Famous baritones
51 cited ranges on one keyboard — the most common male speaking-range voice, sitting between bass and tenor.
What a baritone is
Most men speak in baritone territory, which makes it the default category and the one most conversational singing sits in. The characteristic sound comes from the middle of the range rather than either extreme, and the shift into head voice arrives lower than a tenor's.
Rock and pop are written largely for tenors, so baritones spend a lot of time either transposing or pushing the top of the range harder than it wants to go.
What the 51 baritones here show
- Widest cited span: Mike Patton at D#1–D#7 (6.0 octaves); narrowest is George Strait at A2–E4.
- Both extremes belong to the same singer: Mike Patton holds the category’s floor at D#1 and its ceiling at D#7, 72 semitones apart.
- Prominence spans 1925 to 2020, and the median cited span is 31 semitones against A2–A4 for the conventional baritone band.
Voice categories are guides borrowed from choral and operatic practice, not boxes. Plenty of these singers are filed differently by different sources, and a category says more about where a voice is comfortable than about the notes it can reach.
- Anthony KiedisF2–E5F2–E52.9 oct
- Bad BunnyF2–G4F2–G42.2 oct
- Bill WithersF2–A4F2–A42.3 oct
- Bing CrosbyF2–F4F2–F42.0 oct
- Bobby McFerrinE2–E6E2–E64.0 oct
- Bruce SpringsteenF2–C5F2–C52.6 oct
- Burna BoyF2–C5F2–C52.6 oct
- Chris StapletonF2–B4F2–B42.5 oct
- Corey TaylorE2–A5E2–A53.4 oct
- David BowieE2–A5E2–A53.4 oct
- Dean MartinF2–G4F2–G42.2 oct
- Dmitri HvorostovskyG2–A4G2–A42.2 oct
- Eddie VedderD2–E5D2–E53.2 oct
- Elvis PresleyG2–C#5G2–C#52.5 oct
- Fela KutiF2–A4F2–A42.3 oct
- Frank SinatraG2–A4G2–A42.2 oct
- Freddie MercuryF2–F6F2–F64.0 oct
- Garth BrooksG2–A4G2–A42.2 oct
- George MichaelE2–A5E2–A53.4 oct
- George StraitA2–E4A2–E41.6 oct
- Gregory PorterF2–G4F2–G42.2 oct
- Harry StylesE2–F5E2–F53.1 oct
- HozierE2–E5E2–E53.0 oct
- Hugh JackmanA2–B4A2–B42.2 oct
- Jacob CollierD2–D6D2–D64.0 oct
- James BrownF2–C5F2–C52.6 oct
- James HetfieldE2–C5E2–C52.7 oct
- James TaylorF2–A4F2–A42.3 oct
- Jim MorrisonE2–A#4E2–A#42.5 oct
- Josh GrobanG2–A4G2–A42.2 oct
- Kenshi YonezuF2–D5F2–D52.8 oct
- Kurt CobainF2–E5F2–E52.9 oct
- Layne StaleyE2–G5E2–G53.3 oct
- Lewis CapaldiF2–E5F2–E52.9 oct
- Louis ArmstrongF2–G4F2–G42.2 oct
- Merle HaggardF2–E4F2–E41.9 oct
- Michael BubléG2–A4G2–A42.2 oct
- Mike PattonD#1–D#7D#1–D#76.0 oct
- Nat King ColeF2–G4F2–G42.2 oct
- Otis ReddingF2–C5F2–C52.6 oct
- Peter ToshF2–G4F2–G42.2 oct
- Randy TravisF2–E4F2–E41.9 oct
- Rick AstleyF2–D5F2–D52.8 oct
- Scott HoyingF2–A#5F2–A#53.4 oct
- Scott WeilandE2–C#5E2–C#52.8 oct
- Serj TankianF2–C6F2–C63.6 oct
- Teddy PendergrassE2–A#4E2–A#42.5 oct
- Teddy SwimsE2–A5E2–A53.4 oct
- Tom JonesG2–A#4G2–A#42.3 oct
- Tony BennettA2–A4A2–A42.0 oct
- VD2–D5D2–D53.0 oct