Elis Regina was a very important artist in the construction of Brazilian popular music and her career was traversed by various changes in the music industry. Understanding the voice as a performance requires its socio-cultural dimension and, therefore, its relationship with the cultural environment from which and for which it is produced. The aim of this study is to identify the vocal quality adjustments used by Elis at different points in her career and to discuss, based on performance studies within the field of Communication, the possible relationships between the media context, the dynamics of the music market and the transformations in Elis' voice. The Vocal Profile Analysis Scheme (VPAS) was used to describe the vocal quality adjustments used by Elis in five relevant performances from five different moments in her career. To enable discussion of the voice as a performance, bibliographical research was carried out on the life and work of Elis Regina and the dynamics of the music market in the context of these performances. This information was discussed using performance studies literature. The analyses showed that the vocal quality adjustments - which result in the timbre - used by Elis Regina in the different performances were different, so that they are almost opposite when comparing "Arrastão" - low larynx, pharyngeal expansion, protruded lips, elevated tongue body, decreased tongue extension - with "Como nossos pais" - elevated larynx, vocal tract and laryngeal hyperfunction, increased jaw and lip extension. Each performance analyzed marks a phase in Elis' career. The information collected about her life and her interaction with other players in the music industry suggests that the changes to Elis' voice were shaped by cultural, communicational and marketing logics and interactions with other bodies, be they the singers she listened to, the audience of the television programs, producers, musicians or other professionals she worked with. The work highlighted the importance of understanding the voice as a performance, helping to strengthen the link between the sciences that study the physiology and acoustics of the voice and the sciences that focus on its socio-cultural implications. It has also contributed to filling the gap in academic studies that focus on the transformations of the voice of Elis Regina, an artist so important to the history of Brazilian popular music.