Ep.236 The Academic Path to Pop-Rock with Becky Morton

In this episode, Becky Morton, Principal of Further Education at ACM and Alexa explore what the FE academic route can offer young singers stepping into today’s music industry. Becky shares curriculum structure with project-based training, and how this helps students to build both industry awareness and artist identity. The pair dig into why early professional habits matter, how the diploma pathway compares to traditional A-levels, and what young performers gain from learning to work with producers, bands and music businesses in a real-world environment. Becky also talks about current vocal trends, the technical demands of pop-rock singing, and how ACM is adapting its teaching to industry changes, including the rise of AI.

WHAT’S IN THIS PODCAST?

03:50 The role of Principle of FE at the Academy of Contemporary Music

5:00 Benefits and challenges of an academic route into music

10:13 A look at technique for pop-rock

12:50 Defining the pop-rock aesthetic

15:14 Artists to study in this genre

18:16 How important is music theory and sight singing?

22:54 2025 vocal and musical trends

30:56 What Becky wishes every singer understood

About the presenter HERE

RELEVANT MENTIONS & LINKS

ACM

UAL

Singing Teachers Talk - Ep.231 Evolving Vocal Trends: Training Functional Registration in Contemporary Commercial Music

Singing Teachers Talk - Ep.222 The Rise of AI: What it Means for Singers & Teachers with Singing Teachers Talk - Ep,226 The Rise of AI: Practical Tools and Strategies for the Singing Teachers

ISM

Suno

Udio

Follow Becky’s Bands: The Likeness; Two’s Up; The Hooch Toots

ABOUT THE GUEST

Rebecca Morton, Principal of FE at ACM, is a professional musician, vocal coach, and musical director with 20+ years of experience. She has collaborated with artists such as Adrian Smith, Imogen Heap, and Alexander O’Neal, and toured as the solo backing vocalist for Hitomi Yaida across major UK and Japanese arenas. Her work includes recordings with Crispian Mills, Mattafix, cast albums, and dance releases with EMI and Hed Kandi. A vocal coach since 2002, she has supported artists like James Toseland and Marlon Roudette. Holding a Masters in Music Psychology, she champions passion, reliability, and excellence at ACM.

SEE FULL BIO HERE

Instagram: @acm_ldn

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