Who Are The Best Singers Of All Time

The 15 Best Singers of All Time

If you’re looking for a heated argument with passionate musicians, try asking them to name the top 10 singers of all time. With so much subjectivity involved, you could end up with 50 different names. However, thanks to the abundance of opinions, we can gauge which vocalists have the most widespread appeal. Of course, personal preference will still come into play, leading to complaints about who’s on the list and who’s not.

Nevertheless, every singer on the list would likely make it onto most people’s lists. Interestingly, only a couple of them would also appear on the list of the world’s 10 richest musicians. You’ll probably be able to guess which ones as we count down the list of the best singers of all time. So, without further delay, let’s begin.

15. Paul McCartney

Soft Rock & Pop

Paul McCartney is a multi-instrumentalist that made his name with the Beatles. He’s written and co-written 32 songs that have reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, usually co-written with bandmate John Lennon. His solo career, his band Wings, and his collaborations with Michael Jackson are all high points of an incredible run that still continues today.

Sir Paul has been knighted, honored, and awarded in ways too numerous to list, and has one of the most pleasant voices to ever grace the microphone. He’s one of the most influential musicians and people on the planet.

14. Adele

Pop Soul

Adele Laurie Blue Adkins, popularly known as Adele, has, in a short while, become one of the most iconic and influential singers of all time. From her humble beginnings in West Norwood, South London, Adele has used her powerful voice and soulful storytelling to capture the hearts of millions. She burst onto the music scene with her debut album 19 in 2008, which featured poignant ballads and evocative lyrics that gained her widespread acclaim and commercial success. Her subsequent albums, 21 (2011) and 25 (2015), cemented her status as a global superstar, achieving unprecedented sales records and garnering numerous awards. In a landscape dominated by overproduced tracks and elaborate visuals, Adele’s raw talent and vulnerability have truly set her apart, resonating deeply with her legions of fans.

Adele’s impact on the music industry is apparent not only through her record-breaking sales and countless accolades but through her influence on other artists. She has reinvigorated the ballad genre and opened doors for other soulful singers. Her ability to captivate audiences with her powerful vocal range, emotional depth, and relatable lyrics has earned her comparisons to legendary artists like Etta James and Whitney Houston. Despite the pressures and expectations that come with such success, Adele has remained grounded and focused on her craft, consistently delivering breathtaking performances and showcasing her unique talent. In a career that has spanned over a decade, Adele has etched her name in the annals of music history as one of the all-time greats.

13. James Brown

Funk & Soul

James Brown is one of the most high-energy vocalists ever. You can hear it oozing through his recordings, let alone if you see him perform live. The amount of honors, awards, and halls of fame that he’s in are endless. He features at the top of most lists of greatest artists ever, let alone best singers.

You know a singer left a huge legacy when they are the most sampled artist of all time, an honor that Brown holds. Imagine the royalties that pour in from that alone. Few artists have been given titles that everyone agrees on, and James Brown is most definitely the “Godfather of Soul”.

12. Ella Fitzgerald

Swing, BeBop, Pop, Jazz, & Blues

Known as “The First Lady of Song”, Ella Fitzgerald is recognized not only for her entertainment value but her vocal skill set. Professionals respected her diction, purity of tone, intonation, timing, phrasing, and improvisation with her scat singing. Her most prestigious accolades are 14 Grammys, the National Medal of Arts, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Her musical career grew with the Chick Webb Orchestra, grew with her illustrious solo career, and hit a peak when she began appearing as a guest on daytime and nighttime TV shows and having roles in films. She cemented her reputation as one of the best singers ever once she began collaborating with other vocal greats.

11. Marvin Gaye

Soul, R&B, Funk, Pop, & Jazz

Marvin Gaye helped shape the sound of Motown, garnering him the titles of “Prince of Motown” and the “Prince of Soul”. He went on to influence the sound of future R&B sub-genres like neo-soul and quiet storm. To no surprise, he landed in the R&B Music, Songwriters, and Rock and Roll halls of fame, as well as earn a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.

Gaye’s four-octave vocal range was well known, and a testament to his singing talents, because he mainly recorded in baritone and tenor ranges, which are quite the opposite of each other. He’s widely covered and sampled by artists in tons of genres, including even metal.

10. Beyonce

Due to her powerful vocal range, dynamic stage presence, and unparalleled influence on modern pop and R&B music. She is part of so many ranking on our site.

9. Celine Dion

Depending on who you ask, might even be their top spot of all time. Some put her in the same category as Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey, an absolute world-class talent.

