Good luck belting out these tunes! Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the Top 30 Most Difficult Songs to Sing.
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00:00 [Music]
00:02 Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the top 30 most difficult songs to sing.
00:08 We won't be including rap songs as that's a list for another day.
00:12 [Music]
00:17 Number 30, Unbreak My Heart, Toni Braxton.
00:20 [Music]
00:29 It's not just the high notes that can be difficult to hit.
00:32 The opening of Unbreak My Heart doesn't necessarily make you feel like the song's gonna be that hard to sing.
00:37 But then you hear the incredible range of Toni Braxton.
00:41 [Music]
00:47 From that first verse, Braxton's smoky vocals follow through the lower notes of her register with incredible strength and power.
00:54 On top of that, her talent only shines stronger on the second verse,
00:58 when she shows us all how low she can go while still maintaining precise control over her stellar runs.
01:04 [Music]
01:13 Number 29, How Can I Ease The Pain, Lisa Fisher.
01:17 Here's one of the most impossible to nail slow jams of all time.
01:20 Seriously, we don't know how Lisa Fisher does it. She's a goddess.
01:24 [Music]
01:31 It was released in 1991 and remains one of Fisher's biggest hits to this day.
01:36 Fisher manages to stretch her notes like no other.
01:39 And listening to her attain those high notes so flawlessly makes us wish she got more opportunities like this to show off her chops.
01:45 [Music]
01:53 How Can I Ease The Pain requires an incredibly strong belter to get up into that high register,
01:58 while still pouring passion into the words.
02:01 And once Fisher lets loose on those whistle tones, please.
02:05 [Music]
02:13 Number 28, Imagine, Ariana Grande.
02:16 Oh, you wanted more whistle tones in modern pop music?
02:20 Well, Ariana Grande heard you and she delivered.
02:22 [Music]
02:28 It's no secret that Grande is an expert singer.
02:31 But with her hit "Imagine," she went further than we could have imagined.
02:35 The song's chorus requires the singer to make a large vocal leap on the word "imagine"
02:40 and necessitates pinpoint precision in its notes.
02:43 [Music]
02:47 But all that aside, if you want it to sound like Grande when you sing this song,
02:52 you gotta try and go for those whistle tones at the end.
02:54 Definitely not an easy task.
02:56 [Music]
03:05 Number 27, Don't Rain On My Parade, Barbra Streisand.
03:09 Notoriously difficult.
03:11 "Don't Rain On My Parade" is from the musical "Funny Girl," which was based on the life of Fanny Bryce.
03:16 [Music]
03:23 Barbra Streisand, who played the lead role on Broadway in 1964
03:27 and won an Oscar for her performance in the movie adaptation,
03:30 makes it sound quite natural.
03:32 However, the song's tricky rhythms, frequent leaps,
03:35 and consistent high energy have daunted many aspiring vocalists.
03:39 [Music]
03:45 Although a few professionals like Bea Arthur and Idina Menzel have covered the song,
03:49 the musical wasn't revived on Broadway for decades,
03:52 possibly because of the challenge of finding someone for that dynamic leading role.
03:57 [Music]
04:04 Number 26, Go The Distance, Michael Bolton.
04:07 It's widely recognized as one of Disney's most motivational songs.
04:11 Paradoxically.
04:13 You may need to listen to the track just to make yourself believe that you can actually sing it.
04:18 [Music]
04:24 The notes soar higher than Olympus itself,
04:27 and the lyrical context requires the performer to belt each one with unwavering vocal confidence.
04:33 [Music]
04:39 It was originally tackled by Roger Bart for the Hercules soundtrack,
04:43 followed by Michael Bolton, Ricky Martin, and an assortment of Walt Disney World cast members.
04:47 [Music]
04:54 You better have a brave choral range to conquer it,
04:57 as well as the ability to convey a challenging scope of emotions.
05:00 If you can convincingly nail both the vulnerability of its opening
05:04 and the epic crescendo of its finale, then you might just please the gods.
