Most Singers Can't Do What Maphra Just Did | Maphra – Unethical (Faouzia cover) | Songwriter Reacts
Listen In Colour with Rachel Walker Mason
26,897 views
Maphra's vocal control is genuinely one of the most technically sophisticated things
I've heard — and I can actually TASTE it. When a singer is exceptional, it tastes
like steak. I'm not joking.
Watch this full reaction (and all my other videos) Ad-Free on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/posts/maphras...
In this video I break down exactly WHY Maphra's voice does something most trained
singers spend their whole careers trying to achieve: seamless larynx control, from
a deep sob quality all the way up to a bright, carrying twang — without a single
clunk. And then, only when the lyric demands it, she unleashes full distortion.
That's the sign of a real artist.
Whether you're a singer, songwriter, or just someone who's always known Maphra is
different but couldn't explain why — this is the breakdown.
🎙️ WHAT YOU'LL LEARN:
• The "sob quality" — why her voice makes you feel emotional before you even
process the lyrics
• How to physically practise low larynx placement (try the exercises with me!)
• Why most singers "clunk" on transitions — and how Maphra eliminates them completely
• The vocal flip: why singing this phrase means NOT singing it
• Why she saves distortion for the final chorus — and why that decision is genius
🎨 COLOUR REPORT:
Mid blue → darker blue → yellow haze → full red. And then, in the final phrase,
back to the most beautiful light blue you've ever heard.
🎵 ABOUT THE SONG:
"Unethical" was written by the extraordinary Faouzia — a songwriter who has written
for BTS and whose lyricism on toxic relationships is genuinely devastating. Maphra's
cover takes that already exceptional song somewhere else entirely.
As a Billboard-charting, Grammy-voting songwriter and Estill-qualified vocal
producer, I analyse music through the lens of both craft and colour. Welcome to
Listen In Colour.
🔗 LINKS:
▶ Maphra's "Unethical" Cover: Faouzia - Unethical (MAPHRA Vocal Cover)
▶ Faouzia's "Unethical" Original: Faouzia - UNETHICAL (Official Music Video)
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
CHAPTERS
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
0:00 Introduction
1:06 First Reaction: "Can She Do Anything I Don't Love?"
1:17 The Sob Technique: Why Her Voice Makes You Cry
2:00 Learn The Larynx Exercise (Try This At Home!)
2:32 Why Most Singers "Clunk" — And Maphra Never Does
3:48 The Vocal Flip: Singing By Not Singing
9:04 Pure Voice vs. Distortion: She Knows When To Stop
10:06 The Songwriter Behind The Song: Who Is Faouzia?
10:35 My Song "Kamikaze" & The Toxic Spiral
11:03 "Vertigo In Your Arms": Lyric By Lyric
12:53 "She's Gone Full Distortion!" — Final Chorus Reaction
13:23 Why Maphra Never Copy-Pastes A Chorus
16:23 The Perfect Ending: From Rage To Sob In One Breath
17:40 Colour Report: Red, Blue & Yellow Through Maphra's Voice
19:24 I Can Taste Her Voice (The Steak Test)
20:23 Support The Channel
👤 About Rachel Walker Mason
BBC-recognised songwriting expert | Grammy voting member | Ivors Academy | Billboard Top 20 | UK Chart Top 10 | Estill-qualified vocal producer | Synesthete 🎨
Support the channel & keep the music reactions coming:
🎨 Support the channel & watch ad-free (and un-obscured) on Patreon: Patreon: RachelWalkerMason
☕ Buy me a tea: https://buymeacoffee.com/rachelwalker...
📌 SUBSCRIBE for weekly songwriter breakdowns, vocal analysis, and first-time reactions from a professional who can't help but see music in colour → https://www.youtube.com/@ListenInColo...
🛋️ Do you like my new sofa? Valencia Home Theatre Seating — the Tuscany Love Seat that finally makes my studio comfortable. Quiet enough for recording, USB-A & USB-C ports, full recline, and storage deep enough for a blanket. Check it out:
https://us.valenciatheaterseating.com...
#Maphra #Faouzia #Unethical #VocalAnalysis #SongwriterReacts
---
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20 Comments
It is all about Faouzias relationship with herself.
Would love to hear ur thoughts on Faouzia🤍🖤
I understand why Maphra covered 'Unethical' . This song was written by Faouzia to herself as a warning to break out of her own cycle, lest she watch herself become a shell of who she is. She doesn't want to keep repeating herself just because others expect something specific. She wants to be genuine or she will watch herself bleed out. It was so cool seeing Faouzia leave a positive comment on Maphra's cover vid.