8. Whitney Houston

R&B, Soul, Gospel, & Dance

Whitney Houston is the most awarded female artist of all time and one of the bestselling music artists ever. She’s the only artist to have seven consecutive #1 singles on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 charts. Like others, she also successfully merged into film acting.

Houston’s nickname in the industry is “The Voice” (and also the “Queen of Pop”) due to her exceptional talent. Her vocal range falls within the mezzo-soprano label. She ranks in nearly every “top vocalist” list ever.

7. Elvis Presley

Rock, pop, rockabilly

Hailed as the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll, Elvis Presley is a 20th-century icon. He recorded numerous studio albums and soundtracks, and appeared in several Hollywood films. Presley holds numerous records, including the most songs to chart in the top 40 and top 100 on Billboard, and the most gold albums at 101.

His sales have surpassed one billion units. His popularity has even extended beyond music and into the science world, having a spider named after him, the Paradonea presley.

6. Frank Sinatra

Jazz, Swing, Easy Listening, & Pop

If you thought Aretha Franklin sold a lot of records at 75 million, Frank Sinatra has sold twice as many. He’s possibly the most popular and influential singer of the 20th century. You’ve probably heard of the Rat Pack, a crew of artists that ran the Las Vegas casino venue circuit for a long time. He was the lead member.

The amount of lifetime achievement awards, music awards, and even governmental awards are too many to count. Time magazine even calls him one of the most influential people in general. To this day, his voice is one of the most recognizable, still heard frequently in all forms of entertainment. He was an incredible showman that left as big a mark as Michael Jackson.

5. Stevie Wonder

Soul, Pop, R&B, Funk, & Jazz

Stevie Wonder is one of the most successful songwriters and musicians of all time. He’s seen as a pioneer of genres such as R&B, funk, rock, pop, and soul due to his heavy inclusion of electronic instruments before others caught on.

He’s sold over 100 million records and has won 25 Grammys. He’s in many halls of fame and even has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Unique among musicians, he was even named a United Nations Messenger of Peace. He was given many honorary degrees, including a Doctor of Music from Yale University.

4. Mariah Carey

R&B, Pop, Hip Hop, & Soul

Mariah Carey is called the “Songbird Supreme” due to her unbelievable five-octave vocal range and use of the whistle register. Her first album topped the Billboard chart for 11 consecutive weeks and is the only artist to have their first five singles all reach #1. She holds the record for the most #1 singles by a solo artist.

Though she cites many in the top 10 as her personal influences, the public most compared her to Whitney Houston (below) and Celine Dion, whom she also recognizes as influential on her vocal style. MTV and Blender magazine both ranked her as the top greatest voice in music.

3. Freddie Mercury

Hard Rock, Music Hall, Glitter, & Prog Rock

Freddie Mercury is possibly the best lead singer in rock music, ever. He’s known for having an unbelievable four-octave vocal range. Though he passed on at an early age from an AIDS-related illness, he still managed to find his way into every music hall of fame and receive countless awards. He’s even ranked as one of the greatest Britons, according to the BBC.

His life and singing talent were so incredible that there have been stage plays, musicals, biographical films, and TV shows all based upon his life and that of his rock band Queen. With Queen, he’s one of the bestselling artists of all time.

2. Aretha Franklin

Soul, Jazz, Blues, Doo-Wop, R&B, & Gospel

Aretha Franklin’s career finally took off in 1967 with her hit song “Respect”, and that attention helped everyone recognize how amazing her vocal talents and other songs were. It didn’t take long for her peers to deem her “The Queen of Soul”. Even in 1998 she was still topping the charts and releasing gold albums.

She’s had 112 singles on the Billboard charts, won 18 Grammy Awards, and has become one of the bestselling music artists of all time, selling over 75 million records globally. She’s also the first female to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. She’s in nearly every other music hall of fame, too.

1. Michael Jackson

Genre: Pop, Soul, Funk, R&B, Rock, Disco, & Dance

Michael Jackson is without a doubt one of the best singers of all time, if not the greatest. Like others, he was given a title: the “King of Pop”. He’s one of the most significant cultural figures and is the greatest entertainer in the history of music. Even attempting to talk about all of his awards would be pointless. They even extend into the dance world. He is truly the king.

Jackson credited James Brown as one of his influences, as well as Diana Ross from whom he learned to interject sounds like “ooh” into his vocals. He began singing as a soprano, descended to a tenor, and ultimately settled on the higher falsetto range.

Michael Jackson is known for many hit songs throughout his career as a singer, songwriter, and dancer. Here are some of his most popular and well-known songs: