Top 10 Band Members Who Flopped the Hardest as Solo Artists
Some band members, such as Paul McCartney, Sting, Phil Collins, and Justin Timberlake, have had great solo careers. However, others have failed to build a successful solo career.For this list, we are taking into account artists who were part of a successful music group. This could be a rock band, boy band, girl group, etc. They tried to go solo but failed to make waves on the charts. These artists must have released at least one studio album to be eligible for this list.
Which band member do you think flopped the hardest as a solo artist?
Joseph Adam "Joe" Jonas (born August 15, 1989) is an American singer and actor. Jonas first rose to fame as a member of the pop-rock band Jonas Brothers, along with his brothers Kevin and Nick... read more While the Jonas Brothers were on hiatus in the early 2010s, Joe Jonas released his only solo album to this day, "Fastlife" (2011), which was influenced by R&B and electropop. None of the singles were successful, and the album charted at #15 on the Billboard 200. A few years later, he formed DNCE, who scored a hit in 2016 with "Cake By the Ocean," and reunited with the JoBros in 2019.
Nathaniel Joseph Ruess is an American singer and songwriter. He is the lead singer of the indie pop band Fun., and previously of The Format. As of 2015, he also performs as a solo musician. Nate Ruess really thought he could make it big as a solo artist after Fun. became runaway sensations in 2012 with "We Are Young" and "Some Nights," and after his duet with P!nk "Just Give Me a Reason" hit #1 in the Billboard Hot 100. He disbanded Fun. at the peak of their success so he could focus on his solo career. In 2015, he released "Grand Romantic," his only solo album to this day. While it charted at an honorable #7 spot on the Billboard 200, it failed to generate hits. What a way to crash your career on takeoff!
Patrick Martin Stumph, known professionally as Patrick Vaughn Stump, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, record producer, actor and music critic, best known as the lead vocalist, guitarist, pianist and composer of Fall Out Boy, an American rock band from Wilmette, Illinois. When Fall Out Boy first split in 2009, Patrick Stump took time to focus on his solo career and released Soul Punk (2011), an R&B-infused album which was very different from FOB's sound. It only charted at #47 on the Billboard 200, and the only single released from the album tanked.
Thomas Morello is an American musician, singer-songwriter and political activist. He is best known for his tenure with the band Rage Against the Machine and then with Audioslave. The guitarist, best known for his work with Rage Against the Machine and Audioslave, released his first solo album The Atlas Underground in 2018 to mixed reviews. It charted at #141 on the Billboard 200, and his following albums never charted. It goes to show that not every guitarist, no matter how great they are, can have the same solo careers as Slash or Carlos Santana.
Melanie Janine Brown (born 29 May 1975), also known as Mel B or Melanie B, is an English singer, songwriter, actress, and television personality. Brown rose to prominence in the 1990s as a member of the girl group the Spice Girls, in which she was nicknamed Scary Spice. With over 85 million records... read more Despite having a #1 hit in the UK in 1998 with "I Want You Back," the Spice Girl known as Scary Spice never really made it big as a solo artist. She released two albums: 2000's "Hot" (#28 on the UK albums chart) and 2005's "L.A. State of Mind" (did not chart).
The former *NSYNC member tried to go solo when he released his 2004 album Schizophrenic, his only solo album to this day. Unlike his bandmate Justin Timberlake, he failed to make waves on the charts. His sophomore album, which was initially planned for a 2007 release, was cancelled, and he parted ways with Jive Records.
The lead singer from The Chicks (formerly known as Dixie Chicks) released a solo album, Mother, in 2013. It only consisted of covers and charted at #17 on the Billboard 200.
The lead singer from Mumford & Sons released a 2022 solo album, Self-Titled, which charted at number 4 on the UK albums chart but did not receive any certification.
Paul Bruce Dickinson, known professionally as Bruce Dickinson, (born 7 August 1958) is an English musician, airline pilot, and broadcaster. He is most well known for being the lead singer in heavy metal band Iron Maiden and his solo career.Outside his career in music, Dickinson has pursued a number... read more Just because you're one of the greatest frontmen in rock and metal doesn't mean you'll have an equally successful solo career. Bruce Dickinson learned that the hard way when he left Iron Maiden to pursue a solo career. Thankfully, his reunion with Iron Maiden proved to be successful for him and for the band, who were declining with Blaze Bayley.
