Throughout music history, many talented women have written, sung or danced their way to fame. Blazing trails for others to follow, these artists have established powerful legacies that secure their places among the most influential female musicians of all time.
Often heralded as the “Queen” of their respective genres, these 30 women have changed the face of music forever.
Most Influential Female Musicians: 30 Trailblazing Women
30: Judee Sill (1944-1979)
Judee Sill’s career was tragically cut short by a drug overdose, but she managed to create truly out-of-this-world music while she was on Earth. Influenced heavily by Bach, her sound was an eclectic mix of classical, country, gospel, and folk music. The two albums she released during her lifetime, Judee Sill and Heart Food, both tackled Christian themes of rapture and redemption, but Sill blended them with ideas of romantic love and nature, as on Down Where The Valleys Are Low. A unique proposition in the music industry, Sill’s music is truly unlike anything heard before or since. When you listen to her albums, you’re listening to the record of a turbulent life that was almost saved by art.
Must hear: Down Where The Valleys Are Low