Who was the best female singer of the 20th century/21 century so far?

OP, you left out DL's favorite.

Judy was one of the most talented singers ever. She also had a lot of pain and struggle throughout her life. Despite that, she had a good heart, which is hard to encounter in Hollywood. At a time when gay people were oppressed beyond belief, they identified with her struggles and she theirs.

Define "best." The one I like the most?

Who the fuck is Jennifer Warnes. And did Jazz and Big Band never happen? God you are narrow minded.

Streisand. Hands down.

Judy Garland's voice gave everybody the feels.

Ella Fitzgerald not on the list. Worthless post.

For r4.

Bette Midler? Peggy Lee? Judy Collins? Jennifer fucking Warnes?? These are some of what you consider to be the best? Holy fuck, OP is an idiot of epic proportions.

Where the fuck is Rebecca Black???

WORST POLL EVER!

Lucille Cataldo

I would have put Dolly Parton and Karen Carpenter higher on this list. I think the list captures some different demographics and preferences than our the Datalounge family. Karen Carpenter has such a classic and recognizable beauty to it.

Remove Bette Midler’s name and replace it with Miss Karen Carpenter!

[quote]Judy Garland's voice gave everybody the feels.

Indeed, I often became violently ill.

Even Doris Day was a much better singer than Bette Midler.

And where the FUCK is Aretha Franklin, you racist piece of shit?

"Define "best." The one I like the most?"

Exactly. I was going to say "favorite," but saying "best" would certainly result in more opinions. But sure, who is your favorite?

Nina Simone

Aretha Franklin

Ella Fitzgerald

Marian Anderson

Rosemary Clooney

Dusty Springfield

Stevie Nicks

Tina Turner

Selena

Diana Ross

Cher

Norah Jones

Gladys Knight

Linda Ronstadt

Annie Lennox

Dionne Warwick

Minnie Riperton

Mama Cass

Doris Day

Roberta Flack

Kate Bush. Massive range, a unique tone, wasn't afraid to make her voice ugly if it was needed for the song. Early in her career she focused on stretching as high as she could, but in the middle years (The Dreaming -The Red Shoes) she truly brought out the range in her voice.

Her expression of emotion through her voice is incredible, and she isn't afraid to break the rules, and not sing the way that vocal coaches will teach you to sing, in order to get the sound she wanted.

She managed to do all of it while being a smoker as well, though thankfully she quit before totally destroying her voice like Joni Mitchell did.

Whitney is incredibly over-rated.

I don't know about "best," but my favorite female singer of the twentieth century is Linda Ronstadt.

No question: EDITH PIAF.

"I would have put Dolly Parton and Karen Carpenter higher on this list. I think the list captures some different demographics and preferences than our the Datalounge family. Karen Carpenter has such a classic and recognizable beauty to it."

OP here. I absolutely would add Dolly and Karen to the list. And as someone above mentioned, I was trying to add some diversity and styles/eras to the list. If you go beyond 10 choices in a poll, though, there really is no point. That's why you ask for "others." But I agree about Dolly and Karen. I love them both.

Streisand and Houston are probably the two top picks, but I definitely would replace Warnes and Midler with Ella Fitzgerald and Karen Carpenter.

Ann and Nancy Wilson did a tribute to Led Zeppelin, and if you ask me, their performance outshone the original version.

There's two lady talents for ya, hoss!

By the way, if anyone dares say Madonna, Janbot or Beyonce, they hace missed the point of "best singer."

Sarah Vaughan

Beanie Feldstein

Lea Michele

[quote] Ann and Nancy Wilson did a tribute to Led Zeppelin, and if you ask me, their performance outshone the original version.

It's a good thing no one asked you.

Shirley Bassey, Carly Simon, Whitney, Barbra, Stevie Nicks, Judy Kuhn, Aretha, and Miss Diana Ross. Those are voices!!

Julie Andrews

Astrid Varnay. Her Brünnhildes, Elektras and Ortruds are the stuff of legend. In contemporary music? Floor Jensen hands down.

