There are a lot of good things happening when we produce vocal fry. The vocal folds are coming together in a gentle manner so that there is no squeezing or pushing of the vocal folds together. For people with some breathiness in their voices, vocal fry can optimize the glottal closure pattern. Because the closure is gentle, it reduces the need for compression or tension of the laryngeal muscles. Therefore, this sound is wonderful for people who usually push their voice or use too much vocal effort when speaking or singing.

Another benefit of vocal fry is that it uses very little breath pressures under the vocal folds. If the pressures are minimal, there is no stress put on the vocal folds. You can use vocal fry as a tool to release tension from your voice or re-build a healthier way of speaking without tension. 

It is important to know that there is a good way to produce vocal fry and a not so healthy way to produce vocal fry. Actually, it may be challenging to produce a really relaxed vocal fry for people who hold a lot of tension in their voices. 

Step #1: Use very little air

Vocal fry is possible only when you use very little or no breath pressure under the vocal folds. To achieve that, you can blow out most of the air from your lungs to decrease the pressures. Only then, start the vocal fry sound. Do not push air through the vocal folds. If you do, you will invite more tension, which is exactly the opposite of what we are trying to achieve.

Step #2 Start at the bottom of the range

It’s much easier to find your healthy vocal fry at the bottom of your range. It is possible to produce vocal fry higher in your range but it is not as relaxing. If you want you can use a descending scale to find the bottom of your range.

Step #3 Use vocal fry without a tone

To keep the vocal fry relaxing, do not add tone to the sound. For our purposes, try to just make a gentle popping sound. To me, it sounds like air bubbles coming through the vocal folds.