Journal of voice : official journal of the Voice Foundation
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To determine the social and stylistic correlates of vocal fry in a cappella performances. ⋯ Listeners are highly attuned to vocal fry in music but respond to it differently based upon their age, musical training, and the singer's sex. Vocal fry is evaluated more positively among younger, less musically trained listeners, and it is better received in women's voices, suggesting that the use of fry strategically targets a specific audience, i.e., younger and less trained listeners, who interpret fry as a marker of youth and emotional earnestness. These findings show that a single stylistic feature like vocal fry can be imbued with multiple meanings depending on the singer and audience, and its use can serve to include or exclude particular listener groups.