Dr Marisa Lee Naismith
Dr. Marisa Lee Naismith is a voice researcher, educator, transformational life coach, and industry mentor with over 45 years of experience in the performing arts industry. She is an award-winning vocalist, internationally recognised singing teacher, speaker, and presenter, known globally for her contributions to Contemporary Commercial Music (CCM) pedagogy and the professional development of singers, creatives, and voice professionals.
Dr. Naismith earned her PhD with research focused on the training methodologies for singers across CCM styles, providing valuable insights into the evolving landscape of vocal instruction and artist development. She currently teaches in the Bachelor of Music Program at Queensland Conservatorium, Griffith University, where she mentors emerging vocalists and shares her expertise in CCM pedagogy, performance training, artistry, and career sustainability.
As an author and researcher, Dr. Naismith has co-authored peer-reviewed articles published in the Journal of Singing and Voice and Speech Review. In 2022, she published her book Singing Contemporary Commercial Music Styles: A Pedagogical Framework, a comprehensive resource for singing teachers and professional voice users seeking evidence-based approaches to CCM vocal training. She has also contributed as a co-author to Voice and Identity (2025) and is currently contributing to additional publications, including a chapter in The Oxford Handbook of Vocal Pedagogy, scheduled for publication in 2026.
Dr. Naismith has presented her research at prestigious international conferences including ICVT (Stockholm, Vienna & Toronto), The Voice Foundation Symposium (Philadelphia), PEVOC (Florence, Copenhagen & Santander), and ANATS National Conferences (Hobart, Leura, Adelaide & Melbourne). In addition to her academic and teaching work, she is the creator and host of the globally recognised A Voice and Beyond podcast, which has achieved over one million downloads across more than 120 countries.
After many years of working closely with creatives, singers, educators, and voice professionals, helping them define their career goals and develop strategies to bring those goals to fruition — Dr. Naismith discovered the profound impact that mindset, vision, and personal transformation have on long-term success and fulfilment.
This led her to become certified as a Life Mastery Consultant through the Brave Thinking Institute, where she studied the art and science of bringing a vision to life. Through this work, she combines practical strategy with transformational mindset principles to help individuals move beyond self-doubt, overwhelm, fear, and limitation, and step into lives and careers aligned with their deepest vision and purpose.
Through her coaching, teaching, speaking, and mentoring, Dr. Naismith’s mission is to empower others with the clarity, confidence, tools, and strategies needed to achieve professional success, personal growth, and lasting career sustainability in the arts and beyond.