While I love listening to music because of the different types of instruments used, the catchy and memorable melodies, and lyrics, the one characteristic in a song or album that I take into account more than those other features are the vocals. To me, I feel that the vocals in a song are the most important element because while the instrumentation is there to carry the tune, an artist's voice on a recording makes it more memorable and catchy to the point where it will get stuck in your head for days, months, or even years. Also, every artist's voice is different and unique, so that makes listening to the vocals on songs and albums fun and interesting. Honestly, since I'm a singer myself, I don't really think that me loving the vocals the most on a song is somewhat surprising. With that being said, here is a list of some of my favorite singers in the current music scene, along with a few songs by them that I feel showcase the range, uniqueness, and sound of their voices the best.
1. Brendon Urie (Panic! At The Disco)
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Genres: Pop, Pop rock, Pop punk, Baroque pop, alternative rock, and synthpop.
Voice type: Tenor
Highlight songs: "This is Gospel," "Victorious," "Death of a Bachelor," But It's Better If You Do," "Always," "Do You Know What I'm Seeing?," "LA Devotee," and "Collar Full"
2. Patrick Stump (Fall Out Boy)
Genres: Pop punk, Alternative rock, Soul, R&B, and Pop rock
Voice type: Tenor
Highlight Songs: "This Ain't A Scene, It's An Arms Race," "Dance, Dance," "I've Got All This Ringing In My Ears And None On My Fingers," "I Don't Care," "Young Volcanoes," 20 Dollar Nose Bleed," "Our Lawyers Made Us Change The Name Of This Song So We Wouldn't Get Sued," Novocaine," and "Saturday," and "Grand Theft Autumn/Where Is Your Boy"
3. Bruno Mars
Genres: Pop, Funk, Soul, R&B, Blues
Voice type: Tenor
Highlight Songs: "Grenade," "Runaway Baby," "Natalie," "Treasure," "Chunky," "Calling All My Lovelies," "Versace On The Floor," "When I Was Your Man," "Marry You," and "Perm"
4. Sara Bareilles
Genres: Soul, Pop, Piano Soul, Piano rock, Singer-songwriter
Voice type: Mezzo-Soprano
Highlight Songs: "Gravity," "Love Song," "Brave," "Hercules," "King of Anything," "Little Black Dress," "Chasing the Sun," I Choose You," "Opening Up," "Bad Idea" (featuring Jason Mraz), and "Uncharted"
5. Josh Ramsay (Marianas Trench)
Side note: I just started getting into Marianas Trench not too long ago, so I'm mostly going to be naming off songs on their most recent album, Astoria (2015) as my highlight songs for Ramsay's voice.
Genres: Symphonic rock, Pop Punk, Rock, Emo rock, Pop rock
Voice type: Tenor
Highlight songs: "Burning Up," "Astoria," "Yesterday," "This Means War," "Dearly Departed," "End of an Era," "Celebrity Status," and "Here's To The Zeros"
6. Eric Church
Genre: Southern Rock, Country, Rock
Voice type: Baritone
Highlight songs: "Record Year," "Round Here Buzz," "The Outsiders," "Give Me Back My Hometown," "Creepin," "Springsteen," "Smoke a Little Smoke," "Broke Record," "Ain't Killed Me Yet," "Country Music Jesus," and "Kill A Word"
7. M. Shadows (Avenged Sevenfold)
Genres: Heavy metal, Metalcore, Hard rock, screamo
Voice type: Baritone
Highlight Songs: "Dear God," "Nightmare," "Bat Country," "So Far Away," "Hail to the King," "This Means War," "Almost Easy," "Beast and the Harlot," "Critical Acclaim," Unholy Confessions," "Coming Home," "Acid Rain," and "Natural Born Killer"
8. The Weeknd
Genres: R&B, Alternative R&B, Soul
Voice type: Tenor
Highlight songs: "Can't Feel My Face," "The Hills," "In the Night," "Real Life," Kiss Land," "Starboy" (featuring Daft Punk), "False Alarm," "Reminder," "Party Monster," "I Feel It Coming" (featuring Daft Punk), and "Rockin'"
9. Kacey Musgraves
Genre: Country, Outlaw country, Alternative country, Americana
Voice type: Mezzo-soprano
Highlight Songs: "Blowin' Smoke," "Biscuits," "Follow Your Arrow," "Merry Go 'Round," "Dandelion," "Step Off," "Dime Store Cowgirl," "Pageant Material," "Family Is Family," and "Late to the Party"
10. Michael Bublé
Genre: Traditional Pop, Vocal jazz, Big band, Easy listening, Show tune, Blue-eyed soul, Jazz, Swing
Voice type: Baritone
Highlight Songs: "Haven't Met You Yet," "Nobody But Me," "Home," "Feeling Good" (cover), "Cry Me A River" (cover), "Everything" (cover), "Hollywood" (cover), "Georgia On My Mind" (cover), Kissing A Fool" (cover), "Heartache Tonight" (cover), It's A Beautiful Day," and "Cold December Night"
