Top 10 Best Scream-Style Vocalists
When it comes to vocalists who bring raw, intense emotion and sheer power to their music, the world of scream-style vocals has some of the most unforgettable voices in modern music. These artists pour their energy and soul into their screams, growls, and harsh vocals, pushing their voices to the limit and giving fans something that's as thrilling as it is intense. For many listeners, these vocalists don't just perform. They unleash something visceral that speaks to listeners on a whole different level.
Chester Charles Bennington (March 20th, 1976 - July 20th, 2017) was an American musician, singer, songwriter and actor, best known for being the lead singer of Linkin Park. Before he was known for Linkin Park, Bennington was the lead singer of post-grunge act Grey Daze who was heavily inspired by Stone... read more I can't even fathom how Chester Bennington is not in first place right now. He is easily the greatest screamer ever, and not only that, but he can sing brilliantly on top of it. People are saying how good screamers can hold their scream for long. Well, in "Given Up," Chester Bennington does a 17-second scream, which goes unrivaled in my honest opinion.
What? Chester is way better than M. Shadows and Danny Worsnop. He has the ability to change into different kinds of voices and screams. Plus, he is more aggressive than any other screamer. Linkin Park influenced a lot of rock bands nowadays, so if you dare to say who's the best screamer ever, Chester Bennington is the answer! Deal with IT!
Mitchell Adam "Mitch" Lucker was an American musician and lead singer for the deathcore band Suicide Silence. Mitch was probably the best deathcore vocalist who has ever lived and probably will be for a long time, maybe even forever. His style of screaming influenced so many, as did he as a person. RIP Mitch Adam Lucker, you will forever be in my heart.
Mitch Lucker is definitely close to the top of the list of extreme metal vocalists. His quick alternations between high screams and low growls, as well as his overall brutal sound, definitely deserve him a spot at the top. R.I.P. Mitch.
He was a truly amazing vocalist. Although Avenged Sevenfold is my favorite band, Mitch Lucker tops everyone (including M. Shadows) on this list because of his powerful voice. R.I.P. Mitch.
No disrespect to Mitch Lucker, but it's just sad how he's placed on top just because he's dead. It's another Tupac phenomenon where he's not truly the best but is made out to be because of his death. Alex has some of the most blood-curdling screams I've ever heard and has that same thickness in his voice live.
I've heard both bands live, and although Mitch is also good, the depth of his voice doesn't carry over to live shows. I noticed that he never exhaled in a manner to conserve air and would always run short of breath on deep growls easily.
Oliver Scott "Oli" Sykes is a British musician, best known as the lead vocalist of the band Bring Me the Horizon. He also founded the apparel company Drop Dead Clothing. Oli Sykes' scream is so rich and varied, from demonic growls and screams to his purposefully depressed "yells" (not quite sure what to call them, from their new album) that really stress the emotion of the song. That, and it's just awesome.
He should DEFINITELY be higher on the list, at least top 3! I think he's better than M. Shadows and Danny! Oli can scream in a lot of different ways. Just compare the "Count Your Blessings" album with "There Is a Hell..." or "Sempiternal."
You can't deny the fact that this guy has given us songs such as Pray for Plagues and is a lyrical mastermind. Always someone you love to hear. An icon.
Matthew Charles Sanders, better known by his stage name M. Shadows, is an American musician, best known as the lead vocalist, songwriter and founding member of the American metalcore/alternative metal band Avenged Sevenfold. Real men will choose Shadows' voice. It's not your brutal scream that shows how masculine you are. Shadows doesn't only scream, he sings excellently, and he is also able to combine both scream and clean vocals, which is called an occasional scream or clean vocal that fades to a scream gradually. And it sounds ROCK! Real men sound more rock, less metal. Boys only scream.
Best singer by far on here. No one can sing like him and still scream like a maniac too. Guys like Mitch Lucker and Alex Koehler are talented, but they do not sing, only scream. If you like screams where you can understand the words easily, then listen to this guy. So much talent. And Sevenfold is the best band on here too.