05:08 [Music]
05:14 Number 25, You Raise Me Up, Josh Groban.
05:18 You Raise Me Up was originally written by the duo Secret Garden.
05:21 The Norwegian-Irish twosome released the track back in 2002,
05:24 and since then, it's gone on to be covered by over 100 different artists both male and female.
05:30 [Music]
05:38 One of the most popular covers is the 2003 version by Josh Groban,
05:42 and copying that version is quite difficult for other male singers.
05:45 [Music]
05:54 Groban's vocal range is wide, and trying to replicate it isn't easy or
05:58 even possible for many other male vocalists.
06:00 [Music]
06:07 In 2005, Irish boy band Westlife released their version of the song.
06:12 It's a very nice version of the song, but as you can hear,
06:15 the vocals stay in a much narrower range.
06:17 [Music]
06:26 Number 24, Hurt, Christina Aguilera.
06:29 [Music]
06:36 Christina Aguilera is one of the most prolific singers in the biz.
06:40 Unfortunately, one of her greatest and most difficult songs to sing
06:43 is not one of her most famous.
06:45 [Music]
06:51 Hurt is a number from Aguilera's 2006 album Back to Basics.
06:55 It sort of got buried under the pizzazz of the rest of the tracklist,
06:58 which includes the likes of Ain't No Other Man and Candyman.
07:02 However, in Hurt, Aguilera slows things down and delivers a masterful performance
07:06 with incredible range.
07:08 The chorus necessitates a kind of emotion and resonance that is rare to come by.
07:12 [Music]
07:19 Number 23, Crawling, Linkin Park.
07:22 Chester Bennington was a phenomenal vocalist,
07:24 and gave Linkin Park one of the most unique sounds of the 2000s.
07:28 But the notes Bennington could hit aren't really what makes the song Crawling
07:32 a difficult song to master.
07:34 [Music]
07:42 Rather, it's the range of styles and techniques he employs
07:45 throughout the three-and-a-half-minute track.
07:47 [Music]
07:54 From the softer, more melodic singing of the verses,
07:56 to the loud, emotional screaming of the chorus,
07:59 it covers a lot of ground.
08:00 [Music]
08:10 You had better prepare your throat if you plan on attempting this one.
08:14 [Music]
08:20 Number 22, Love on Top, Beyonce.
08:23 It's time to talk about key changes.
08:25 Beyonce's 2011 hit Love on Top is one of the pop diva's most fun songs.
08:30 [Music]
08:37 From the outset, it doesn't seem like it'll be particularly difficult to sing.
08:40 Not more difficult than any other Beyonce song anyway.
08:43 But by the end, we found ourselves with so many key changes,
08:47 we don't even know how to begin counting them off.
08:49 [Music]
08:57 As Beyonce's voice keeps getting higher and higher,
09:00 our jaws keep dropping lower to the ground.
09:03 It's insanely impressive how high she can get.
09:05 Never mind the absolute clarity with which she does it.
09:08 [Music]
09:15 Number 21, Livin' on a Prayer, Bon Jovi.
09:18 You could take our hand, but when it comes to properly rocking this track,
09:22 we can't swear to the fact that you'll make it.
09:24 [Music]
09:33 Awesome 80s hairdo aside,
09:35 Jon Bon Jovi powers through Livin' on a Prayer with some subtly impressive vocal stylings.
09:40 [Music]
09:48 The song might seem like a rather simple 80s rock ballad,
09:51 but as many karaoke audiences know,
09:54 making it through that chorus ain't as easy as many think it is.
09:57 [Music]
10:04 Most guys should probably just remember that it's all for fun,
10:08 and it doesn't make a difference if they make it or not.
10:10 [Music]
10:16 Number 20, Don't Stop Believin', Journey.
10:19 [Music]
10:26 Do not try to sing Journey's Don't Stop Believin' at your next karaoke party.
