Freddie Mercury's talent shows talent makes star quality

Queen may be a band of four, but Freddie Mercury was the name that everybody knew - and for good reason. Even after his death in 1991, Mercury was still widely regarded as one of the most talented rock musicians and vocalists to have ever existed. Mercury’s talent began to reveal itself during his boarding school years; at age 8, he was able to listen to the radio and replay what he heard on the piano^[1]. Undeniably, it was Freddie Mercury’s singing and songwriting abilities that propelled Queen to the top of the charts. Songs such as “Bohemian Rhapsody”, “Don’t Stop Me Now”, and “Killer Queen” are complex in both a lyrical and instrumental sense; the first is widely regarded as one of the most masterful songs in history^[2]. Although Mercury was a skilled performer and instrumentalist, his most impressive aspect is his supreme vocal ability. An analysis of the singer’s voice could not confirm a 4-octave range as was rumored,^[3] but researchers concluded that his strong vibrato was likely due to employing subharmonics, an extremely complicated singing style that is mostly used by Tuvan throat singers^[4]. Mercury’s musical talent lead him to be ranked #18 on Rolling Stone’s list of Top 100 Singers of All Time^[5], as well as the greatest male singer on MTV’s 22 Greatest Voices in Music^[6]. His immense impact on rock music has spanned several generations, and he continues to be an inspiration to singers and musicians all over the world.