Her voice is always so gorgeous, and this performance has so much grief expression I almost can’t handle it.
Masterful. Authentic. Powerful. Human. Raw. Artistry
Most Singers Can't Do What Maphra Just Did | Maphra – Unethical (Faouzia cover) | Songwriter Reacts
Listen In Colour with Rachel Walker Mason
26,897 views
Maphra's vocal control is genuinely one of the most technically sophisticated things
I've heard — and I can actually TASTE it. When a singer is exceptional, it tastes
like steak. I'm not joking.
Watch this full reaction (and all my other videos) Ad-Free on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/posts/maphras...
In this video I break down exactly WHY Maphra's voice does something most trained
singers spend their whole careers trying to achieve: seamless larynx control, from
a deep sob quality all the way up to a bright, carrying twang — without a single
clunk. And then, only when the lyric demands it, she unleashes full distortion.
That's the sign of a real artist.
Whether you're a singer, songwriter, or just someone who's always known Maphra is
different but couldn't explain why — this is the breakdown.
🎙️ WHAT YOU'LL LEARN:
• The "sob quality" — why her voice makes you feel emotional before you even
process the lyrics
• How to physically practise low larynx placement (try the exercises with me!)
• Why most singers "clunk" on transitions — and how Maphra eliminates them completely
• The vocal flip: why singing this phrase means NOT singing it
• Why she saves distortion for the final chorus — and why that decision is genius
🎨 COLOUR REPORT:
Mid blue → darker blue → yellow haze → full red. And then, in the final phrase,
back to the most beautiful light blue you've ever heard.
🎵 ABOUT THE SONG:
"Unethical" was written by the extraordinary Faouzia — a songwriter who has written
for BTS and whose lyricism on toxic relationships is genuinely devastating. Maphra's
cover takes that already exceptional song somewhere else entirely.
As a Billboard-charting, Grammy-voting songwriter and Estill-qualified vocal
producer, I analyse music through the lens of both craft and colour. Welcome to
Listen In Colour.
🔗 LINKS:
▶ Maphra's "Unethical" Cover: Faouzia - Unethical (MAPHRA Vocal Cover)
▶ Faouzia's "Unethical" Original: Faouzia - UNETHICAL (Official Music Video)
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
CHAPTERS
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
0:00 Introduction
1:06 First Reaction: "Can She Do Anything I Don't Love?"
1:17 The Sob Technique: Why Her Voice Makes You Cry
2:00 Learn The Larynx Exercise (Try This At Home!)
2:32 Why Most Singers "Clunk" — And Maphra Never Does
3:48 The Vocal Flip: Singing By Not Singing
9:04 Pure Voice vs. Distortion: She Knows When To Stop
10:06 The Songwriter Behind The Song: Who Is Faouzia?
10:35 My Song "Kamikaze" & The Toxic Spiral
11:03 "Vertigo In Your Arms": Lyric By Lyric
12:53 "She's Gone Full Distortion!" — Final Chorus Reaction
13:23 Why Maphra Never Copy-Pastes A Chorus
16:23 The Perfect Ending: From Rage To Sob In One Breath
17:40 Colour Report: Red, Blue & Yellow Through Maphra's Voice
19:24 I Can Taste Her Voice (The Steak Test)
20:23 Support The Channel
👤 About Rachel Walker Mason
BBC-recognised songwriting expert | Grammy voting member | Ivors Academy | Billboard Top 20 | UK Chart Top 10 | Estill-qualified vocal producer | Synesthete 🎨
Support the channel & keep the music reactions coming:
🎨 Support the channel & watch ad-free (and un-obscured) on Patreon: Patreon: RachelWalkerMason
☕ Buy me a tea: https://buymeacoffee.com/rachelwalker...
📌 SUBSCRIBE for weekly songwriter breakdowns, vocal analysis, and first-time reactions from a professional who can't help but see music in colour → https://www.youtube.com/@ListenInColo...
🛋️ Do you like my new sofa? Valencia Home Theatre Seating — the Tuscany Love Seat that finally makes my studio comfortable. Quiet enough for recording, USB-A & USB-C ports, full recline, and storage deep enough for a blanket. Check it out:
https://us.valenciatheaterseating.com...
#Maphra #Faouzia #Unethical #VocalAnalysis #SongwriterReacts
---
Boost your YouTube audience with vidIQ. Use this link to unlock 500 bonus credits when you upgrade to a premium plan: https://vidiq.com/r/?code=gqbsPt
(And yes — I fully nerd out about this stuff. Zero apologies. 😄)