R19, again: You cannot list 30 people on a poll. I agree with all of your choices being great vocalists. If I could add to the poll, I would definitely add Aretha, Ella, Linda Ronstadt, Annie Lennox and Doris Day. As much as I love Stevie, Dusty, Tina, Cher, Norah, Gladys, Dionne, I prefer the others. And anyone who doubts Jennifer Warnes has never listened to her.

I voted for Whitney, but I think Mariah Carey is probably the better singer technically.

Yes, Mariah is excellent.

C K

Pia Zadora

OP is an AncientGay.

Where the fuck is Amy Winehouse?

Debbie Gibson

What R30 said!

[quote] Pia Zadora

That's Golden-Globe winner Pia Zadora to you, buddy.

Katie Laing and Paula Abdul and Janet Jackson and Milli Vanilli (the ones that lip synced).

Katie Laing??

Katie Laing was a chanteuse and lesbian icon.

Interesting. There is another singer kd lang who fits that same description. I wonder if they know each other.

K.d. Lang? Seriously? The bitch had one hit.

K.d. Lang? I wonder if SHE knows kd lang or Katie Laing.

Ella Fitzgerald

Celine Dion owns this.

Not who I like the most, but quality of voice, I'd say Judy Garland and kd lang. Ann Wilson had a great voice too and could be included on this list.

Anita Baker!

[quote] Katie Laing was a chanteuse and lesbian icon.

But poor Katie never got the attention she deserved because she was overshadowed by her similarly named Canadian rival.

R46 is this month's poster child for Dunning Kruger Syndrome.

Streisand and Karen Carpenter.

I also loved Toni Tonielle (sp?)

John Oates, best daddy 🥵🍒🥒💦💦💦💦💦

Sarah Vaughan, Shirley Bassey, Dusty Springfield, Gladys Knight, Linda Ronstadt, Chaka Khan, Karen Carpenter

Bette? Ahahahahahahahaha

Someone said Dolly? What? She doesn’t have a great voice at all.

I LOL Mariah wasn’t on here which she shouldn’t be.

Pat Benatar.

IDK, r53. There was also that guy in the "1986 condo" thread who insisted you couldn't have Kate Bush's 1985 album with "Running Up That Hill" in your 1986 condo because it came out in 1985.

LuAnn de Lesseps.

Stacey Q

By the way, if ANYONE suggests Kate Fucking Bush, I will grab a knife and cut a bitch. I listened to her back then. She was OK. She is just au courante now. That is all.

No mention of Billie Holiday, Joni Mitchell, Aretha Franklin, Teena Marie, Nina Simone, Janis Joplin, Sarah Vaughan, Ella Fitzgerald, Bonnie Raitt, Liz Fraser, Amy Winehouse, Loretta Lynn, Dolly Parton, Siouxsie, Laura Nyro, Sade or Edith Piaf, OP? Are you trolling?

Miss Dionne Warwick

Too late R61

Angela Lansbury

When we were a very young troubled teen locked in a mental hospital due largely to Miss Boozette, listening to the Judy at Carnegie Hall album gave us the strength to go on!

Patsy Cline

And R62 and earlier poster re: Amy Wienhouse, I bought her first album before you were probably even fucking born. I think she's great. She was a great vocalist and stylist, but not any better than anyone on my list.

Miss Dionne Warwick

Was that before or after she added the "e" to her last name because of a psychic?

Patsy D. Cline.

Kate Bush is a million times better than Katie Laing or Celine Dion.

I don't think there is only 1. Even categorizing by genres would be tough.

For me, it's Karen Carpenter, as many others have said.

