19 Best Female Singers With Low Voices

There is no denying that the sultry, low tones of a singer’s voice are beautiful and can infuse emotions into a song. In general, female voices with a lower sound have a vocal range of contraltos, mezzos, and sometimes mezzo-sopranos. Read on to learn about some of the best female singers with low voices.

1. Adele  

Adele is an English singer known for her soulful ballads and powerful singles. Some of her well-known songs include “Rolling in the Deep”, “Set Fire to the Rain”, and “Skyfall”. She rose to prominence in 2008 with her debut album, “19”. Her vocal abilities range between B2 and C6, making her a mezzo-soprano. As of 2023, she received an Oscar, five American Music Awards, 18 Billboard Music Awards, 12 Brit Awards, an Emmy, and a Golden Globe.   

2. Amy Winehouse 

Amy Winehouse was an English singer who performed soul, jazz, and r&b with her deep contralto voice. The singer rose to prominence with her second album, “Back to Black,” for which she won a Brit Award in 2007. Her well-known songs include “Back to Black” and “Rehab.” She, unfortunately, died in 2011 at the age of 27 due to alcohol poisoning. 

3. Annie Lennox     

Annie Lennox is a Scottish singer known for her solo career and collaborations. She was a singer in the Tourists and Eurythmics throughout the 1970s and 80s. Her solo career took off in 1992 with the release of her 1992 solo album, “Diva.” Using her contralto vocal range, Lennox can perform a variety of genres, including pop, soul, electronic, jazz, r&b, and rock music. 

4. Avril Lavigne

Known for her pop-punk music and aesthetic in the early 2000s, Avril Lavigne is a Canadian singer. She released her debut album, “Let Go” in 2002 at 18. Her second album, “Under My Skin” came out in 2004 and sold 10 million copies in the world. Throughout her career, she has eight Grammy nominations. While Levine is considered a soprano, her wide vocal range allows her to sing low notes too. 

5. Cher   

Cher possesses one of the most recognizable deep singing voices in the industry. Her contralto voice is versatile. As is her ability to transform her style repeatedly throughout her 60-year-long career. She was originally known as half of Sonny and Cher, who performed “I Got You, Babe.” As of 2018, Cher released 28 studio albums and received several awards, including a Grammy in 2000. 

6. Fiona Apple

Fiona Apple is an American singer who performs art pop, alternative music, and baroque pop. Her singer-songwriter skills started developing early after receiving classical training on piano. As of 2020, she released five successful studio albums. Her classically-trained voice has great range while being considered contralto. Her well-known songs include “Criminal”, “Paper Bag”, and “Pure Imagination.”

7. Florence Welch  

Known primarily as the lead singer of the indie-rock band, Florence and the Machine, Florence Welch is an English singer-songwriter. She uses her contralto vocal range to explore themes of mental health, abuse, love, and time. Welch released her first album in 2009, and it was high on the UK Albums chart. That success would continue with the four albums that would follow.  

8. Karen Carpenter

Karen Carpenter is primarily known as half of the band The Carpenters, with her brother Richard making up the other half. She had an impressive three-octave contralto vocal range. In addition to singing, she also played the drums. The Carpenters rose to prominence in 1969. Unfortunately, she died at the age of 32 from heart failure, related to anorexia.

The band released 10 albums during her life and four albums posthumously. A posthumous solo album was also released that she recorded in 1979 and 1980. Her struggle with anorexia brought the issue of eating disorders more into the public consciousness than before. 

9. Lana Del Rey     

Lana Del Rey is an American singer-songwriter whose music and music videos are known for their uses of nostalgia, glamor, and Americana. Her contralto vocal range spans almost four octaves. This artist's music includes a variety of genres, such as pop, jazz, rock, and alternative. She rose to prominence in 2011 with her single, “Video Games” after spending several years trying to get a foothold in the industry. Del Rey has several awards, including Brit Awards, a Satellite Award, and MTV Europe Music Awards. 

10. Marina Diamandis

Marina Diamandis is a Welsh singer known as Marina and previously Marina and the Diamonds. She became well-known after being on Sound of 2010. She steadily rose in prominence with her Debut Album “The Family Jewels.” Her style is notable for her highly stylized music and music videos and use of several pop sub-genres. Marina is usually described as a mezzo-soprano, in terms of vocal range.