Accents

Do British people wonder why American singers have English accents?

Question prompted by listening to a Brit singer who, like almost all Brit singers, sounds American when singing but very British when speaking.

Been listening to Ozzy again? 

My favorite is combined accents. The girl I met in college who was raised in Vietnam and learned British English in London and then moved to Canada. Or occasionally you meet a native Spanish speaker who learned English in Cajun shipyards in Louisiana, that's a fun one to try and listen to.

First post just made me think of this, sorry. 

mazdeuce - Seth said:

My favorite is combined accents. The girl I met in college who was raised in Vietnam and learned British English in London and then moved to Canada. Or occasionally you meet a native Spanish speaker who learned English in Cajun shipyards in Louisiana, that's a fun one to try and listen to.

I love ones like the Korean ethnicity guy I meet that grew up in country Georgia. Almost had to choose my eyes to understand him cause the visual didn't go with the accent.

I can throw a pretty sweet Alabama accent.  My wife hates it.  

In retrospect maybe I am mocking her family.  

Heard on a college campus in West Virginia "Ya'll oughtta hear my cuuuzin, he does the best northern accent ya'ever did hear!"  

Ummmm . . . what?

Everyone in florida has an accent. EVERYONE.

Apparently people from Chicagoland have an accent. I never noticed. 

Everyone has an accent, yes even you. 

My favorite was two Colombians that learned English in Scotland. What lovely R’s they had!

Picksburghese 

more dialect than accent tho

Appleseed said:

Apparently people from Chicagoland have an accent. I never noticed. 

I grew up in the far northern suburbs. My dad grew up in a collar suburb. His parents grew up in the city (north and south side). My mom grew up in southern Indiana (aka northern Kentucky, where her parents were from). I spent a significant part of my youth in the Upper Peninsula. 

To people from Chicago (i.e. true Chicagoans, not Chicagoans like me), I have a southern accent. To your "general Chicagoans" I have no accent. To anyone else, I have a Chicago accent. And, when I want to, I can turn on a Chicago accent, Yooper accent, or southern accent that would fool anyone. 

Language is weird. 

Reminded me of the Harkers Island brogue.

I had an uncle who spent much of his youth on the NC outer banks.  His accent was half brogue and half OG Raleighite (back when that was a thing).  He'd fill a pipe with Sir Walter Raleigh and tell stories about flounder giggin'.  I'm sure I have some of the accent but not like 2 generations back. 

Some friends of mine here in the PNW were on tour with their band. They had tire trouble in, IIRC, North Carolina.

They could not communicate with the folks at the tire shop. One member spoke Spanish, as did one guy at the shop.

The issue was resolved by translating from Portlandrian->Spanish->North Carolinean and back the same way.

There’s a NOLA accent, but not one you might expect. It’s not Cajun, but rather something I can only describe as a mix between Chicagoan and Bostonian. 

Everything I've been told is that those of us that live in the Midwest talk quite fast.

More than once while visiting the south I've been asked to slow down.

My wife's family said I had an "accent" when they first met me.  I grew up 40 miles down the road from them in Orangeburg, SC.   People here at work in NW SC say I talk Geechee.  But that can't be.       

dculberson said:

Everyone has an accent, yes even you.

No I don't 

Stampie said:

mazdeuce - Seth said:

My favorite is combined accents. The girl I met in college who was raised in Vietnam and learned British English in London and then moved to Canada. Or occasionally you meet a native Spanish speaker who learned English in Cajun shipyards in Louisiana, that's a fun one to try and listen to.

I love ones like the Korean ethnicity guy I meet that grew up in country Georgia. Almost had to choose my eyes to understand him cause the visual didn't go with the accent.

I once worked with a guy who was Indian, but grew up and essentially learned English in Brooklyn.  Visual-aural confusion x10.  But these days I know quite a few second and third generation Indians who barely know any Indian dialects. Despite appearances, they're 100% American. 

My own accent is a strange thing.  I was born in Georgia, but have lived in PA since 1980.  Other than the occasional "y'all" my accent is dormant.  But if I'm around other southerners it comes back quickly.  This used to annoy my ex- to no end.

Pete Gossett said:

There’s a NOLA accent, but not one you might expect. It’s not Cajun, but rather something I can only describe as a mix between Chicagoan and Bostonian. 

I believe you're describing the Yat accent.  Dawlin'

Coolest accent ever are the “high tiders” from the coastal regions of NC. Pronounced “Hoy Toyewders”. 

I half grew up in southern WV and then Charlotte, NC. I have a mix of WV/NC accent but heavier on the NC. When I moved to NC at 12, people (adults and other kids) were the most absolute and utter a-holes when mocking me for my accent.  People can treat others very badly because of their accents. 

fasted58 said:

Picksburghese 

more dialect than accent tho

 

People in the flyover states and on the west coast will disagree. Way back when I was telemarketing for at&t I'd get called out all the time as being from Pittsburgh by the time I finished saying "hi Mr Cooper, this is rev with At&t". It was really noticeable on my end when I'd call someone out there who used to live around here too. 

Some people, Minnesota area women especially, their laugh gives away their accent more than their voice does which always made me wonder if they were trying to hide it when they spoke. 

I don't have an accent, but somehow people still guess I'm from Canada even after nearly two decades in Colorado. I have no idea what they're talking aboot.

As for singers - the accent is a big part of the flow of music as the shapes of the sound affect the music. It's why Italian opera sounds different from French, the rhythm of the speech is different. And why pop singers sound American and classical singers sound British, those are the sounds the music is written around.

In reply to Keith Tanner :

We can tell when you start throwing in unnecessary “u”s.

scardeal said:

Pete Gossett said:

There’s a NOLA accent, but not one you might expect. It’s not Cajun, but rather something I can only describe as a mix between Chicagoan and Bostonian. 

I believe you're describing the Yat accent.  Dawlin'

Interesting, I’d never heard a name for it.