The lead vocalist is the member of a band who sings the main solo vocal portions of a song. They may also play one or more instruments. Lead vocalists are sometimes referred to as the frontman or frontwoman, and as such, are usually believed to be the "leader" of the groups they perform in (though this is not necessarily true), often the spokespersons in interviews and before the public. On some occasions, the frontman of the band is someone other than the lead vocalist (e.g. Rainbow, Manfred Mann, The Dave Clark Five and AC/DC.)

In certain types of music, notably Soul and Motown, there is a line-up of a lead vocalist with a named group of backing vocalists (Gladys Knight & the Pips, Smokey Robinson & the Miracles). Such line-ups can be very fluid, with both the lead vocalist and the backing group pursuing independent careers; and frequent personnel changes are not uncommon.

Some rock groups, such as The Beatles, Linkin Park, Hollywood Undead, Eagles, Gomez, Pink Floyd, The Beach Boys, KISS, Blink-182, Anti-Flag, 311, 10cc, The Band, Zebrahead, Atreyu, Mastodon, New Politics, Mushroomhead, Alkaline Trio, Lacuna Coil, Flobots, Slightly Stoopid, Crazy Town, Hüsker Dü, Set Your Goals, Four Year Strong, Great Big Sea, Just Surrender, They Might Be Giants, The Monkees, Squirrel Nut Zippers, and Barenaked Ladies have or had more than one featured vocalist, making it difficult to establish a single "lead singer" or "front man."

Keith Richards (born 18 December 1943) is an English musician and songwriter, and a founder member of The Rolling Stones. Rolling Stone magazine said Richards has created "rock's greatest single body of riffs", and has named him the 4th greatest guitarist of all time. Fourteen songs written by Richards and songwriting partner Mick Jagger, The Rolling Stones' lead vocalist, are listed among Rolling Stone magazine's "500 Greatest Songs of All Time". Richards' notoriety for illicit drug use stems in part from several drug busts during the late 1960s and 1970s.

Keith Richards is the only child of Bert Richards and Doris Dupree Richards. He was born at Livingston Hospital in Dartford, Kent. His father was a factory worker injured in World War II during the Normandy invasion.

Richards' paternal grandparents were socialists and civic leaders whose family originated from Wales. His maternal grandfather, Augustus Theodore Dupree, who toured Britain with a jazz big band, "Gus Dupree and his Boys", fostered Richards' interest in guitar.

Sir Michael Philip "Mick" Jagger, (born 26 July 1943) is an English musician, singer, songwriter and actor, best known as the lead vocalist and a founder member of The Rolling Stones.

Jagger's career has spanned over fifty years. Allmusic has described Jagger as "one of the most popular and influential frontmen in the history of rock & roll". His distinctive voice and performance, along with Keith Richards' guitar style, have been the trademark of The Rolling Stones throughout the career of the band. In 1989, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with The Rolling Stones.

Jagger gained much press notoriety for admitted drug use and romantic involvements, and was often portrayed as a counterculture figure. In the late 1960s Jagger began acting in films (starting with Performance and Ned Kelly), to mixed reception. In 1985, Jagger released his first solo album, She's the Boss, and was knighted in 2003. In early 2009, he joined the eclectic supergroup SuperHeavy.

Jagger was born into a middle class family at Livingstone Hospital, in Dartford, Kent, England. His father, Basil Fanshawe ("Joe") Jagger (13 April 1913 – 11 November 2006), and his grandfather David Ernest Jagger were both teachers. His mother, Eva Ensley Mary (née Scutts; 6 April 1913 – 18 May 2000), born in New South Wales, Australia, was a hairdresser and an active member of the Conservative Party. Jagger is the elder of two sons (his brother Chris Jagger was born on 19 December 1947) and was raised to follow in his father's career path.

Kelly Rowland (born Kelendria Trene Rowland on February 11, 1981) is an American recording artist, songwriter, dancer, actress and television personality. Born in Atlanta, Georgia and raised in Houston, Texas, Rowland rose to fame as one of the founding members of the American R&B girl group Destiny's Child, one of the world's best-selling girl groups of all time.

During the hiatus of Destiny's Child, Rowland released her debut solo album Simply Deep in 2002, which contained influences of alternative-R&B and rock music. It included her joint worldwide number-one single "Dilemma" with rapper Nelly, and the international top-ten hit "Stole". Following the group's disbandment in 2005, Rowland released her second solo effort Ms. Kelly in 2007 and despite being less successful than its predecessor, it included the international hit singles "Like This" and "Work". In 2009, Rowland scored her second worldwide number-one hit with French DJ David Guetta, on his single "When Love Takes Over". Her third solo album Here I Am was released in 2011 and included the UK top-ten hits "Commander" and "Down for Whatever", as well as the US R&B number-one "Motivation".

John William Feldmann (born June 29, 1967) is an American musician and producer who is the lead singer/guitarist of the band Goldfinger. He is known as an animal rights advocate.

Feldmann started playing music when he was 13, after hearing Mommy's Little Monster by Social Distortion. He moved to LA in 1988 and formed a band called Electric Love Hogs, where he met future Goldfinger bassist Kelly LeMieux. The Electric Love Hogs (which also included Dave Kushner of Velvet Revolver, and Bobby Hewitt from Orgy) were signed to Polygram in 1990 and put out one CD. Feldmann then formed Goldfinger in 1994 when he met original Goldfinger bassist Simon Williams in a shoe store where they were both working. The group was signed to Mojo/Universal in 1995 and have toured extensively throughout the world. According to his official website John holds a Guinness world record for his feat of performing 385 shows in 1996.

As an A&R representative for Warner Bros & Maverick Records, he has signed The Used, Destroy Rebuild Until God Shows, Goldfinger, Showoff, Unloco, Josephine Collective, City Sleeps, Story of the Year, Foxy Shazam and Mest.