The greats are often not that great.
Marketing plays such a huge role in everything, and the music industry is no exception.
Being good at marketing always trumps being a skilled musician.
A great singer who can’t sell him or herself will never become famous.
But a mediocre singer who knows how to generate publicity can become a superstar.
That’s why the pop music genre is full of average bands, average musicians and average singers.
But few people seem to care. In fact, those singers’ fans will adamantly defend their heroes’ mediocre skills.
And I know exactly how most fans of the following ten singers will react to this article. But I wanted to write it anyway.
The ten singers below are not great at what they do.
Their singing skills are on the level any one of us could easily achieve with the help of singing lessons from a good vocal coach. But they know how to market and that has made them huge.
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10 Singers Who Can’t Sing
If you are a fan of any of these singers, please don’t wish death upon me. It’s just the opinion of one person. And also anyone who knows how to sing. Sorry. But their lack of singing talent certainly does not mean you can’t continue to enjoy their music.
Louis Tomlinson
I may get a lot of hate for including this name, but I bet there’s a fair few One Direction fans who will actually agree with me on this one, even though they would hate to admit it.
Back in 2010 when Louis Tomlinson, along with his other One Direction band members, all individually auditioned for the X Factor, not one of them made it through to judges houses.
Why? None of them were vocally strong enough to succeed alone. While both Harry Styles and Zayn Malik have notably gone on to achieve success as solo artists, Louis has struggled.
Unfortunately, now out on his own, he can no longer hide behind his One Direction band members. There’s no doubt he deserves his success however. He was part of one of the world’s biggest and most successful boy bands. But on his own, his weak voice has flopped, and people are starting to notice.
Jason Derulo
The hit RnB singer has frustratingly given us a mixed bag of vocals over the course of his career. One month, he’ll be releasing a number 1 hit that you can’t get out of your head, and the next week he’ll be singing one of the most pitchy, technique-lacking sets we’ve ever heard from him.
Jason Derulo is lucky that he lives in an era dominated by technology that can correct his off vocals for him. Good singers need nothing more than a quality pair of in-ear monitors and a live performance mic. Bad ones need a whole slew of voice-correcting software.
Katy Perry
Katy Perry has been tricking all of us for the last 10 years!
I, along with millions of others, have believed this whole time that she was a top-class singer. Why? Because she’s had hit after hit after hit.
However, underneath all that world class production and promotion is not a world class voice. It’s pretty average at best. She is an alto, but she will never make it on a list of famous alto singers, because her voice just does not match up to the best.
But Katy, we do love you! She has carved out an incredible career for yourself and she has made sure she didn’t solely rely on her vocals to carry her there.
She’s loved around the world for her personality, her on-stage presence, and the way she interacts with her fans. If it was voice alone, I’m afraid she wouldn’t be anywhere near the level she is now.
This might surprise you given Katy’s stage presence, but she actually suffers from stage fright. In fact, she made our article listing famous singers who overcame stage fright to become stars. Impressive!
Future
I actually really like Future. He knows himself he can’t sing, so he uses the maximum amount of auto-tuning a voice can handle for every single song he sings. It’s a stroke of brilliance from the 34 year old artist. His alien-sounding vocals have become his signature sound.
So, although he’s on this list because of his appalling vocals, I applaud him massively for using that to his advantage.
Britney Spears
Even though she has established herself as one of the most successful pop singers of her time, criticism about her vocals has never stopped following her. She has been caught lip-syncing on numerous occasions at her concerts, much to the anger of many of her fans.
The bottom line is, if you can sing, there’s no reason to lip-sync. That’s why Beyoncé isn’t on this list!
Selena Gomez
Selena Gomez is very lucky that she is not just a singer but also a world class actress. The star was a Disney Queen as a child, but just hasn’t hit the heights I’m sure she dreamed of as a singer.
It always seems like she not into it emotionally. She should try to cry when she sings an especially emotional song. I think it would help her voice a lot.
