Top 20 Amazing Singer Impressions of Other Singers

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#20: Alicia Keys as Adele

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Joining Jimmy Fallon for a game of “Wheel of Musical Impressions,” Alicia Keys is more than ready to light up the stage with her talents. This episode includes her surprisingly great impersonation of Adele. Tasked with singing the alphabet, the singer matches the British artist’s unique register. Fallon watches in awe as his guest nails the assignment. With a dramatic finish, Keys is an absolute professional throughout the segment. This is likely the best voice she does in the entire game, even beating her impressive take on Janis Joplin doing “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star”.

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#19: Taylor Swift as Shakira

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For this “SNL” sketch, the writers crafted a star-studded soundtrack for a fake movie. The animated adventure welcomes many high-profile artists such as Randy Newman and Shakira. Taylor Swift plays the latter with complete dedication, wearing an appropriate wig and costume to make it believable. Her impression highlights the vocalist’s unique and breathy delivery. She also utilizes some memorable choreography, using her hands to help sell the impersonation. Swift is clearly having a blast for this skit and really captures the spirit of the Colombian singer. Her final flourishes might be more comical than precise, but she’s still the consummate performer all the way through.

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#18: Chris Martin as Neil Young

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Unless you’re a hardcore Coldplay fan, you might not know the origins of the song “Yellow.” Singer Chris Martin sat down with Howard Stern to explain the composition process. The song originated partly as an impression of Neil Young, as demonstrated by the artist’s interpretation. It’s much more accurate than expected with a folksy quality that’s Young’s vocal signature. Transitioning from the impersonation to his natural voice, Martin proves himself to be even more outrageously talented than we thought. It’s a short and sweet surprise that makes for an endearing story for a timeless hit.

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#17: David Bowie as Mick Jagger

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In this interview on the “Parkinson” show, David Bowie sat down for a chat about his influences and history with music. This includes a story about seeing The Rolling Stones in his younger days and an anecdote about Mick Jagger. Bowie goes into Jagger’s voice as he talks about the legend telling off an angry spectator. With comic timing and an eerily accurate impression, the talk show guest completely transforms into the Stones’ frontman. The five-word impersonation has more power than some full-length specials. Along with some great storytelling, this segment showcases the Starman’s one-of-a-kind charisma.

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#16: Kelly Clarkson as Alanis Morissette

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On the game show “That’s My Jam,” Kelly Clarkson goes up against Ariana Grande in a round of Mixtape Medley.” They work their way through pop diva legends before reaching Alanis Morissette. Grande is hard to match with her voice, but Clarkson finds a way to stand out with an incredible impersonation. Performing “You Oughta Know,” the singer taps into the raw intensity of Morissette’s vocals. The “Since U Been Gone” singer matches the original artist in terms of sheer quality and performance ability. It also works as an effective cover of the 90s rock classic.

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#15: Luke Bryan as Elvis

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After discussing Las Vegas residencies, “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” guest host Katy Perry finds a perfect segue to let country star Luke Bryan geek out on Elvis Presley. He shares his childhood love for the King of Rock and Roll before finding a point to do a vocal impression. Many people have an impersonation of Presley, but few have the expertise to truly belt out one of his tunes this well. Bryan steals the show without even having to stand up. He brings the house down with a mix of his own country influences, giving the performance a personal touch.

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#14: Justin Timberlake as Robin Gibb

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For this recurring SNL sketch, Justin Timberlake partners up with Jimmy Fallon for “The Barry Gibb Talk Show.” The former plays Robin Gibb as the sidekick to Fallon’s Barry. While not the lead performer in the skit, Timberlake still steals the show with some falsettos at key points. It’s also extremely hard for the pop singer to keep a straight face. Having to deal with his scene partner’s anger, the artist harmonizes and giggles throughout this hilarious premise. He’s returned to perform this impression several times over the years. Each and every time, the star rises to the occasion in his absurd take on the disco legends.

Proving that she’s as talented as any other pop artist, Alessia Cara is more than ready to shine during this episode of “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.” Her performance during “Wheel of Musical Impressions” plays like a masterclass in impersonations that include Nicki Minaj. After nailing that voice, she really excels as Lorde. She transforms into the New Zealander during a perfect rendition of “Baa Baa Black Sheep.” If you close your eyes, you’ll probably think that it’s the original artist. Fallon and the adoring crowd go crazy for the performer in the aftermath and so do we.

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#12: Miley Cyrus as Justin Bieber

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Willing to make fun of herself and her fellow pop stars, Miley Cyrus plays Justin Bieber in the SNL sketch “The Miley Cyrus Show.” The singer is complete with a vintage Bieber haircut and some classic late 2000s wardrobe. Sitting opposite Vanessa Bayer’s impression, Cyrus works extremely well playing off of a crazy version of herself. She also makes the impersonation of the “Baby” singer seem effortless with a few well-timed looks. At the end of the skit, everyone sings the show’s theme song in one final moment for the “Party in the USA” performer to be a good sport.