She truly had it all: a great range, tone, emotion, and impressive breath control. There is an intimacy to her voice that makes it feel as though she is singing directly to you and no one else. She did a variety of different styles of songs, but I always thought she truly shone in those slower, moodier songs where she got to make use of her "basement" voice. Another thing that I like about her is that I always thought that she had a very good way of interpreting lyrics and bringing out their emotions. Take the song "Superstar", for example. It doesn't matter if Karen has lived through those lyrics or not, because she sings them with such pain in her voice that it is truly one of the most devastating songs that I have ever heard. And despite all the pain, her voice remains velvety smooth. I also like how she never had to rely on any vocal gymnastics.

There is a really great duet she did with Ella Fitzgerald, proving she could hold her own with the First Lady of Song.

Here is a live performance of hers to show that it wasn't just all studio magic. (She was known to sound just like she did on an album, sometimes better).

I cast another vote for Karen Carpenter.

Karen had a lisp. Still love her though.

Beverly Sills or Kathleen Battle

Another vote for Sarah Vaughan.

Nina Fucking Simone.

Already mentioned, but the standout for me.

Go outside the U.S. to a country where your knowledge of the language is bad or worse, and you can have an animated conversation with people excited to talk about Nina Simone. Some of OP's suggestions wouldn't generate a blink of recognition.

Not the best, but better than half on that list, Leslie Uggams STILL sounds great, here at age 77 in 2020...

Karen was too fat. No thanks.

Karen Carpenter, file under easy listening. Oh please!

R62, Janis Joplin wasn't a singer in any sense of the word. She SCREAMED.

Listening to Karen Carpenter was like hearing a finger nail scraping across a blackboard

Lady Day

Ernestine Shumann-Heinke was a friend of our maternal grandmother.

I’m now bored with this thread.

R73 you wrote: "There is an intimacy to her voice that makes it feel as though she is singing directly to you and no one else. "

I never heard it put that way and it makes perfect sense.

What a loss.

She died when I was in college and this nice girl (I mean I thought she was nice) said she was a great singer...too bad their songs were faggy...

Today that girl would be canceled.

Wow. My hearing must be different. Judy Garland has the most pleasing voice to me. Runner up? Don't hold your breath, let me think. Joni Mitchell.

Annie Haslam (Renaissance), Maddy Prior (Steeleye Span) and Jacqui McShee (Pentangle): the Holy Trinity of British Prog Folk. I've seen all three live and I couldn't pick a favorite.

Glad to see Judy winning. Rightfully so. The damn biopic should've had her music in it and then maybe the younger generation would be exposed to her voice.

Amanda Lear

Timi Yuro

Shakira

Miss Vicki Carr...

Mrs. Miller

Since this is essentially a shit thread I’ll submit

MACY GRAY

Polly Bergen

Yoko fuckin Ono

Thread closed!

I love these threads. Come on. Let's do "Who was the most beautiful actress of all time?" next. What's it been now? A few months? Come on. You know you wanna....

And she never had a voice lesson, r98...

Liz Callaway

Liz & Seth

Another vote for Linda Rondstadt.

@ R100 - that girl can SING!

R100 Horrible. That is what most American lezzie's vagines sound like in the morning before putting grease on them.

Pebbles

R103, I don't think Ronstadt is the best, but she certainly was the most versatile. Folk, pop, country, operetta, Mexican, Nelson Riddle standards, new wave...she wasn't afraid to try anything. She only had one number one hit (You're No Good) and one million seller (Blue Bayou), but she seemed to be everywhere when I was growing up.

She had the best white pipes in the business, r107.

Rondstadt=easy listening

Karen Carpenter should be included

[quote]She only had one number one hit (You're No Good) and one million seller (Blue Bayou),

And all those albums.

Rose Murphy

Dolly

I'd put Dinah Washington on the list.

Linda Ronstadt had quite a few #2 hits, including Somewhere Out There, When Will I Be Loved, and Don't Know Much.

Ethel Merman. What a presence. The people in the back row of the balcony could hear her clear as a bell.

Once you've seen her, you won't forget her.

Why no love for Julie Andrews or the First Lady of Country Music Tammy Wynette?

Champagne Lady Norma Zimmer!

Sang it, Norma. Sang the song, baby. Sang it, girl.

