singing and strumming?

I always have trouble strumming and singing at the same time. I don't have prior experience with string instruments. I've been playing the uke for about 4 months now and I have seen little improvement on my strumming and singing.
Simple down up strums along with singing I can handle, but I always have trouble with more complicated strums like D DU UD strums along with the singing.

Any advice?
How long did it take you to get your strums working along with your singing?

Thanks!!

I think it's just a case of more practice- I have been playing guitar nearly 20 years and there are still some strumming patterns that I have to practise before I can sing them at the same time. It will be worth it! If you feel you aren't getting anywhere, maybe get some lessons from a tutor?

Welcome to the Underground. This question has been asked so many times . . . and since you're very new, here's a post I made a while back. You can also click here for more threads about the subject.

Kanaka916 said:

Strumming is an integral part, but it's not set in stone. Someone can strum a certain way to a song and another person can strum a totally different way and it's still the same song. You gotta find one that fits the rhythm and tempo of the tune. Anyway, here's a list of strum patterns . . .

freedive135 said:

I've seen alot of people asking for strum pattrens...

Here is something I put together from my lessons so far. I don't think I listed any twice.

t=triplet
r=rest
c=carry (like the notes have the little curve above them)

add chunk's, pinkie mutes,turn the rests into mutes, rolls and that slow thumb stroke Aldrine does from Waiting In Vain as you see fit!!!


D DUc UDU

DU DDU DU DDU

D UD UD UD U

r U r U r U r U

r DU r DU r DU r DU

D DU r DUD DU r DU

D D DU

U D D D

D DU DU

DU r U DU

U DUDt U D

U DU DD

U DD U DD

D U DUDU D U D U

DDUD DUDD DDUD DUDD

r D r D r D r D

r DU r DU r DU r DU

r DU r D r DU r D

r DU r DU r

r U DU r U DU

D D D UDU

D D UDU

D D DUDU

now if only I could use them!!!!

Click to expand...

Click to expand...

t=triplet
r=rest
c=carry (like the notes have the little curve above them)

I have a question and I know how stupid it sounds. What is a rest? Is it literally just a little pause? Because I thought the spaces (eg D U DD U) in the strumming patterns were effectively little rests.
Thanks

Ah, found a uke minutes on it! Problem solved

Having trouble strumming and singing at the same time? Boy, I thought it was only just me!!!!

I found it helpful to learn to play songs where I already knew the words by heart (in my case, that was Beatles songs and songs I've known since I was a kid). If you don't have to think about remembering the words, your brain can devote more of its focus to strumming.

When playing my strumming pattern is: U D chunk U U D Chunk UD U D Chunk pinky mute U U D Chunk Elaborate Picking (for me anyway)

When I sing, my strumming pattern turns into: D D D D D D D Chunk D D D D D D D D

LOL

Aloha Nickelworks,
Welcome to the UU and our forums...and the ukulele...to answer your question, I'd start off with easy kid songs that you know the rhythm and timing, ie
twinkle twinkle little star and learn from there. Also start off with a basic stum, whether it be down down etc. or up down, up down etc. concentrate
of hitting all the strings and get a smooth rhythm. It's just the learning curb, Practice, Patience, and perservence are keys to sucess...For motivation
and inspiration, check out and google Musicteacher2010 and keonepax for awesome tutorials.. Good LucK!! MM stan..

Hey! I am still very new at this and for some time actually never thought I could sing and play at the same time but I'm doing it! Don't be afraid to make a song your own. I tend to find a natural rhythm that feels good to strum along with the lyrics and a natural melody that feels good to sing along with the strum.
So...When I'm practicing a new song, I will have it in front of me-lyrics and chords-and I will take turns eliminating nearly all of the strumming and just find the beats which I change chords.
Another exercise is the opposite. I will strum the song while I simply mumble the words to find a melody that works. I will do this over and over in either order before the blanks begin to fill themselves in. Does this make sense? I'm NO expert, and am completely self taught but it seems to be working. I make a little progress every time I play/sing

Hey there.
What I did when I first started playing the guitar was simply to practice a song until I could play it sleeping.
Of course you should start with a song that you know the lyrics to.
Then what I did was basically just to play the song through a couple of times, while using the same strum-pattern throughout the song. Then after a while I would start singing.
The most important thing to me was not to focus on the strum-pattern, because then I would loose it and be unable to strum and sing at the same time.
So simply, don't think too much about the strum-pattern and you'll do alright.