Just like any other genre, rock metal has introduced to the world various new sounds, performed by different artists nurturing diverse vocal range. Irrespective of the decade you pick from the history, you find various artists being at the center of everything. The rock artists always lookout for opportunities to excite the audience with their screaming voices and evolving excitement, that can be well heard within a few miles. Rock has always been filled with female rockers who from time to time have graced the stage with their ethereal performances. These ladies have dominated the scene with their aggressive rock sounds but unfortunately have never been acknowledged for their dynamic craftsmanship. They are the ones who focus on the craft rather than the count of hits. With their unwavering confidence and unparalleled zeal, they have shaped the rock scenario without compromising their stature and art.
The music industry has encountered thousands of artists who fake their way to enjoy a lasting impression but not them. Since the beginning of time, these rock warriors have embraced rock as a lifestyle more than just a mere genre. So, here’s highlighting the top ten greatest hard rock singers of all times, who with their vocals, musicianship, songwriting, and style have added tremendous edge to the hard rock industry.
1. Dorothy Martin- Dorothy
Dorothy is an American rock band from California consisting of lead vocalist Dorothy Martin who has released their first project back in 2014, a self-titled EP. It was in early 2013 when Dorothy Martin was first introduced to producer and guitarist Mark Jackson so after hearing her voice was completely baffled and found something tremendously powerful in her voice. According to his statement, Dorothy sounded cool and had the potential to make it big. In 2014 what started as a piano ballad soon turned into the perfect concoction of modern rock, the video for After Midnight. The song quickly climbed all the charts. Over the years the band has released several enthusiastic compositions, for example in 2015 Dorothy headlined a show at The Satellite in Los Angeles before a chain of SXSW performances. In 2016 Dorothy went for a tour as an opening act for Halestorm. Her song Missile became the soundtrack on the trailer for Series 2 of Poldark. Coming to 2017 the band geared up to release their second studio album named 28 Days in the Valley where Dorothy Martin described the album as having more feminine energy with a cool desert vibe. In 2019 she was all packed to headlining a tour with Spirit Animal. It can be said that not many bands can carry the torch for raw classic rock. The story of Dorothy sounds like it’s straight out of 1972 and is completed with one of the bluesiest lead vocalists. She sounds as if she has experienced the inner struggles as she sings most genuinely using rock sound to document her wild memories in rock and roll. Dorothy has a couple of albums under her name and her psychedelic aesthetics mixed with the riffs makes her sounds like the combination of Robert Plant and Stevie Nicks.
2. Shirley Manson- Garbage
A Scottish singer, musician, songwriter, and actress who is best known as the lead singer of the alternative rock band Garbage is Shirley Manson. The terrific singer gained media attention for her fortnight style, distinctively catchy voice, and unapologetic rebellious attitude. She commuted from her home city in Edinburgh to move out with Garbage. Manson started off her musical journey during her teen days when she was being approached to perform backing keyboards and vocals for the band Goodbye Mr. Mackenzie. It was then when she quickly grew into a permanent member of the group and then developed an unmatched stage presence. The singer was then approached by her band’s record label who shared the idea of launching her as a solo artist and going forward recorded an album with her band with the name Angelfish. It was after the release of the album that Garbage invited her to an audition and recorded her vocals for a couple of songs. The self-titled recorded album was a huge commercial and critical success, which was then followed by five studio albums and several Grammy Award-nominated Version 2.0 and multiple hit albums. Overall Garbage has toured and sold over 12 million records. In 2008 Shirley was cast in her first professional acting role during the second and final season of Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles. Manson made her first public appearance in 1970 with her older sister at the local Church Hill Theatre. She possesses a wide vocal range and has been specifically noted for her stand-apart qualities and skills, as well as her emotive delivery style. After joining with Garbage, she did pretty much everything. It’s rather impossible to categorize her name under one specific genre. From more gothic starting to something completely experimental with industrial music and trip-hop, nothing was off the table for Shirley. But amidst the ever-changing soundscape, she maintained a consistent attitude. Her unique tone sounded sultry and also dangerous at the same time. She is worth the success that shook the system with her uncompromising sound.