10:31 [Music]
10:38 Oh sure, it may sound like a great idea at the time,
10:41 and everyone thinks they're gonna be able to nail this absolute rock anthem
10:45 with Steve Perry's grace and power,
10:47 but it rarely, if ever, works out.
10:49 That's not only because Perry is one of classic rock's finest singers,
10:53 but also because the performance hinges so strongly on his combination of clarity,
10:59 power, and range.
11:00 [Music]
11:06 Don't Stop Believin' may start off slowly with that iconic keyboard intro,
11:10 but by the time the chorus finally hits,
11:12 we are firmly on that spaceship into infinity.
11:16 Number 19, Hello, Adele.
11:19 [Music]
11:24 Speaking of power,
11:26 is there any popular female vocalist in recent memory
11:29 that can compete with Adele in terms of sheer vocal strength?
11:32 Not many.
11:33 There's a reason the English singer-songwriter's music has sold millions of albums,
11:37 and it's not because they're easy to sing,
11:40 though it's sure fun to try.
11:41 [Music]
11:47 Fans really seem to connect with her lyrics,
11:50 honesty, and passion,
11:51 and it's the delivery that really brings it all together.
11:54 Hello is a perfect example.
11:57 It's the sort of heart-rending ballad that fans adore.
12:00 It isn't so much the brooding intensity of the verse that makes Hello challenging,
12:04 but rather the vocal control required to nail that epic chorus.
12:08 [Music]
12:14 There's just no one who does it quite like Adele.
12:17 [Music]
12:22 Number 18, Take On Me, A-Ha.
12:25 [Music]
12:31 Falsetto.
12:32 Love it or hate it,
12:33 many artists and groups have taken the vocal style
12:35 and run with it all the way to chart success.
12:38 [Music]
12:46 A-Ha was one of those bands,
12:48 a Norwegian export that struck it huge in the 80s
12:51 with their colossal synth-pop hit, Take On Me.
12:53 [Music]
13:00 For our money, we love Morten Harket's falsetto note
13:03 that he hits near the end of Take On Me's epic chorus,
13:05 and it's even more impressive when you take into account
13:08 that Harket has to climb two and a half octaves from his starting point of A.
13:12 [Music]
13:18 It's these vocal gymnastics that make Take On Me such a challenge
13:21 for even the most seasoned of vocalists.
13:23 Number 17, I'll Never Let You Go, Steelheart.
13:27 [Music]
13:33 The world of glam metal has historically been one of powerful and dynamic singers.
13:39 Even so, there are few who can compete with the likes of Steelheart's Milenko Matievich,
13:43 who absolutely dominates on the band's highest-charting single, I'll Never Let You Go.
13:48 Again, this is a song that starts innocuously enough.
13:51 [Music]
13:57 Matievich begins with a clear mid-range verse
14:01 before shooting for the stars with a crazy high note.
14:04 [Music]
14:11 Oh, and it only gets more stratospheric from there,
14:14 as the Croatian-born singer seems to almost taunt us with how high he can actually go.
14:18 Seriously, there's high, and then there's Steelheart levels of high.
14:22 The levels perfected on songs like this one, or She's Gone.
14:26 [Music]
14:35 Number 16, I Believe in a Thing Called Love, The Darkness.
14:38 The spirit of classic Thin Lizzy lived on within the classic rock style of England's The Darkness.
14:44 Although, the falsetto singing style of The Darkness frontman Justin Hawkins
14:49 was probably the furthest thing from Phil Lennitt's bluesy howl.
14:52 [Music]
14:59 I Believe in a Thing Called Love was The Darkness's biggest international hit,
15:03 and it quickly became infamous for Hawkins' trouser-pinching vocal approach.
15:07 [Music]
15:15 Not everyone can pull off an ultra-high falsetto with the sort of conviction
15:19 Hawkins musters throughout the twin guitar epic,
15:22 but Justin nails it with style and sleaze to spare.
