Freddie Mercury will always be a dream.
It’s hard to find a musician where their voice, talent and stage presence are equally unparalleled across the music world. There’s only one name that comes to mind in rock music; Freddie Mercury.
As the frontman and co-founding member of the British rock band, Queen, Mercury knew how to draw in crowds with his memorable voice and effervescent personality. Queen fans throughout the 1970s came to see the band for the costumes and stage gimmicks, while Queen fans of the 80s stayed for the pure talent represented amongst all the members.
From the very start of his reign, Mercury was different from his peers. He didn’t swagger his way across the stage, he gracefully struts instead and made it completely his own. He would never miss a beat; slip up on a note; fail to entertain his audience. The world immediately fell in love.
There’s always been something about Mercury that defies all laws of physics. A flashy diva that was the face of a rock band? He had the natural ability to appease both sides of the spectrum. It wasn’t just the “average Joe” that could be entrapped by the man behind the microphone, it was critics and fans alike.
One of the aspects on the long list of things that made Mercury stand out was his exceptional vocals. His voice was the heart of what made Queen such a critically and commercially acclaimed band. The versatility he had to weave in and out of genres almost seamlessly while sounding perfectly comfortable in each of them was supernatural. Whether it’s the gritty “Tie Your Mother Down,” the operatic “Bohemian Rhapsody,” the rockabilly tune “Crazy Little Thing Called Love,” or the funky “Another One Bites the Dust,” Mercury knew how to use his voice to his advantage.
The emotion that was also evident in Mercury’s voice is why there is such universal love for him. The performative vocals he possessed helped selling his voice and ultimately his band to millions of people. Like any great artist, he could capture the feeling of any song in only the most beautiful way possible.
But his voice is what sounds like the world’s most interesting song.
This article can’t end without also mentioning this whimsical icon’s onstage persona. Despite changing his image multiple times throughout his career, the one thing that always remained the same was his effortless capability to capture the crowd’s attention every single night. From the moment he stepped on stage to the time the show had finished, Mercury was a God. He redefined what it meant to be a frontman, changing the stage for performance forever.
In 1985, a comeback performance at Live Aid went on to be a moment in which time stood still. It’s not often when you get to see a stadium filled with over 80,000 people all doing the same hand-clapping, raised-arm movements to “Radio Ga Ga.” Mercury commanded the crowd like never before. The power he demonstrated will go down forever in music history.
Live Aid can be seen as not only Mercury’s peak performance but the band’s in general. It’s as if their set has become a moment that doesn’t feel real. It feels like he’s become a figment of our imagination. Was Freddie Mercury a real person? Are we sure we didn’t just fantasize about this incredible performer?
Mercury convinced all of us that gods do exist. He was always so unapologetically flamboyant with a voice as unique as the man himself. It’s hard to picture another artist with his simplistic ease at superstardom to come around like him ever again.
No one will come close to the endless talent that Mercury possessed. Not only was he an unbelievable singer-songwriter with Queen, but he was an exuberant personality we’ll never see again in music. We did not deserve Freddie. We still don’t deserve Freddie. He was naturally otherworldly; a star that could shine brighter than the sun and a voice that no one could ever replicate.
Freddie Mercury will always be a dream.
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