Short vocalist with burn (5)
I believe the answer is:
singe
'burn' is the definition.
(singe is a kind of burn)
'short vocalist' is the wordplay.
'short' means to remove the last letter.
'vocalist' becomes 'singer' (synonyms).
'singer' with its last letter removed is 'SINGE'.
'with' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for singe that I've seen before include "Burn slightly on surface" , "Scorch slightly on surface" , "Effect of fire" , "Char, burn slightly" , "superficial injury" .)