15:26 Number 15, Chandelier, Sia.
15:29 [Music]
15:34 We have two words to describe Chandelier.
15:38 That chorus.
15:39 [Music]
15:47 It's difficult to explain just how much emotion and pathos Sia packs into her performance.
15:52 [Music]
15:59 She pairs a comparatively subdued verse with an explosion of passion and cathartic anger.
16:05 Sometimes, a singer just possesses this nebulous quality,
16:09 an ability to connect with an audience with how they sing a song,
16:13 not just the mechanics of how a song is composed.
16:15 [Music]
16:24 Sia is an artist who not only possesses the knowledge and skill
16:28 to get her vocal performance across,
16:29 but also the ability to make that performance unique and incredibly difficult to replicate.
16:35 Number 14, Sherri, Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons.
16:39 [Music]
16:45 We mentioned falsettos earlier in our list,
16:48 and there are few male vocalists who mastered this style better than Frankie Valli,
16:53 the lead singer of the Four Seasons.
16:55 Valli made himself a legend off his ability to control his falsetto,
16:59 arguably better than any other male performer of his era,
17:03 showcasing the sort of control that verges on supernatural.
17:06 [Music]
17:10 Falsetto by nature can sound fragile and thin,
17:13 but Valli sounds large and in charge throughout his performance in Sherri,
17:18 which is no mean feat.
17:20 There's a reason why they're called classics after all,
17:22 and the Four Seasons definitely created one of those when they recorded this gem back in 1962.
17:28 Number 13, total eclipse of the heart, Bonnie Tyler.
17:32 [Music]
17:40 They just don't make them like this anymore.
17:41 We're talking about the pompous, in the best possible way,
17:45 extravagant and over-the-top operettas of meatloaf collaborator and songwriter Jim Steinman.
17:51 [Music]
17:57 These were the songs about muscular men and wild women,
18:01 the sort of ferocity encapsulated by Bonnie Tyler,
18:04 and her amazing performance on total eclipse of the heart.
18:08 It's gothic, sumptuous and decadent power balladry at its best,
18:12 amplified by Tyler's gruff and breathy delivery.
18:15 [Music]
18:23 Seriously, when the near seven-minute album version reaches its vocal crescendo,
18:27 we're right there with Bonnie on the mountaintop,
18:30 shielding our eyes from the eclipse as her vocals block out the sun in an epic show of power.
18:35 [Music]
18:42 Number 12, Earth song, Michael Jackson.
18:44 [Music]
18:50 Okay, so we all know about Michael Jackson's pedigree for classic music videos,
18:54 but we admit that sometimes the singer's actual talent can get lost among all the visual spectacle.
19:00 Not so with Earth song, a track meant for the King of Pop's Dangerous album,
19:05 but which didn't get released until the 1995 album History, past, present and future, book one.
19:11 [Music]
19:17 The song is a real showcase for Jackson's ability to meld and cross-pollinate genres,
19:23 from operatic highs to gospel choral lows.
19:26 Michael's legendary soul and power also make their presence known, of course,
19:31 making this something of a forgotten classic from this iconic talent.
19:35 [Music]
19:42 Number 11, The Star Spangled Banner, lyrics Francis Scott Key and music John Stafford Smith.
19:49 [Music]
20:00 It's been the honor and bane of many a singer's existence.
20:04 Performing The Star Spangled Banner, the national anthem of the United States is infamously difficult to sing,
20:11 even for the most accomplished performer, because of how much control it takes to navigate its range of key changes.
20:17 The key is to start low and to conserve energy, saving a big burst of power for the anthem's climax.
20:24 [Music]
20:30 This is easier said than done, of course, with many great singers tripping up at either the performance side of things
20:36 or something as simple as remembering the lyrics.
20:38 We're not gonna fault anyone for failing at The Star Spangled Banner, though, because it's a massive challenge.
20:44 [Music]
21:03 Number 10, Bridge Over Troubled Water, Simon and Garfunkel.