Yes, she has reached the number 1 spot around the world, but her music barely moves units compared to other top stars. Her 2015 studio album Revival sold less than 350,000 copies. Compare this to the Queen of music, Beyoncé, whose most recent album Lemonade has sold over 1 million copies so far.
Sorry, Selena.
Rihanna
Rihanna has a lot to owe to her success: her incredible stage presence, her brilliant production team, her various fashion lines, her game-changing make-up lines. She (almost) has it all, and credit to her for finding global success in a multitude of areas.
Lil Wayne
Similar to rapper Future, Lil Wayne full-on drenches his vocals in auto-tune and effects. Why? Because he knows he can’t sing. I applaud him for realizing that and making something of his career despite it!
Luckily for Lil Wayne, rappers don’t need to sing to be successful; they need to rap freely and be outspoken. And that’s exactly what he does.
Miley Cyrus
A bit like Selena Gomez, Miley was able to ride the Disney wave into a successful singing career, without too many fans realizing that she’s just an average singer. Her Hannah Montana hits were actually very catchy and successful. But since becoming an adult, all eyes moved firmly off her acting and onto her vocals.
It’s not that she can’t sing; it’s more that she is an acquired taste that the majority of people don’t particularly like. The problem with Miley is that she doesn’t stick to the type of music that her voice suits: country music. Crossing over into genres that don’t match her voice has put her vocal abilities on full display.
We still love you for singing what you want to sing, though!
Chris Brown
This may be the first name on this list of ‘singers who can’t actually sing’ who CAN actually sing.
So why is he on the list then?
Chris Brown has an incredible voice. We can all hear that. However, he still can’t help overusing auto-tune on his vocals, lip syncing, and just plain old dodging singing altogether and replacing half his live sets with dance breaks.
He’s also an incredible dancer, and he should right show that off. But people pay to see him primarily to hear him sing. He has the talent to be a great, but does he know how to use that talent properly?
Perhaps we’ll never know!
Singers Who Can’t Sing: Final Thoughts
Can anyone sing? No, but most people can. The vast majority of them do need to put in a lot of work. The singers listed above have clearly not put in enough work yet.
Thais does not mean they can’t become great singers, but I don’t get the feeling any of them are very motivated to do so. And why should they be?
They have become incredibly successful with their current skill level. There is no need to work hard to get better. It makes much more sense to work hard to make more money with what they are currently doing!
Of course, you do not need a beautiful voice to be successful, or even to be regarded as a good singer. Just check out these singers with unconventional voices to see what I mean. They all have weird voices, but found a way to make them work with great success.
You lost me at Jason Derulo. He’s a trained opera singer, and phenomenal!
And basing singing ability on the number of hits? Shame on you!
It’s probably a matter of taste and opinion when it comes to just about everything, singers notwithstanding.. There are few singers who can sing as well as Whitney Houston, but she did tend to hold notes too long sometimes and that could be grating. She had an amazing voice however. Going way, way back, few could compare with Judy Garland. Her “The Man That Got Away” has never been equalled even by the terrific Pia Zadora. If you don’t know who she is, you don’t. Linda Rohnstadt was another of the greats of her generation and few can match her. Barbara Streisand (long ago) was another individual who could really sing. Cher is good. So are many others. There is great and then there is good. Many singers are good. Only a handful are great. Again, it’s all a matter of taste and opinion. Basically, an individual can either sing or they can’t. For instance, Taylor Swift has improved over the years but she will never be one of the greats. She can sing but is by no means great. She is passable and some of her songs are better than others, but her voice will never send chills down anyone’s spine with her singing. Some individuals have more natural ability than do others. Houston had way more natural ability than Swift will ever have. Ditto for Zadora, Garland, Rhonstadt and some others. In the end however, you can’t really teach someone to sing and do it well. They either can sing and then improve on what they have naturally, or they can’t, No amount of training is going to teach someone who can’t sing – to sing. Mediocre, passable singers are people like Swift, Brittany Spears, Miley Cyrus, and many others who prance across a stage in various stages of undress, gaudy clothing and makeup. A lot of that is to cover up the fact they are mediocre. Sure, they make money, but they’re still mediocre. My opinion.