Corey Todd Taylor was born in December 8, 1973. He is an American musician, author, and actor best known as the lead singer and lyricist of the Nu-metal band Slipknot and hard rock/alternative metal band Stone Sour. Why isn't Corey higher on this list!? He's one of the most powerful and diverse rock/metal singers out there. Although, I guess he's more of a growler than a screamer.
Asfghjkl why is he not higher? I figured he'd be near the top, if not first! He's probably the greatest vocalist I've ever heard live. The things he can do with his voice amaze me.
What is he doing at number 9? He should be in the top 5.
Danny Robert Worsnop is an English musician, singer and songwriter, prominently known as the lead vocalist of rock bands Asking Alexandria and We Are Harlot. From his high screams to low growls to clean vocals, nobody has a better overall range with their voice than Danny. He should be number one on this list for sure. No disrespect to anyone above him on this list. I'm a fan of all of them. But if I had to choose one vocalist to lead a band, I'd choose Danny over everyone else.
His lows are the coolest thing I've heard. I feel he has the best lows of anyone. Watch the video where he sings with Suicide Silence. His lows go much deeper than I thought he could go. And his highs are out of this world. I think my lows match his, other than his really deep ones.
Phil Bozeman has an extremely high amount of vocal range. He can do deep gutturals and even high screams like the ones he did at the Mitch Lucker Memorial Show.
Saw them live recently. Best band I've ever seen live with the best screams. Jesus, I want to see them again.
Brutal growls and brutal vocalist. Phil and Danny Worsnop are the best I've heard.
Ronald Joseph Radke is an American singer, songwriter, rapper, musician, and record producer born in Las Vegas, Nevada. He is the current singer of the band Falling In Reverse and is the former singer of Escape The Fate. His voice is nearly orgasmic. I love him so much. I'm not going to walk up to him, rip open my shirt, and scream, "Take my virginity!" But he's amazing.
Amazing voice and very sexy at that. Ronnie needs to be at the top of this list.
Ronnie is definitely the best. I'd put him at 1. Not only because I love him, but because his voice is amazing!
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Christopher John "Chris" Cornell was an American rock musician and singer-songwriter, best known as the lead vocalist, primary songwriter and rhythm guitarist for Seattle rock band Soundgarden and as former lead vocalist and songwriter for the supergroup Audioslave. His vocal range was C2 to A5, while... read more Is there any question that Chris Cornell was the best screamer in music history? What a voice and what a range. RIP.
Ian Gillan is an English singer and songwriter. He originally found success as the lead singer and lyricist for Deep Purple, and the original singer on the rock opera concept album Jesus Christ Superstar by Andrew Lloyd Webber, where Gillan had the leading role (Jesus Christ). High-pitched, mind-blowing screams. AAA. Better than most growling or low-pitched screamers.
Austin Robert Carlile is an American former musician and current baseball coach from Pensacola, Florida. He is the former lead vocalist of Attack Attack! and Of Mice & Men. After leaving Of Mice & Men, he went to coach youth baseball in Costa Rica. What is Andy Biersack doing on this list? Anyway, Austin really deserves his spot in the top 5! He doesn't do a lot of lows in OMAM, but in Someday Came Suddenly, you'll hear he can do lows!
Austin Carlile's screams are so versatile. They're perfect for metalcore.
Move this dude up. He belongs in the top 10!
Kyo is a Japanese musician, singer, lyricist and poet. He is best known as the vocalist of the metal band Dir en grey. He has been with the band since its inception in 1997 and was formerly in La:Sadie's. Kyo has the most variety of guttural singing techniques I've ever heard. While most other singers can only scream or growl in one vocal range with no variety (maybe except switching between screams and growls), Kyo has a much wider variety.
His screams are clearly the best! Ranging from low growls to high-pitched screams, he deserves to be number 1!