21:06 [Music]
21:13 The world of folk might not be the first place you might look for a stratospheric vocal performance,
21:18 but do not sleep on Simon and Garfunkel.
21:21 If you do, you will be missing out on one of the all-time greatest vocal achievements,
21:26 the incredible Bridge Over Troubled Water.
21:29 Paul Simon wrote the song and delivers some excellent backing harmonies,
21:33 but Bridge Over Troubled Water at its core is a showcase for art garfunkel.
21:39 [Music]
21:53 It's the sort of vocal that builds from a place of quiet contemplation into an emotive explosion,
21:59 assisted by a perfect storm of string arrangements, incredible production,
22:03 and session backing from drummer Hal Blain.
22:06 We dare you not to get caught up as Garfunkel sails away on that last high note.
22:12 [Music]
22:19 Number 9, Withering Heights, Kate Bush.
22:22 Kate Bush possesses an extraordinary voice and progressive visual style,
22:27 which earned her acclaim from both fans and critics.
22:30 [Music]
22:34 Withering Heights serves as Bush's biggest hit, and for good reason,
22:37 as it sets on full display all of the singer's incredible vocal range.
22:41 [Music]
22:47 The song has been recorded twice by Bush,
22:49 and both versions are melodic masterpieces that hinge on Bush's soaring vocals,
22:54 from the song's sparse intro right on through to the booming chorus.
22:58 Finally, Bush lets it rip alongside the song's lead guitar-accompanied outro,
23:03 proving her place as a member of art rock royalty
23:06 with a performance that still evokes chills today.
23:10 [Music]
23:16 Number 8, Unchained Melody, The Righteous Brothers.
23:19 Unchained Melody was written in 1955,
23:22 and has been performed by a number of different artists over the years.
23:26 [Music]
23:32 It's the version recorded a decade later by the Righteous Brothers
23:35 that's since gone on to become the definitive version, however,
23:39 thanks largely in part to Bobby Hatfield's soaring vocal performance.
23:43 [Music]
23:49 Unchained Melody actually starts off quite slow and somber,
23:53 but Hatfield soon kicks things up with a level of emotion that is completely raw
23:58 and delivered with unbelievable passion.
24:01 [Music]
24:09 Oh, and once the drums kick in around the two-minute mark,
24:12 forget about it. There isn't a dry eye in the house.
24:16 Number 7, Dream On, Aerosmith.
24:19 A good power ballad can be a wonderful thing,
24:22 and once in a while it can even define a band's career.
24:26 [Music]
24:32 Proof of this can be seen in that of Aerosmith's,
24:35 who scored a massive iconic hit with this track from their 1973 self-titled debut.
24:40 [Music]
24:46 Dream On is another slow burn of sorts, a sensitive song composed in F minor
24:52 that reaches a crescendo a little past the halfway mark
24:55 as Steven Tyler's measured vocals duel with Joe Perry's lead guitar.
24:59 [Music]
25:07 Tyler's powerful scream serves as the linchpin of Dream On,
25:11 a gold standard against which many other classic rock singers have been measured.
25:16 Number 6, All By Myself, Celine Dion.
25:20 The next song on our list has a long history of cover versions.
25:24 After its original artist, Eric Carman, adapted it from a Rachmaninoff concerto in 1975.
25:29 [Music]
25:36 Carman's All By Myself is still remembered fondly today,
25:39 but it's Celine Dion's 1996 version that is even more vocally impressive.
25:44 She hits an immensely powerful high note shortly before the three-minute mark,
25:48 turning what was initially a great pop song
25:50 into a tour de force for the French-Canadian singer to shine.
25:54 [Music]
26:03 Trust us when we say that you probably don't want to attempt this one at karaoke.
26:08 Number 5, Bohemian Rhapsody, Queen.
26:12 There are many reasons why Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody
26:14 is an incredibly difficult song for just about anyone to sing.
