I'm not entirely sure which part of my childhood I can blame for my love for deep and rough male vocals in music. I guess it's always been that way, as long as we're kind enough to forget about my Katy Perry phase cheers. From Mick Jagger to Caleb Followill and Alex Turner, (oh my, Alex Turner's voice deserves to be mentioned twice here) it's usually been male lead singers that I fell in love with, even though there's an endless amount of great female singers out there. All the times I fell madly in love with someone who was clearly out of my league (most times because he was fictional) Adele's cover of 'To Make You Feel My Love' would be there to comfort me until my iPod gave up on me. Despite my love for male artists, of course I was still obsessed with Beyoncé's 'Single Ladies', most probably after I had given up on my crush and learned to embrace singlehood, knowing that if the right one ever came around who liked it, eventually he would put a ring on it. In which case, thank God I don't want to get married.
However, even though I have been listening to some female musicians all my life, I never really took the initiative to dig deeper to find more female lead singers. It doesn't come as much of a surprise, though. After all, females have been pretty far behind in the race in pretty much all aspects of life. We were too busy fulfilling society's expectations of what it meant to be a woman, therefore focusing on taking pride in our responsibilities at home for example. There were only a few rebels that dared to question if this determined plan was actually right for them, and so a seemingly never-ending list of amazing icons like Ella Fitzgerald, Janis Joplin, Whitney Houston, Etta James and Cher showed that also female artists could become big in the music industry, although the competition was still mostly dominated by rock'n'roll bands like the Beatles and the Rolling Stones. What seems more obvious is that especially in the rock scene, there weren't many female musicians that really stuck out or are just as well remembered today, although Patti Smith and Stevie Nicks have been two of the most influential female rock singers of all time.
I feel like this situation has started to change in the 21st century, with popular female singers like Lady Gaga, Madonna and Christina Aguilera being in the spotlight. On the other hand, one has to remember that besides the natural rise of unique artists, commercialisation has also become a big part of the music industry. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm pretty sure that a lot of people would agree that Britney Spears' voice and musical talent is by no means comparable to Gaga's limitlessness and Beyoncé's stage performances. An artist's appearance, attractiveness, likeability and most importantly commercialisation started to have the probably most important and biggest influence on how well a record would sell. This does, however, not mean that this transformation of the industry killed good musicians, so here I've got a few examples of female musicians that I love to listen to today, and that prove that sometimes you don't need big tits, a lip injection, or some scandalous sex tape, to gain publicity for what you do. It's hard to believe, but sometimes talent is actually all that is needed to make it on to someone's Spotify list.
1. HAIM
It only felt right to put this sister trio on top of my list, not only because they finally released their new album called 'Something To Tell You' this year, but also because I have been absolutely obsessed with them ever since their cover of Shania Twain's song 'That Don't Impress Me Much' reminded me of their existence. After intensely stalking them on Spotify and digging deeper into their albums, I noticed that I had actually listened to them before when Spotify's Discover Weekly Playlist introduced me to 'The Wire' from their debut album in 2013. Now that I'm reunited with the pop rock trio, songs like 'Kept Me Crying', 'Little Of Your Love' and 'Don't Save Me' have been dominating my playlists. Their music perfectly reflects their coolness and laid-back attitude, and after having binge watched some interviews with them on YouTube in addition to liking all their pictures on Instagram, I've come to the conclusion that there's simply nothing not to like about them. They're the kind of girls I probably try to pretend to be, but end up just completely embarassing myself.