Kim Carnes - she nailed the hell out of "when we" on We Are The World, baby. Oh, and Sinnead O'Connor - love that bald chick!

Darlene Edwards

What?!!! No Jodie Whatley?!!!

Linda Lavin

the sultry Gertrude Niesen

Eva Cassidy deserves a spot on the list.

I love Judy Garland the most overall but Whitney’s voice on its own moves me the most. When I hear songs from her prime she sounds so alive. There’s an undeniable spark. Maybe it’s because I was a kid in the 80s so I’m so familiar with her.

Karen Carpenter. It's all Karen Carpenter. She's on pitch, on rhythm, and without an ounce of food in her. Karen Carpenter is fucking amazing.

Jennifer Warnes, the chick that sang Dirty Dancing and Growing Pains. Are you high?

What? No love for Adele?

R128 Who?

I love Bessie Smith she deserves to be on here.

[quote]Where the fuck is Amy Winehouse?

She’s still drunk

Timi Yuro, Florence Foster Jenkins, Diamanda Galas or Sheila Chandra

Minnie Riperton

Melanie Safka

Dusty Springfield should be included

Minnie Ripperton had a horrible fucking voice. Her whistle register voice was grotesque.

Etta James

Ramona Singer

OP's list is genuinely terrible.

I think Sinead O'Connor is very underrated as a singer. I think she is one of the greatest ever.

Jane Morgan

More Jane...

@ r101 Stop trying to make fetch happen.

What a random list of white ladies. Aretha Franklin is the only correct answer.

the Suzuki!

Unsung Sheena Easton

Bernadette Peters or Jo Stafford or Celine Dion or Ethel Merman

Your list isn't so bad, OP. You're not a diplomat, after all. Favorites are supposed to be rather personal.

Rachelle Ferrell, Gabrielle Goodman

Enya

Shirley Jones

Karen Carpenter

Cecilia Bartoli

Montserrat Caballe

Roberta Flack

^Shirley Jones of the Jones Girls ?

Emmylou Harris

Shirley Jones as in Shirley Partridge!

Sylvester

Chrissy Metz

Jody Miller

R12, that article is nuts

Will someone do a male version of this thread? I would, but I am under qualified.

Bette Midler like Peggy Lee are not great singers, they are great songstresses..

Taylor Dayne!

Jennifer Affleck

Janie Fricke

Anne Murray

Lacy J Dalton

Joi Lansing

R140, I agree. Troy alone is a masterclass in expressing raw emotion through song. Sinéad has a great voice, with dynamic range for days, and she sounds good when she is quiet and restrained, or when she is howling.

Technical perfection is all well and good, but I much prefer singers that put their heart and soul into their singing, putting emotional expression to the fore. There are a lot of technically perfect singers that are incredibly dull.

Sinead

the Debbie

Everyone is ignoring the real question here, which is why doesn't OP know how to use the [quote] feature?

Timi Yuro.

Any “best female singer of the 20th Century” list that doesn’t have Aretha Franklin on it is automatically compromised. And talk about a white-centric list!

Mahalia Jackson deserves a mention.

Fiona

Totally overlooked Miss Nancy Wilson

Mahalia and Dinah

Whitney really?

Another example of white fragility

Madonna

[quote]Norah Jones

Yma

Still surprised that I'm the only one to mention Mariah Carey so far over 100 replies ago.

We don't know her.

Long before Celine, there was Ginette:

The sublime Nancy Wilson has entered the chat.

Olivia Newton-John - the most distinct and other worldly voice ever.

Bessie Smith

Sade

Chaka Khan. Nobody can sing like that woman.

R185, meet Vesta Williams

Selena Gomez

Lisa Stansfield

Petula Clark, Vera Lynn, Cilla Black. I'm a first generation American whose family played these artists over and over again.

None of whom are American, FWIW.

Sylvia

I think the prize goes to Barbra but my personal favorite is Dusty Springfield.

Tracie Spencer

Anita Bryant!

Let's have another cup of coffee...

