Frontman
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Frontman (also "front man") is a term referring to the lead singer or band leader of a music group. Usually, the front man is the most famous member of the group, however, this is not necessarily true in all bands. The term comes from the singer's usual position during a concert, which is in front of the stage and in front of the other band members. His chief responsibility is most commonly lead voice, and he is also the one who does most of the communication with the audience between songs. Some use the term "frontman" interchangeably with "singer", while others use "frontman" only to describe someone who sings and plays an instrument for the band (such as James Hetfield or Kurt Cobain).
Some famous front men are:
- Freddie Mercury of Queen
- Bon Scott and Brian Johnson of AC/DC
- Joey Ramone of The Ramones
- Mick Jagger of The Rolling Stones
- John Lennon and Paul McCartney of The Beatles
- Robert Plant of Led Zeppelin
- Jim Morrison of The Doors
- Roger Daltrey of The Who
- Peter Gabriel and, later, Phil Collins of Genesis
- Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam
- Ozzy Osbourne of Black Sabbath
- Rob Halford of Judas Priest
- David Byrne of Talking Heads
- Steven Tyler of Aerosmith
- David Lee Roth and Sammy Hagar, both of Van Halen
- Ian Gillan of Deep Purple
- Zack De La Rocha of Rage Against The Machine
- Bono of U2
- Jack White of The White Stripes
- Jon Bon Jovi of Bon Jovi
- Axl Rose of Guns N' Roses
- Kurt Cobain of Nirvana
- Debbie Harry of Blondie
- Chris Cornell of Audioslave and Soundgarden
- Bruce Dickinson of Iron Maiden
- Anthony Kiedis of Red Hot Chili Peppers
- Iggy Pop of The Stooges
- Siouxsie Sioux of Siouxsie and the Banshees
- Morrissey of The Smiths
- Marc Bolan of T Rex
- Robert Smith of The Cure
- Johnny Rotten of The Sex Pistols
- Chrissie Hynde of The Pretenders
- Geddy Lee of Rush
- Bryan Ferry of Roxy Music
A musician is usually called a front man when he sings the majority of the songs of the group. For example, George Harrison is not considered a front man, since John Lennon and Paul McCartney usually sang tunes during their tenure in The Beatles. On the other hand, Bruce Dickinson of Iron Maiden sings all the songs of the band, therefore, he is dubbed a front man. Sometimes the majority of a group's creative input comes from the front man; these front men are often recognized or referred to as band leaders, such as Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails.
When the lead musician is female, the term "frontress" is occasionally used for more accuracy. Although its use is rarer, references to it seem to be consistent.
See also
List of lead singers
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