2. Dorothy
Dorothy is not only the name of an American rock band that probably has some of the most badass and funniest music videos I have seen so far, but is also the name of the band's vocalist Dorothy Martin. It was actually a friend of mine who introduced me to their song 'Raise Hell' and showed me living proof that, although their debut studio album states otherwise, rock is definitely not dead. What's interesting is that even though they are quite a new and freshly baked band, they seem to focus on implementing old, classic guitar riffs, that perfectly complement Dorothy's deep, almost rough and smoky voice. It's hard to perfectly describe Dorothy's vocals, but to sum it up shortly, it's just pure rock'n'roll. One of my favourite music videos of theirs has go to be 'Dark Nights', not only because it's ridiculous and funny as hell, but also because I love how, although making incredible music, they just don't seem to give a single sh*t about anything at all. Dorothy also looks like the kind of cool mum everyone loves, because she provides 16 year olds with alcohol but wouldn't even give Nutella to her own kids. But what do I know, convince yourself first:
3. Black Honey
I actually stumbled upon this band by accident while I was browsing through new music on Spotify, looking for some hidden treasures. Who would've thought that I'd actually manage to find one? Black Honey's vocalist Izzy B Phillips (yes, I'm 100% serious) is a nice contrast to HAIM and Dorothy, probably being the first band with a female lead singer that I actually really enjoy listening to despite her having a higher pitched voice than the others. I first fell in love with the song 'Headspin' from their 2016 album of the same name. It felt so refreshing and was completely different to what I was used to. It's the kind of song that you want to listen to when you're walking outside in the dark and think about all the oh-so dramatic things that have happened in your life. It's got a melancholic feel to it, while also being powerful by the way they build up and add their layers and elements in each and every song. It's weird how this alternative indie band hasn't received more attention, considering they've been active since 2014 and have already developed such a unique style and created their own identity. Below you'll find one of their few music videos I was able to find on YouTube, but in addition to fall in love with this masterpiece, I just encourage you to stalk them intensely on SoundCloud and Spotify, looking for 'Cadillac' and 'Spinning Wheel' as well. Get ready to be enlightened.
4. Wolf Alice
There is a good chance you've heard about this alt-rock band from North London before, since their song 'Silk' was used in the trailer for T2: Trainspotting, as well as at the end of the film which came out this year. Ellie Rowsell's voice dominates pretty much all the time when she sings together with Joff Odie, which is why I just declared Wolf Alice relevant for this blog post. Her voice actually reminds me a lot of Izzy's voice, also being relatively high pitched, and powerful. Their songs are also similarly melancholic to the band above, so I encourage you to check them out as soon as you're done binge listening to Black Honey. When I think about it, it's actually quite hard to define Wolf Alice's style, because it's got some elements from folk music, as well as indie rock/pop music in it, so I think the right approach would be to stop labelling their style and just listen to 'Lisbon' while driving in your car by night. Preferably at full volume.
5. Amy Winehouse
Of course I had to finish off this list with a classic everyone knows about. Sharing a place in the 27 Club together with other iconic musicians such as Jimi Hendrix, Kurt Cobain, Janis Joplin and Jim Morrison, Amy Winehouse is only one of many musicians that died way too young. At least her music is immortalised in several classics such as 'Rehab', 'Valerie' and 'Back to Black', and if you listen through her albums on Spotify, it almost feels like she's alive after all, hiding somewhere with Mr Jones and a bottle of Whiskey. Or probably four. I know I've mentioned my love for rough, raspy voices a gazillion times before, but Amy put an interesting, different twist on it, with a voice so unique, she'd make every song her own. Here's to one of the few artists that made people listen to soul without even realising it. As with every other big musicians, it's hard to pick just a couple of songs to recommend. It's almost like a Beatles-situation where you end up saying "Just listen to all of their albums" after having mentioned at least fifteen songs already. Nevertheless, I think you'd find 'Me & Mr Jones', 'You Know I'm No Good', and 'Stronger Than Me' among my favourites.
I hope this short list of music suggestions and my shitty attempt at pretending to write for the Rolling Stone magazine has helped you broaden your musical horizon. It's easy to get stuck in one place and one genre that you enjoy, simply because it's safe and you know what you like. I mean, why waste money on ordering chocolate ice cream when you know for sure that you just love vanilla? However, I still believe that one's music taste is constantly developing, and since the music industry is still pretty much dominated by male artists, perhaps it's just time to look for music in absolute every corner so we don't miss out on anything. Now that the music industry is becoming more commercialised than ever before, it's good to remind ourselves that there is still a huge variety of artists that don't sound like your usual radio pop song. And believe it or not, but some of them might even be female.