Best Soul / RnB Singers

The Top Ten
1 Aretha Franklin Aretha Louise Franklin (March 25, 1942 - August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. She began her career as a child singing gospel at New Bethel Baptist Church in Detroit, Michigan, where her father, C. L. Franklin, was minister. ...read more.
2 David Ruffin David Eli Ruffin was an American soul singer and musician most famous for his work as one of the lead singers of The Temptations during the group's "Classic Five" period as it was later known.
3 Usher Usher Terry Raymond IV is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and actor. Born in Dallas, but raised in Chattanooga, Tennessee was where he lived until moving to Atlanta, Georgia at the age of 12 where his mother put him in local singing competitions all over the city.
4 James Brown James Joseph Brown was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, musician, record producer and bandleader. A progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th century popular music and dance, he is often referred to as the "Godfather of Soul".
5 Donny Hathaway Donny Edward Hathaway was an American jazz, blues, soul and gospel singer, songwriter, arranger and pianist.

He should be number one, and kept there.

6 Marvin Gaye Marvin Gaye (born Marvin Pentz Gay Jr.; April 2, 1939 – April 1, 1984) was an American singer and songwriter. He helped to shape the sound of Motown in the 1960s, first as an in-house session player and later as a solo artist with a string of hits, earning him the nicknames "Prince of Motown" and ...read more.
7 Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris, known by his stage name Stevie Wonder, is an American musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, and multi-instrumentalist.
8 Otis Redding Otis Ray Redding, Jr. was an American singer, songwriter, record producer, arranger, and talent scout.
9 Whitney Houston Whitney Elizabeth Houston (August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012) was an American singer, actress, producer, and model. In 2009, Guinness World Records cited her as the most awarded female act of all time. Houston is one of pop music's best-selling music artists of all-time, with an estimated 170–200 ...read more.
10 Etta James Etta James was an American singer who spanned a variety of music genres including blues, R&B, soul, rock and roll, jazz and gospel.
The Contenders
11 Luther Vandross Luther Ronzoni Vandross Jr. was an American singer, songwriter and record producer. Throughout his career, Vandross was an in-demand background vocalist for several different artists.
12 Nat King Cole Nathaniel Adams Coles, known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American singer who first came to prominence as a leading jazz pianist.
13 Peabo Bryson
14 Teddy Pendergrass Theodore DeReese Pendergrass was an American singer–songwriter and composer. He first rose to fame as lead singer of Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes in the 1970s before a successful solo career at the end of the decade.
15 Johnnie Taylor Johnnie Harrison Taylor was a three-time Grammy-nominated American recording artist and songwriter who performed a wide variety of genres, from blues, rhythm and blues, soul, and gospel to pop, doo-wop and disco.
16 Sade Helen Folasade Adu, known professionally as Sade Adu or simply Sade, is an English singer-songwriter, composer, arranger, and record producer.

The Nigerian singer has been relevant in four decades and has proven that her lower register is untouchable.

17 R. Kelly Robert Sylvester Kelly (born January 8, 1967), known professionally as R. Kelly, is an American singer, songwriter, record producer and convicted sex offender. He has been credited with helping to redefine R&B and hip hop, earning nicknames such as "the King of R&B", "the King of Pop-Soul", and the ...read more.
18 Roberta Flack
19 Ron Isley
20 Maxwell Gerald Maxwell Rivera,, better known by his stage names Maxwell and Musze, is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and actor.
21 Adele Adele Laurie Blue Adkins (born 5 May 1988) is an English singer and songwriter. Graduating from the BRIT School for Performing Arts and Technology in 2006, Adele was given a recording contract by XL Recordings after a friend posted her demo on Myspace the same year. She is best known with her international hit singles like Rolling in the Deep, Someone Like You, Hello, Easy On Me and the success of her second, third and fourth studio album which is 21, 25 and 30.

Can we change her picture back to the other one? This image has poor quality.

22 Raheem DeVaughn
23 Louis Armstrong Louis Armstrong, nicknamed Satchmo or Pops, was an American trumpeter, composer and singer who was one of the most influential figures in jazz.
24 Justin Timberlake Justin Randall Timberlake is an American singer-songwriter, actor, dancer, and record producer. Born and raised in Tennessee, he appeared on the television shows Star Search and The All-New Mickey Mouse Club as a child.
25 Jennifer Hudson Jennifer Kate Hudson is an American singer, actress and spokesperson. She rose to fame in 2004 as a finalist on the third season of American Idol, coming in seventh place.
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