3. Kathleen Hanna- Bikini Kill
An American singer, artist, musician, feminist activist, punk zine writer, and also the pioneer of the punk riot grrrl movement, Kathleen Hanna was the lead singer of the feminist punk band Bikini Hill before she fronted Le Tigre in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Born on 12th November the hard rock singer took her first interest in feminism at the age of nine after her mother took her to a rally. Hanna started off doing spoken word performances that addressed violence against women and sexism. Later on, Hanna left spoken word in favor of music after she shared a conversation with one of her favorite writers named Kathy Acker. She then formed a band with Arbogast and Carland named Amy Carter. She later started another band called Viva Knieval that toured through the United States, soon after it got dismantled. It was finally when she joined the band Bikini Hill that soon became a part of the seminal Olympia of the early 1990s. One major intention of the band was to inspire more and more women to join the male-dominated punk rock scene. The band released its first self-titled EP Kill Rock Stars. The first two Bikini Kill EPs were released on the CD in 1993 and the band went forward to release two more full-length albums in 1994 and 1996, and 1998. However, Bikini Kill broke up in mid-1998. From 2000 till the present, Hanna began composing her solo project called Julie Ruin. Her vocal style with the proto-typical Valley Girl accent stood out in its dynamic way as she made it a point to get a woman’s voice heard in the rock scenario. Hanna’s outspoken attitude, strong intention towards feminism has always contributed to her work. She also became a voice for third-wave feminism and the Riot Grrrl movement in 1991. Moreover, Hanna’s contribution to feminism is ell reflected in her songwriting style. A documentary film has also been made on Hanna in 2013 titled The Punk Singer detailing her life, career, and also revealed her long battle with Lyme disease.
4. Courtney Love- Hole
Courtney Michelle Love is an American singer, songwriter, and actress who has made her presence most notably felt in the alternative and grunge scenes during most of the part in the 1990s, as her career longed for over four decades. The diva rose to prominence as the lead vocalist of the alternative rock band named Hole which she had formed back in 1989. She was drawn to media attention for her uninhibited live performances and also her confrontational songwriting, and also for her highly publicized personal life. In 2020 NME called her one of the most influential singers in the alternative culture to have existed in the last 30 years. Raised in Portland, Courtney played in a series of short-lived bands but was much active in the local punk scene. She also appeared in supporting roles in the Alex Cox films Sid and Nancy and Straight to Hell before she finally formed the band Hole in Los Angeles with Erc Erlandson. The band soon received critical acclamation for their 1991 debut album Live Through This and met multi-platinum sales. Love continued to work as an actress in the early 2000s and appeared in several big-budget films like Man on the Moon and Trapped before she finally released her first solo album America’s Sweetheart. Countless people have tried to denounce Love but she is completely unmatched. Her way of singing is polished for the kind of music she plays and it sounds as if she is doing a mock-up of the repetitive alt-rock styles.
5. Laura Jane Grace – Against Me!
The American musician who is best known as the singer, founder, songwriter, and also the guitarist of the punk rock band Against Me! Is Laura Jane Grace. Apart from this, Grace also fronts the band Laura Jane Grace & The Devouring Mothers, which is a solo project that she started in 2016. She is notable for being one of the first highly prominent and visible punk rock musicians to have steeped out as a transgender, after she publicly declared in May 2012. Born in Georgia, Grace bought her first guitar when she was eight years old as she initially took her guitar lessons from an army officer’s wife. While she was in her junior high school, Grace became a huge fan of the punk rock genre, attached to the anarchistic and nihilistic ideals of the genre. Sat the age of 13, she played bass in her first band named The Black Shadows and the Leather Dice. In 1997, when Grace was age 17 she started writing songs naming the musical project Against Me! And at 18 she began performing as Against Me!. Her songs mainly drew influence from acoustic protest music and covered topics like a class struggle. Over the years as Against Me!’s popularity increased, Grace felt much alienated from the male-dominated punk scene. In 2005, the band gained more mainstream exposure and Grace swore off other expressions of femininity and also her cross-dressing sense. In 2008, Grace released her first solo named Heart Burns and the band released its fifth studio album White Crosses in 2010, which became their most successful and reached number 34 on the Billboard 200. Being one of the first high-profile trans-front women, Laura nurtures one of the most badass stories in the punk-rock scenario. Over the years she has gracefully turned herself into one of the most outspoken front women to have existed in the past century. In an age that seems deadest with the set status quotient, Laura is a stand-out.
6. Lzzy Hale- Halestorm
Born on October 10, 1983, Lzzy Hale is an American singer, songwriter, and musician who is most popular for being the lead singer and also the rhythm guitarist of the hard rock band named Halestorm, which she co-founded along with her brother Arejay Hale in 1997. She started writing and performing music in 1997 and gained success as Halestorm’s lead singer and also for her guest appearances alongside artists like Eric Church, Machine Gun Kelly, Lindsey Stirling, and others. For many years, Hale has been listed as one of the Revolver Magazine’s Hottest, either in the magazine or in its Hottest Chicks calendar. As an artist, she has collaborated with several bands so far. In the history of rock, Lzzy certainly has one of the most aggressive and ferocious vocal styles that she uses to reach deep down in her soul for some of her tracks like Miss the Misery. By stylistically combining the sounds of glam rock, metal, with the slightest hints of pop sensibilities, Hale can be regarded as one of the more musical performers seen in recent memory as she beautifully trades her music with straps on her guitar by opposing the traditional styles of the hard rock scene.
