What actor/actress sings the "best"?

[Mr.I]

past or present..

[Martin Red]

all the dead ones in one big satanic choir

[Phyllis Hyman Cherry]

I are u kidding me Barbra Streisand,the only person to ever win a tony, academy award and grammy in the same year!This woman is no joke,she wore Donna Summer out on No more Tears enough is enough and still has a voice that is like Buttah.Most defintely up there with Aretha,Patti,Gladys,and Chaka!

[Mr.I]

Barbra Streisand,the only person to ever win a tony, academy award and grammy in the same year!

Wow:hail:

[Myron]

she wore Donna Summer out on No more Tears enough is enough

Them are fighting words.:dueling:

[SuzanneT]

I are u kidding me Barbra Streisand,the only person to ever win a tony, academy award and grammy in the same year!This woman is no joke,she wore Donna Summer out on No more Tears enough is enough and still has a voice that is like Buttah.Most defintely up there with Aretha,Patti,Gladys,and Chaka!
She IMO has the best vocal control in the business.

[Phyllis Hyman Cherry]

Them are fighting words.:dueling:

She did.Did you know that when they recording it Donna had come to the studio from a party and passed out while Barbra was singing her high C,donna feel on the floor and barbra wouldnt stop until the note was over.Now thats what you got professionalism.I would love to see Celine Dion and Deborah Cox battle it out on a new version.The one Jocelyn Brown and Kym Mazelle did sucked!

[Phyllis Hyman Cherry]

She IMO has the best vocal control in the business.

And never took vocal lessons mind you!

[S&S]

Beyonce.....thats right I said it.......did u see her sing "Listen" in dreamgirls......straight up AWSOME!!!:hail:

[Phyllis Hyman Cherry]

Beyonce.....thats right I said it.......did u see her sing "Listen" in dreamgirls......straight up AWSOME!!!:hail:

s&s i love beyonce to,but cmon "actress" thats almost laughable.Lets just say that Meryl Streep and Judi Dench shouldnt worry too soon lol.I think Beyonce as far as singing is decent,but that aint saying much look at the songbirds of the day.Alot of them are lazy and nervous to push their voices to the best it can be.But why should they,aint like the old days when a sista had to perform on Broadway,in Caberet clubs before they even were looked at in hollywood.Leslie Uggams and Lola Falana now those were stars!

[older&wiser]

s&s i love beyonce to,but cmon "actress" thats almost laughable.Lets just say that Meryl Streep and Judi Dench shouldnt worry too soon lol.I think Beyonce as far as singing is decent,but that aint saying much look at the songbirds of the day.


it would of been nice to include Whitney Houston . she did do a couple of flicks . her acting was'nt that bad..

[Phyllis Hyman Cherry]

it would of been nice to include Whitney Houston . she did do a couple of flicks . her acting was'nt that bad..

She just didnt have a chance to develop her acting because of her shit,she let in get in the way.She had it all an amazing voice,looks,and was a skinny bitch she let it all go.Hopefully she has retained some of what she lost.

[Myron]

She did.Did you know that when they recording it Donna had come to the studio from a party and passed out while Barbra was singing her high C,donna feel on the floor and barbra wouldnt stop until the note was over.Now thats what you got professionalism.I would love to see Celine Dion and Deborah Cox battle it out on a new version.The one Jocelyn Brown and Kym Mazelle did sucked!

Yeah, I'm a big Donna Summer fan and objectively you're right but in my heart it's all about Donna and I'm doing the Donna Summer part when I sing that song. :lol:

[djroc2u]

i was about to say whitney too. also dorothy dandridge had to do both. lionel martin can sing as well from rent as well as act from law and order.

[Mr.I]

Forgot all bout Whitney acting... but I still want to puke whenever I hear her sing "I will always love you" .. Kevin Costner? :biglaugha:

[dj-chefron]

Judy Garland and dont hate you know you love the Wizard of Oz :wink:

[Phyllis Hyman Cherry]

Judy Garland and dont hate you know you love the Wizard of Oz :wink:

Agreed Judy garland was probably the best interpeter of other peoples songs.Unfortuneatly she has become the poster child for silly gay men.People forget about her genius.Here are the two gals together.