26:18 [Music]
26:24 For starters, it's composed in multiple keys,
26:27 and shifts styles and tempos from a ballad arrangement
26:30 to operatic accompaniment in straight-up hard rock.
26:33 [Music]
26:40 Then there's the nature of the vocals,
26:42 which consists of all four members of Queen layering their tracks in the studio
26:47 to create a larger-than-life atmosphere.
26:49 There are high falsettos, deep basses, and hard rock screams to tackle,
26:54 all combined by lead singer Freddie Mercury and company.
26:57 [Music]
27:06 Simply stated, Mercury was an inimitable vocal talent,
27:10 and only the bravest singer should even attempt at laying their stamp on this one,
27:15 or the show must go on for that matter.
27:17 [Music]
27:21 Number 4, And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going, Jennifer Holliday, Power.
27:27 This is perhaps how best to describe And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going,
27:31 a key song from the Broadway hit Dreamgirls.
27:34 [Music]
27:42 The song earned Jennifer Holliday a Tony and a Grammy Award in 1982
27:47 for her absolutely inspiring performance,
27:50 while Jennifer Hudson would also score a hit with her take on the film version in 2006.
27:54 [Music]
28:02 The tune is incredibly difficult for even the most seasoned singer to perform,
28:06 as it never lets up for a second,
28:08 demanding range, tone, and yes, power to give And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going the justice it deserves.
28:16 [Music]
28:24 Luckily, Holliday had all of these qualities and more,
28:28 delivering the vocal performance of a lifetime.
28:31 Number 3, Lovin' You, Minnie Riperton.
28:35 Minnie Riperton was the OG when it came to striking gold with this sort of approach,
28:39 as evidenced by Lovin' You and its chart-topping success back in 1975.
28:44 [Music]
28:51 The song is backed by a sunny keyboard performance from Stevie Wonder,
28:55 while Riperton sings a sweet ode to love and sex
28:58 that hits the stratosphere when she hits those famous whistle notes.
29:01 [Music]
29:08 Fun fact, Minnie Riperton is actually Maya Rudolph's mother,
29:12 and can be heard singing her daughter's name during the outro
29:15 on unedited and album versions of the track.
29:18 Number 2, I Will Always Love You, Whitney Houston.
29:22 We are not taking anything away from the absolutely killer original version of I Will Always Love You,
29:28 recorded by country legend Dolly Parton in 1973.
29:31 For many, however, it's the arrangement Whitney Houston used for the 1992 film The Bodyguard
29:37 that serves as the most well-known.
29:40 [Music]
29:48 Houston used Linda Ronstadt's 1975 cover as a basis for her version,
29:53 yet she ultimately makes it her own, thanks to an incredible vocal performance.
29:58 [Music]
30:03 Houston's uncanny ability to balance vulnerability and power
30:07 not only makes I Will Always Love You a stone-cold classic,
30:11 it also served as a defining, pivotal moment of Houston's career
30:15 as one of the great all-time singers.
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30:32 Number 1, Emotions, Mariah Carey.
30:36 It is not an exaggeration to describe Mariah Carey
30:40 as one of the foremost vocal talents of her generation.
30:44 Her prowess as a singer has been well-documented over a career that has spanned over 30 years,
30:49 including such hits as Vision of Love, Honey, and Hero.
30:53 [Music]
31:01 Emotions might be the ultimate Mariah Carey jam, however,
31:05 one that showcases the singer's uncanny ability to reach glass-shattering high notes.
31:10 [Music]
31:15 The song is also a great example of the sort of light and breezy R&B
31:18 that dominated charts in the 90s, yet is punctuated by Carey's charm and charisma.
31:24 Meanwhile, her vocal histrionics steal the show
31:27 from any pretender who might lay claim to her throne.
31:30 [Music]
31:36 Which of these songs is your go-to in the shower?
31:38 Let us know in the comments.
31:40 [Music]
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31:52 [Music]