Okay, so obviously something like the greatest singer of all-time is entirely subjective. For the study, Concert Hotels sifted through each vocalists body of work, and notated the highest and lowest tones recorded.
The artists with the highest range include Axl Rose, Mariah Carey, Prince, Steven Tyler, James Brown… really people you’d expect to be at the top of a list of vocal ranges. At the bottom, well Luke Bryan, Taylor Swift, Karen Carpenter, Sam Cooke, and Justin Bieber. With the exception of Sam Cooke, who has one of the most soulful voices of all time (subjective much?), none of those bottom-listers are particularly surprising.
Take a look at the list below. You can also click on the list, which will allow you to sort by highest and lowest note sung.
Obviously there are numerous other factors into judging a vocalist’s abilities. Emotion, timbre, lyrics, stage presence… these are just a handful of countless qualities that define a singer. But it’s certainly fun to scroll through!
-David Melamed (@DMelamz)