It is the raspy, low voice synonymous with celebrities like Kim Kardashian, Paris Hilton, and Julia Fox. However, a new study reveals that vocal fry is more likely to be used by men than women.
Challenging Assumptions
Researchers have challenged the assumption that vocal fry—also described as a 'creaky voice'—is a hallmark of young women's speech. Instead, they argue the opposite is true, turning the stereotype on its head.
'The narrative took hold in the early 2010s, when a wave of mainstream media articles framed creaky voice as a rising affectation of young women,' said Jeanne Brown from McGill University. After asking listeners to rate voice creakiness, she discovered that the main driver of vocal fry was low pitch rather than gender. It turns out men and older speakers exhibit more creak than young women.
'The conflict between that finding and everyday perception, where women are routinely flagged as creakier, suggests the bias is real but socially constructed, rather than grounded in how women actually sound,' she said.
Cultural Examples
Many celebrities, like Kim Kardashian, Paris Hilton, and Julia Fox, speak with vocal fry—a raspy, low voice that drags out certain syllables. In recent decades, vocal fry has been linked to a lack of confidence and intelligence, with some arguing it sounds unpolished and unprofessional.
Famous examples of vocal fry used by women include Britney Spears' opening lyrics 'Oh baby, baby' in her song Baby One More Time and Sia's heavy use in Chandelier. For men, David Bowie's Let's Dance, Right Said Fred's I'm Too Sexy, Sean Connery's iconic line 'Bond, James Bond,' and Morgan Freeman's narration are prime examples of masculine vocal fry.
Social Bias and Perception
Brown suggests that people may have a social expectation about who 'should' sound creaky, which could explain why the bias continues to spread. She plans to continue studying social biases in vocal perceptions.
'I hope it shifts the central question from 'Why do young women creak so much?' to 'Why do we perceive and judge creak the way we do?'' she said. She added: 'Advice telling women to avoid vocal fry to protect their careers and social perception puts the burden on speakers rather than challenging listeners' biases, and that framing does real harm.'
Research Findings
The study, presented at the 190th Meeting of the Acoustical Society of America, states: 'Acoustic analyses reveal that men and older speakers exhibit more creak than young women.' The abstract argues that these results provide little empirical support for the notion that young women are creakier than other speakers, contrary to popular belief.
'Capturing the complexity of creak requires an integrative approach that considers interactions between acoustic, perceptual, and social factors, rather than treating any single dimension or demographic as explanatory.'
Related Discoveries
Experts have previously discovered that whales and dolphins also use a type of vocal fry to catch prey. Marine mammals such as sperm whales, killer whales, oceanic dolphins, and porpoises have evolved an air-driven nasal sound with similarities to vocal fry. Scientists from Denmark found that these animals have at least three vocal registers: vocal fry, chest register, and falsetto.