Lol, rank 28? My my... This guy here is better than any vocalist listed on this list. He is the king of overtones and master of high-pitched vocals. Just go and listen to Different Sense or Dozing Green if you don't believe me.
Andrew Dennis "Andy" Biersack, formerly known as Andy Six, is an American singer and pianist. He is the founder and lead vocalist for the American rock band Black Veil Brides, and is its only remaining original member.
Jeremy Wade McKinnon is an American musician and producer, best known as a founding member and the lead vocalist of A Day to Remember. Jeremy is one of the few vocalists that I feel is able to replicate both his screams and clean vocals live. He gives a great and highly energetic live performance.
He definitely has one of the sickest screams and growls and deserves to place at least over some in the top ten.
Jeremy's low-pitched growls are amazing. Enough said.
David Randall "Randy" Blythe is the vocalist and lyricist of American heavy metal band Lamb of God and side-project band Halo of Locusts. Randy sure has a golden unique voice, mixing all different vocal techniques that are so hard to master. He has amazing highs and astonishing lows! Randy sure is the best for me.
Most invigorating growl ever!
I think Randy Blythe has a perfect voice. Randy's scream and growl are really extreme, and I think there is no other vocalist like Randy.
Adam has amazing shouts. His growls and screams are unbelievable, too! He brings diversity to Death Metal/Deathcore. Completely amazing! Rock on, Oceano!
His range is literally from the lowest gutturals up to nearly the highs of Trevor Strnad of The Black Dahlia Murder. Completely flawless technique covering every style and key point of metal vocals.
His lows are almost guttural, and his highs blow away my ears. Also, he has the most amazing pig squeals ever.
He's amazing in the studio, and live he sounds just as good, which is hard to do in their style of music.
Travis Ryan Collins, who goes by the stage name Travis Ryan, is an American musician known for being the vocalist of the Deathgrind band Cattle Decapitation. It's a wonder how vocalists who don't even scream much or have a very generic scream are counted as the best. In truth, 99% of them can't perform as well live as they do in the studio, especially not Alex Koehler. Most of those vocalists sound the exact same or just never scream. Travis Ryan has used a unique style to accompany his gutturals and blood-curdling high screams.
He also has melodic screams that sound like he's singing. Combine that with his well-thought-out lyrics that hold meaning along with intensity, and he becomes one of the most solid vocalists to date. Screaming like everyone else only gets you so far. You also have to bring something new along with a fresh take (or at least not a rehash) on lyrical content.
Timothy Peter Lambesis (born November 21, 1980) is an American extreme metal musician and producer. He is best known as the founding member and lead vocalist of the American metalcore band As I Lay Dying. He is the best. Period. Just listen to The Blinding of False Light at around 2:35 into the song. It's amazing. He is also an amazing songwriter and producer. As I Lay Dying is the greatest metalcore band ever, with great passion and meaning in all their songs.
This dude is a beast. Perfect for any genre of metal.
Perfect for death metal and metalcore. Has some brutal highs and deep guttural lows live.
The Devil Wears Prada has been my favorite band since I started listening to "heavy music." Alex Koehler is my favorite scream vocalist, but Mike definitely deserves number 2 for his unique style.
Mike Hranica's voice has changed a lot throughout their records but still retains a lot of emotion, and that makes his screams sound beautiful.
I don't think he's the best, but he has had some really kickass moments. In my personal opinion, he sounds the best in the Zombie EP with brutal lows and chilling highs.
Not a huge fan of their recordings, but live she is amazing.
Chrigel is by far one of the top 10 screamers to date. His growls are outstanding - he can whisper, high scream, and make you feel confident you'll win a war. Plus, he actually sings about stuff worth hearing. His lyrics are epically historical, and so are the topics his songs are based on (Celtic, Gaul, and those whom the Roman Empire tried to extinct).
His screams are great live and in the studio, plus they match Dallas' and Wade's vocals perfectly.
Yeah, I'm definitely sure he should be in the top 5. There won't be anyone screaming like him in his first two albums.