William Patrick "Billy" Corgan Jr. is an American musician, songwriter, producer, television writer, poet, and professional wrestling promoter best known as the lead singer, guitarist, and sole permanent member of The Smashing Pumpkins. The lead singer of The Smashing Pumpkins released four unsuccessful solo albums.
Douglas Glenn Colvin, known professionally as Dee Dee Ramone, was a German-American musician, singer and songwriter best known as founding member, songwriter, bassist and occasional lead vocalist for punk rock band the Ramones.
Blaze Bayley is an English singer, musician, songwriter, and lyricist. He was the lead singer of Wolfsbane from 1984 to 1994, and currently from 2010 following reunions in 2007 and 2009. Bayley was also the lead singer for Iron Maiden from 1994 to 1999. Since then, he has embarked on a solo career.
Keith Richards is an English musician—primarily a guitarist—singer, songwriter, best-selling memoirist, and founding member of the rock band The Rolling Stones.
Thomas Lee Bass, best known as Tommy Lee, is a Greek-American musician and founding member of heavy metal band Mötley Crüe.
Tenitra Michelle Williams is an American R&B, pop and gospel recording artist. Williams rose to fame in the 2000s as a member of R&B girl group Destiny's Child, one of the best-selling female groups of all time with over 60 million records, of which more than 35 million copies sold with the trio lineup... read more The lesser-known Destiny's Child member never managed to make it big solo, unlike Beyoncé and Kelly Rowland. Since 2002, she has released four solo albums, but none of them achieved significant chart success.
Grace Barnett Slick is an American singer-songwriter, musician, artist, and former model, widely known in rock and roll history for her role in San Francisco's burgeoning psychedelic music scene in the mid–1960s. The Jefferson Airplane frontwoman released 4 solo albums which were all unsuccessful. There's no chance she will release new albums anytime soon though, because she retired from music in 1990.
Roger Harry Daltrey, is an English singer and actor. In a music career spanning more than 50 years, Daltrey came to prominence in the mid 1960s as the founder and lead singer of the English rock band The Who, which released fourteen singles that entered the Top 10 charts in the United Kingdom during... read more Despite his 1973 debut solo single "Giving It All Away" charting at #5 on the UK Singles Chart, Roger Daltrey's solo career never really took off. That didn't stop him from releasing 10 solo albums, the latest being released in 2018.
Scott Stapp is an American singer, songwriter, and musician, known as the lead vocalist and lyricist of hard rock bands Creed and Art of Anarchy. He also has two solo albums: The Great Divide and Proof of Life. Despite his 2005 debut solo album The Great Divide being platinum-certified (according to the RIAA), the Creed lead singer failed to really make it big solo. Case in point, his 2013 sophomore album Proof of Life charted at #39 on the Billboard 200, and his 2019 album The Space Between the Shadows charted at #137.
Peter Dennis Blandford "Pete" Townshend is an English musician, singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist, best known as the lead guitarist and songwriter for the rock band The Who. While two of his solo albums have received gold or platinum certifications, his solo career was quite inconsistent. It has been three decades since he last released a solo album.
Gerard Arthur Way is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and comic book writer who was the lead vocalist and co-founder of the American alternative rock band My Chemical Romance from its formation in September 2001 until its split in March 2013. His debut solo album Hesitant Alien was released... read more He released his only solo album, Hesitant Alien, in 2014. It didn't even reach the top 10 on the Billboard 200.
Belinda Jo Carlisle is an American singer who gained worldwide fame as the lead vocalist of the Go-Go's, one of the most successful all-female bands of all time.
After the 4 Non Blondes split, she released one solo album that flopped. She later became known as a songwriter for artists such as Pink, Christina Aguilera, and Gwen Stefani.
Brian Harold May is an English musician, singer, songwriter and astrophysicist, best known as the lead guitarist of the rock band Queen.
Roger Keith Barrett was an English musician, composer, singer, songwriter, and painter. Best known as a founder member of the band Pink Floyd, Barrett was the lead singer, guitarist and principal songwriter in its early years and is credited with naming the band.