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[wiz247]

Forgot all bout Whitney acting... but I still want to puke whenever I hear her sing "I will always love you" .. Kevin Costner? :biglaugha:

Me 2. :puke:

[mjoseph]

the manchurian candidate/man with the golden arm + greatest voice ever imo :hail:


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[Phyllis Hyman Cherry]

Yeah, I'm a big Donna Summer fan and objectively you're right but in my heart it's all about Donna and I'm doing the Donna Summer part when I sing that song. :lol:

Funny thing about Donna Summer is that her voice has gotten better over the years.She still has maintained her Mezzo-Soprano range unlike so many others(Aretha Frankin)must be that christian lifestyle and not using cigarette's.The color of her voice is much darker,but its alot stronger than when she was singing in the seventies.Perhaps the producers of her records made her sing like that,seductive and nasally not to overpower their productions.Dance music producers have been known to do that.

[Myron]

Funny thing about Donna Summer is that her voice has gotten better over the years.She still has maintained her Mezzo-Soprano range unlike so many others(Aretha Frankin)must be that christian lifestyle and not using cigarette's.The color of her voice is much darker,but its alot stronger than when she was singing in the seventies.Perhaps the producers of her records made her sing like that,seductive and nasally not to overpower their productions.Dance music producers have been known to do that.

That's a big reason why Donna Summer is so underrated as a singer because a lot of her records had her sing in a relatively limited range to serve the purpose of her producers. Donna is coming out with her first album of new material in years sometime this Spring and I'm looking forward to hearing it.

[djfunq]

Mariah Carey
5 octaves!

[Phyllis Hyman Cherry]

Mariah Carey
5 octaves!

Man thats nothing Adam Lopez can sing 7 octaves which is at the end of the piano.

[cloaked]

what about Diana Ross and Nell Carter? i did not know that Nell Carter was supposed to play the role of Effie in Dreamgirls.


nell sings "amazing grace"

http://youtube.com/watch?v=Dgv7y8NWpYk

nell/bea author/marla gibbs,etx sing "we are a family" from dream girls

http://youtube.com/watch?v=u3jzLUmzIPw

Nell Carter
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Nell Carter
Born Nell Ruth Hardy
September 13, 1948(1948-09-13)
Birmingham, Alabama
Died January 23, 2003 (aged 54)
Long Beach, California
Years active 1979 to 2003
Spouse(s) George Krynicki (1982-1992)
Roger Larocque (1992-1993)
Domestic partner(s) Ann Kaser (?-2003)
[show]Awards won
Emmy Awards
1982 Ain't Misbehavin
Tony Awards
1978 Ain't Misbehavin

Nell Carter (September 13, 1948 – January 23, 2003) was an American singer and film, stage, and television actress.

Contents [hide]
1 Early life
2 Acting and singing career
3 Death
4 Filmography
5 References
6 External links



[edit] Early life
Born Nell Ruth Hardy to Horace and Edna Mae Hardy in Birmingham, Alabama, USA, Carter, who was one of nine children, overcame adversity and hardships before finding success as an actress. Her father, Horace, died in an accident with a power line. She was raped at age 16 and became pregnant from the attack, giving birth to a daughter, Tracy.


[edit] Acting and singing career
She appeared alongside Bette Davis in the 1974 stage musical Miss Moffat, based on Davis' earlier film The Corn Is Green. The show closed before making it to Broadway.

She broke into stardom in the musical Ain't Misbehavin, for which she won a Tony Award in 1978. She also won an Emmy for the same role in a televised performance in 1982. Additional Broadway credits included Dude and Annie.

In 1979, she had a part in the Miloš Forman-directed musical film adaptation of Hair. Her vocal talents are showcased throughout the motion picture soundtrack. One of the more memorable moments in the film involves her rendition of the song "White Boys" where she can be seen dancing playfully as she performs the song.

In 1978, Carter was cast as Effie White in the Broadway musical Dreamgirls, but departed the production during development to take a television role on the ABC-TV soap opera, Ryan's Hope in New York. When Dreamgirls premiered in late 1981, Jennifer Holliday had taken over the lead. Carter also took a role on television's The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo, before landing a steady role as housekeeper Nell Harper on the sitcom Gimme a Break!, for which she earned Golden Globe and Emmy Award nominations. The popular show lasted from 1981 to 1987.

After the show began, Carter's life took a turbulent turn. She married mathematician and lumber executive George Krynicki, and converted from Presbyterianism to Judaism in 1982. She attempted suicide in the early 1980s, and entered a drug detoxification facility around 1985. Her brother, Bernard, died of AIDS in 1989.