7. Grace Slick- Jefferson Airplane
A retired American singer, songwriter, and musician who played a key role in San Francisco’s psychedelic music scene during the mid-1960s is Grace Slick. Having performed with The Great Society, Jefferson Starship, Jefferson Airplane, and Starship, her music career spanned for over four decades. She even enjoyed a bright solo career where she provided her vocals on several popular songs like Somebody to Love, White Rabbit, and others. Born on October 30, 1939, in Illinois, with the introduction of her music and sound, the entire concept of then rock music was changed forever. The story of the original bluesy songs for people to dance along to has been long past now. Whenever she stepped up on the microphone, it was a different scenario altogether. Grace made waves on the San Francisco landscape in the late 60s where she was every bit wild in her approach. She has a slick voice with tremendous power and energy to completely blow away the kinds without the need for any guitar. Reckless in her approach combined with an unapologetic attitude, her songs were everything volatile. Slick was named The Chrome Nun by David Crosby. Following the Jefferson Airplane reunion, Slick retired from the music business and she was someone who has never shied away from getting old which was the main reason behind her retirement.
8. Ann Wilson- Heart
Born on June 19, 1950, Ann Dustin Wilson is an American musician who is most famous for being the lead singer and songwriter of the famous rock band Heart. She has been a part of Heart since the early 1970s along with her younger sister Nancy Wilson who is also a member of the band. Heart has released multiple albums throughout the late 1970s and the 1980s. Over the years, Heart has sold over 35 million records worldwide and has also placed top ten albums on the Billboard 200 during the 1970s, 1980s, 1990, and 2010s. Wilson marked herself number 78 in Hit Parader’s 2006 list of Greatest Heavy Metal Vocalists of All Time. Wilson released her first solo album Hope & Glory on September 11, 2007, and in 2012, she sang an original arrangement of The Star-Spangled Banner. In 2017, Wilson got featured in a film for the first time. Wilson and her sister quickly turned into some of the biggest and most successful stars in the country, especially at a time when women were not allowed to be shown as rock stars. Ann’s voice could shake the rafters depending on what song she chose to sing. Her voice soared throughout the 80s in everything starting from R&B to pop. Moreover, apart from singing, her unique abilities in writing and composing fantastic tunes were also assisted by some spiritual guide.
9. Joan Jett
Born on September 22, 1958, Joan Jett is an American singer, songwriter, musician, composer, record producer, and also an actress who is best known for her work as the frontwoman of her band named Joan Jett & the Blackhearts. She is also much popular for founding and performing with the Runaways. Some of Jett’s most notable songs include Bad Reputation, Do You Wanna Touch Me (Oh Yeah), Crimson and Clover, and many more. The sensational rock singer has a mezzo-soprano vocal range and has three albums under her cover that has been certified as platinum or gold. She has also been a feminist icon throughout her career and has also been described as the Queen of Rock n Roll. In the year 2015, Joan Jett & the Blackhearts were inducted into the Rock n roll Hall of Fame. In 1979, Jett started pursuing her solo career in England and had recorded three songs over that period. Upon her arrival on the scene, it was like the arrival of punk rock in the late 70s. With her emergence, it meant that it was now the time for new looks, new approaches, new tricks. It did not take much time for her to become one of the greatest women to have emerged o=in the rock scene whose every rock song was a blueprint of the rowdy rock and roll, that everyone would love tuning into during their youth. From her performance in Bad Reputation or the Down and Dirty love song I Hate Myself for Loving You, she always had a knack for writing marvelous tunes and her tunes were impossible to duplicate. Jett was one of the first female punk rock figures who always wore her guitar like a badge of honor and it seemed that she could put her life while performing any music.
10. Janis Joplin
Born on January 19, 1943, Janis Lyn Joplin was an American singer and songwriter who sang soul, rock, and blues music. Bering one of the most successful and widely popular rock singers of her era, Janis was significantly noted for her powerful mezzo-soprano vocal style and her electric stage presence. It was in 1967 when she rose to fame after following her appearance at the Monterey Pop Festival where she was the lead singer of the San Francisco psychedelic rock band named Big Brother and the Holding Company. After only releasing two albums with the band, Janis left Big Brother to start her career as a solo artist with her backing groups. Joplin’s five singles reached the Billboard Hot 100 and some of her most famous compositions include Piece of My Heart, Cry Baby, Ball and Chain, and many more. Unfortunately, she dies of an accidental heroin overdose in 1970 when she was only 27-years-old, after having released three albums. However, a fourth album was released in January 1971 three months after her death, named Pearl. The album went ahead to reach number one on the Billboard charts. Rolling Stone ranked her number 46 on its 2004 list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time and number 28 on its 2008 list of 100 Greatest Singers of All Time. Janis remains one of the top-selling musicians in the United States with certifications of 18.5 million albums sold. Whenever someone is going to talk about the origin of rock and roll, Janis’s name is surely going to be remembered forever. She had a voice that was not searching to impress others but rather she was a woman who exercises the demons in her soul through the power of her music and songs. Few of her songs like Me and Bobby McGee showed how vulnerable someone can be as she leaves her soul somewhere between the tunes. She certainly lived her Rock n Roll life to the fullest even in her short life span.