What is the Vocal Fry? Is it bad? Is it good?

Or is it just a weird sound you can make that’s fun to use to creep out your little brother when you are both home alone? 

The vocal fry can be very healthy, when used in the right way.  

What is it? 

You can think of the vocal fry as the beginning of phonation, kind of like a plane before it actually lifts off.  You’re creating most of the right conditions for “flight” or sound in this case, but you haven’t fully engaged.  When the vocal folds come together and start to oscillate, they require full and complete closure for things to work correctly. A vocal fry is simply incomplete closure!  It’s useful in a number of situations and can make for a pretty sweet warm up as well! 

Here’s a little video on how to use it!