Is this even necessary? This sentence was my constant companion, at least for the first two days of trying to learn the “Papaoutai” Afro Soul cover by mikeeysmind.
Two main things kept me going. First, the fact that I had already learned the Lord’s Prayer in Spanish. Second, knowing that Pentatonix, one of my favorite groups ever, had covered the song.
So I kept telling myself: if I could learn the Lord’s Prayer in Spanish, and if Scott, the lead singer on that track, could ace it, then I most definitely could too.
I started by getting the lyrics, and on the very first day, I focused entirely on the first two sentences. Because I started late at night, I didn’t have enough time for extensive repetition, but I still managed to speak them out loud 20 to 30 times and then sing them just as many times.
The next day, I applied that same process throughout the entire day. I wanted to reach a point where I could sing without actively thinking about the words, so I must have repeated those lines more than 100 times. Along the way, I also made sure to learn the meaning of each line, which added another layer to the process.
Whenever I encountered a particularly long sentence, I split it in half, mastering the first part before moving on to the second. I would take each section, speak it 20 to 30 times, and then sing it 20 to 30 times until it started to stick.
Once I had the building blocks down, my daily routine shifted. Every new day, I would first try to sing the song completely from memory, repeating it over and over before finally going back to the audio to refresh my memory and check my accuracy.
My background in French definitely helped here. Before you mistake me for an expert, no, I’m not, but I am past the beginner level. Bonjour!
By sticking to this routine, within five days I had successfully learned the first verse, the hook, and the chorus. I was thoroughly impressed with myself. It was stressful, but incredibly rewarding.
I used BandLab on my phone, and let me tell you, when people say latency is an issue, they mean it.
I tried using my AirPods, but it was terrible. Then I tried using standard earphones, and it sounded like I was recording in a room under construction. In the end, I just had to brace myself and record directly into my phone while the music played out loud.
The outcome wasn’t perfect, but I still liked it. You can listen to the final result in the episode below.
Thanks for reading!