know what I listened to before I heard Josh. I certainly didn't have a favorite singer before him, that's for sure. I remember when I first heard him too. I won't go too much into it, but I remember it literally taking my breath away. That sounds really cliche, I know, but cliches do have much truth to them. His voice is the most original voice I've heard, and it seems almost effortless to him when he sings. He was simply born to sing. Not to be a famous performer, just to sing. That is exactly why Shannon Brown's voice and personality has intrigued me so. I hope I don't offend him, but I see Shannon as a shy fella. From what I've heard, he is very polite and quiet when meeting the fans, rarely saying more than a few words and always quick to leave the crowd. However, on stage he's a completely different person. He's definitely not shy at all, and his voice is just perfect, so full and flawless. With such a combination of pure talent and fiery passion, he's become one of my favorite singers. He just exudes music. Apparently, the boy has so much music in him that he needed more space to express it, and he's become musical director of the Ten Tenors and has many many solos within the group's repertoire. And with all of the compliments and praises that I'm sure he receives daily, you'd expect him to be a total pompous and self-approving jerk. He is, in fact, unusually humble and reserved. Could I ask for anything more in such an artist? One who has an amazing voice and an even more amazing personality. Josh and Shannon have both these aspects, and to me, they have become irresistible because of said things.

I only hope that I don't give off the impression that I only like these singers because I think they're cute or handsome. Don't get me wrong, it's a HUGE plus that these guys are all pretty damn fine, but my ears don't see them. They hear them.

So "Here's to the Heroes," Josh Groban and Shannon Brown.


(Little Silly Stephanie Fact: This post actually took me more than a week to write. I tried my best to express my thoughts on the subject as thoroughly as I could, but I see now that that could never happen. Gah, writing is so difficult!)