Carter had three children: a daughter Tracy and two sons Daniel and Joshua. She adopted both her sons as newborns over a four month period. She attempted to adopt twice more but both adoptions fell through. In one case she brought home a child, Mary, but the birth parents demanded money before they would sign the adoption papers. In her final attempt, she allowed a young pregnant woman to move into her house with the plan to adopt the child but the mother decided to parent her child.

During this period Carter appeared in low-budget films, TV specials, and on game shows such as Match Game and To Tell the Truth. She also co-starred in Hangin' with Mr. Cooper.

In 1992, she had surgery to remove aneurysms. She had divorced Krynicki and married Roger Larocque that same year. In 1993 she divorced Larocque. She declared bankruptcy in 1995 (and again in 2002). She also endured three miscarriages.

Appearing emotional and tearful on an episode of the Sally Jessy Raphael Show, Carter explained how she went to a Liza Minnelli concert during a very turbulent time of her life. Carter told Raphael how Minnelli, seeing Carter in an agonized state, ran offstage to tell her sister, Lorna Luft, to go out and take Carter backstage so that she could get some help. Minnelli and Luft helped get Carter into rehab for her cocaine problems which she conquered.

In the mid 1990s, Carter appeared on Broadway in a revival of Annie as Miss Hannigan. She was very upset when commercials promoting the show used a different actress, Marcia Lewis, who is white, as Miss Hannigan. The producers claimed that the commercials, which were made during an earlier production, were too costly to reshoot. Carter felt that racism played a part in the decision. "Maybe they don't want audiences to know Nell Carter is black", she told the New York Post. However, the ads did mention that Carter was in the show. "It hurts a lot", Carter told the Post. "I've asked them nicely to stop it — it's insulting to me as a black woman." Carter was later replaced by Sally Struthers.


[edit] Death
Carter died from heart disease complicated by diabetes and obesity on January 23, 2003. She was 54 years old. At the time of her death, Carter had been rehearsing for a production of Raisin, a stage musical of A Raisin in the Sun in Long Beach, California, and filming a movie, Swing.

Carter had previously declared bankruptcy and owed $1.1 million in back taxes, and was later discovered to have barely $200 in her bank account.

Carter is interred in the Hillside Memorial Park Cemetery in Culver City, California.

She is survived by her two sons (Joshua and Daniel), a daughter (Tracy), and her partner Ann Kaiser.[1] Her bisexuality and relationship with Kaser did not become public knowledge until after her death.


[edit] Filmography
Swing (2003) - Grace
Back by Midnight (2002) - Waitress
Special Delivery (1999)
Perfect Fit (1999) - Mrs. Gordy
Fakin' Da Funk (1997)
The Proprietor (1996) - Millie Jackson
The Grass Harp (1995) - Catherine Creek
The Crazysitter (1995) - The Warden
Maid for Each Other (1989)
Modern Problems (1981) - Dorita
Back Roads (1981) - Waitress
Hair (1979)

[edit] References

[Phyllis Hyman Cherry]

Sorry if i come across as a snob,but when you are passionate about things that tends to happen.Nell Carter is was divine,but to put her voice in any "best" category is a stretch.She had a very thin nasally voice.Her voice while pleasant was sometimes unbearable to hear because of the whiny quality to it.Not all singers are meant to be powerhouse vocalists,thats just fact.Minnie Riperton didnt have a powerful voice,but waht she lacked in power she made up in range.Nell's voice was just there much like diana ross.Have you ever seen Frenchie Davis do whitney houston and Nell Carter?LOL




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[cloaked]

Sorry if i come across as a snob,but when you are passionate about things that tends to happen.Nell Carter is was divine,but to put her voice in any "best" category is a stretch.She had a very thin nasally voice.Her voice while pleasant was sometimes unbearable to hear because of the whiny quality to it.Not all singers are meant to be powerhouse vocalists,thats just fact.Minnie Riperton didnt have a powerful voice,but waht she lacked in power she made up in range.Nell's voice was just there much like diana ross.Have you ever seen Frenchie Davis do whitney houston and Nell Carter?LOL




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i don't think that you are a snob at all. you are just very passionate about what you like. i really don't think that Nell and Diana are the BEST. they just popped into to my mind as 2 performers that both sing and act. as you obviously know, most "singers" of today can't even come close to the singers of the past. today the music industry places looks and image over true talent.