When I was a kid in the 60s, my parents had an Anita Bryant album, country hits. I don’t know why they had this, they didn’t buy records, probably somebody gave it to them. I listened to it because it was there. She had a pretty good country voice.

Anita Baker Bryant

Lil Green

Laura Branigan

Sondra Prill

I’m going to cast another vote for Dusty Springfield and here’s why: apart from the artistry, there’s the versatility. She could sing absolutely anything. Who else can that be said about?

Judy sang to people, everyone else just sang good

Joan Sutherland.

Jessye Norman

Janis Joplin, Linda Ronstadt, Aretha Franklin, Gladys Knight, Babs, Dusty Springfield, Patsy Cline, Chaka Khan, Ella Fitzgerald, Edith Piaf, Liza Minnelli, Mahalia Jackson, Joan Armatrading, Loretta Lynn, Tina Turner, Pat Benatar, Billie Holiday, Mavis Staples, Christina Aquilera, Peggy Lee, Bette Midler, Chrissie Hynde, Patti Labelle, Mariah, Debbie Harry, Nina Simone, Maria Callas, Bessie Smith, Judy Garland, Ma Rainey, Donna Summer, Dolly Parton, Joni Mitchell… as you can see from my rather uh-eclectic-taste, I think great singing is about more than hitting perfect notes. It’s also about personality, phrasing, conveying emotion through song and individual style. It certainly transcends genre. There is no mistaking these women for any other voice. I fucking love that!

Mic drop

She was always sweating like a pig, and her wigs looked cheap.

[R206], WH appears to perform SSB effortlessly like she’s nonchalantly singing it for friend who asked her to sing it off the cuff. Even the track suit makes it appear unrehearsed, like she was plucked from the audience last minute and asked to fill in for a no show. She glances and smiles at someone in the audience at one point as she continues to sing in what appears to come as naturally to her as speaking.

Does anyone know what she was paid for that performance?

I wish she would have put out some jazz albums.

Jessica Simpson

Her monster # 6 hit from 1976.

Rita Ora

Sarah Vaughan, Linda Ronstadt, Chaka Khan, Joni Mitchell

Billie Eilish

Princess Vitarah

“I Swallow His Babies”

R208, Whitney's SSB was pre-recorded.

Here is the lengthy story of the occasion.

R 208, rumor has it that all of the Super Bowl National Anthems are pre-recorded. Yes, they are recorded live earlier in the day, but they are not off-the-cuff at all.

R141-142: Jane Morgan is STILL alive, will be 100 in 2024. She's outlived her younger husband, producer Jerry Weintraub, who had a mistress/girlfriend for 20 years of their open marriage.

Prince

R216, it is not a rumor. It's the way the SB is done.

R215: "Nobody," she told Rolling Stone in 1993, "makes me do anything I don't want to do."

Sylvia

For me, three are a toss up. Garland, Houston and Streisand. The first two are a tie.

Annie Lennox

Lacey J Dalton

I'm sorry but no other singer has been able to use their voice to touch one so tenderly like this. Take that as a challenge. That part of singing died out a long time ago. I'd argue everything became camp after Judy.

Fiona Apple.

Judy put her entire soul into her singing. It came from her heart.

It came from her medicine cabinet....

It came from her pussy, and reeked of seconal and gin.

Terri Gibbs

Kim Carnes

Dinah Washington. Unappreciated beautiful voice.

Sarah Brightman

Sarah McLachlan

No consensus here at all, a lot of far-flung suggestions.

I think Brightman has a magnificent voice. Sarah M. has a very pretty voice but I wouldn't call it "the best".

[quote]I think Brightman has a magnificent voice

...for a chipmunk

Googie Gomez.

Meryl

R100, I'm so sorry that I neglected to thank you for that Yoko OH NO! clip. I've watched it several times and I laughed the sort of laughter which causes choking and coughing. 😂😂😂 THANKS!

- R98

Sarah Vaughn

Miss Lake Dardanelle