I’m in the camp that always found Houston a bit grating (probably had something to do with her Dolly Parton cover playing ten times a night at every high school dance for my last two years in school), but there is no denying she could sing.
Sorry,Miley cyrus is on fire!!!
That doesn’t mean she’s great. Many mediocre singers catch on (albeit temporarily) but they’re still mediocre. We live in an age of mediocrity. We have been in it for a very long time.
Miley is on fire right now, i guess this article belongs before her late shines
Madonna could definitely be on this list, but I know this is focused on newer artists. Of course, Madonna’s vocals got much better after she trained for Evita. Rihanna also took voice lessons around the time of “Diamonds” and you can hear a remarkable difference in her live performances. I love women with lower, rich voices like her, Annie Lennox and Nina Simone. I have to say I disagree on Miley Cyrus. Her last album (probably after the article) is a tribute to different rock genres and I think she really showcased her voice. I was never a fan, but I was impressed by this album. Also, if you talk to any voice trainer, they will tell you that Whitney sang through her throat, which will damage your vocal chords. We saw the results of that before her sad departure.
Very insightful, thank you! And I agree, especially about Cyrus. Never been a fan, but what she has been doing lately in covering classic rock tunes is pretty cool. And she does it well, for the most part.
Where is Taylor Swift?
prolly cuz she has improved a Lot??
But she still will never be great. Passable yes, great no.
Billie Holliday and Judy Garland had flabby vibratos, and a wobble you could drive a truck through. Maria Callas blew her voice out trying to fit into too many fachs. Frank Sinatra had a narrow range, and a boring sound, devoid of emotion-he also tended to sing every song the same way. But all of these people made up for their lack of technique, by sheer showmanship and character-Holliday broke your heart with the tragedy she poured into her songs, and Garland and Sinatra had acting skills and panache to fall back on. And Callas’ Tosca has never been equalled, either in characterization or the way she phrased each turn-an opera singer who could actually act, she was thinking the whole time as the character, and those eyes of hers would pin you to the wall! I wish I could have seen any/all of them in concert, during their peaks-listening to a CD probably doesn’t do them justice.
You seem to be somehwat tone deaf. Oh well, not everyone has an ear for music.
Wrong❤️
Not everyone has an ear for music and if they thought Garland was as bad as they claim, they don’t have an ear for music. They’re probably a Brittany Spears fan. Enough said.
This might shock some, but hearing Whitney Houston and Celine Dion is like trying to enjoy the sound of fingernails down a blackboard to me. That they always needed a big loud orchestra backing them up just makes them even more obnoxiously unpleasant to hear.
Without fail, I turn off the radio when their songs are being pumped out like vomit from a addict’s stomach.
They did/do both tend to oversing-if you listen to Dolly Parton sing “I Will Always Love You,” it is much more delicate, a sad, nostalgic goodbye, and Ms. Houston’s version just seems too overblown and loud next to it. She also tends to go a little flat on those long, drawn notes.
These people in these comments are reaching for attention because Whitney was the shit, Celine Dion was the shit, Frank Sinatra, Rihanna and definitely Billie Holiday had good voices depending on the day.
you just being harsh on them
See, I actually agree with you about Louis, even though I am a major Directioner. He lacks power. Louis has also never once sang falsetto. He also doesn’t have great control and avoids runs in most of the songs that he sings. Along with that Harry has a terrible technique and I fear for his voice. He brings his chest voice up to high and trying to force that can damage your vocal cords severely. His “raspy tone” may stylistically sound good to most people, but he is damaging his voice. He pushes his voice too much and has virtually no ability to transition from chest voice to head voice, which is another thing caused by pushing your chest voice up too high. He has the potential to have a much larger range and more agility if this problem was fixed.
Great insights! And it’s true that a lot of professional singers, singers who are quite good, could still benefit greatly from additional vocal lessons.
In several music genres being a great vocalist is irrelevant. Was John Lennon a great vocalist? No. It actually helped him that he wasn’t.
Yes, exactly! Bob Dylan is another great example.