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#11: Eddie Murphy as Stevie Wonder

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Known as a multi-talented artist, comedian Eddie Murphy also has a singing career. His uncanny ability to hit the right notes informs this particular sketch. His impression of Stevie Wonder ranks among his best, capturing the icon’s soulful tone for his hits like “Ebony and Ivory.” He also throws in an appropriate costume and accurate body movements. Murphy’s unstoppable energy elevates this impersonation beyond a one-off joke. Using his own ability to sing, the comic can channel the music legend in a transcendent performance. It’s also this kind of talent that arguably saved “Saturday Night Live” in the uncertain 1980s.

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#10: Adam Levine as Multiple Singers

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We’ve really tried to narrow down which specific impression we think each singer was phenomenal at, but when you’re as talented as Maroon 5’s lead singer, that’s a hard choice to make! Appearing on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon”, Adam Levine gave us a spot-on rendition of “Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes” as Frank Sinatra. His impression of Michael Jackson singing the “Sesame Street” theme song showcased his impressive range and ALSO had us rolling. And it his killer Eddie Vedder impression doing “The Muffin Man” left us clutching our sides.

Don’t get us wrong, pretty much all of the girls from Fifth Harmony could have made it on our list. Lauren Jauregui’s Adele, Normani Kordei’s Rihanna, and Dinah Jane’s Leona Lewis impressions are stunning examples of just how talented these ladies are. But it’s the Grammy-nominated Cabello, now a solo artist, who made it on our list with her impression of Goulding’s unique voice singing “Outside”. Although she’s now known for collaborations with artists like Pitbull and Shawn Mendes, what we’re really craving right now is a collaboration with Cabello and the English singer-songwriter herself.

Yeah, we know that this actor and singer’s portrayal of musician Ray Charles in 2004’s “Ray” was so good that it earned Foxx the Academy Award for Best Actor. But that’s not the only impression he does well! His appearance on Fallon’s show showed us much more of the award-winner’s repertoire, most comically his Mick Jagger strut and his portrayal of Jennifer Hudson singing about her poor meatball on top of a pile of spaghetti. But we were actually blown away by his take on John Legend singing the Toys R Us jingle; now we know who Hollywood will call if they ever produce a Legend biopic!

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#7: Nicki Minaj as Beyoncé

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Rarely do we see an attempt to impersonate the Queen B herself. But on this hilarious episode of “Saturday Night Live”, the Trinidadian-born voice behind hits like “Starships”, “Super Bass”, and “Anaconda” did the impossible. Opposite Kate McKinnon’s dead-on impersonation of Justin Bieber in a hip-hop style sketch of the nativity scene, Minaj nailed Beyoncé’s mannerisms and singing voice, treating audiences to some none-too-subtle references to some of Beyonce’s hit songs. We’re not sure if Minaj really had to work to nail this impression or if she just...woke up like that?

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#6: Celine Dion as Sia

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This Canadian singer’s career spans four decades, and with a name that’s recognized around the world, it’s kind of awesome to see that the superstar has a real sense of humour. On Fallon’s Wheel of Musical Impressions, Dion let loose with some goofy impressions of Cher, Michael Jackson, and Rihanna. But she actually made us sit up and take notice with her final impression of Sia. We’re not sure if it’s the stuffed animal or her bangs that did it for us, but it’s not difficult to recognize Sia’s fiercely unique vocal style from Dion’s energetic delivery.

Best known for her time with the Pussycat Dolls, Nicole Scherzinger wowed audiences with her incredible impressions on “Good Morning America”. There’s no denying that her Judy Garland and Steve Perry impressions were to die for. But the hosts and audience of GMA went REALLY wild for Scherzinger’s dead-on rendition of Britney Spears singing her ABCs. While the other impressions had been a little difficult for hosts Michael Strahan and Sara Haines to figure out, the Spears impression took mere seconds to guess. Who knew the alphabet could be so sensational?

This Canadian Grammy Award winner has made huge waves since she hit the scene in 2015, but who knew she was such a talented impersonator? Her impression of Alanis Morissette singing “Hush Little Baby”? Uncanny. Her impersonation of Lorde singing “Baa Baa Black Sheep”? Inspired! And her impression of Ariana Grande singing “Skidamarink”? Holy cow. She’s now appeared on this entertaining “Tonight Show” game multiple times. But we’d argue that her spot-on impersonation of Billie Eilish singing “Pop Goes the Weasel” has been the highlight. Close your eyes, and it’s as if Eilish decided to rewrite the words to her own song.

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#3: Bruno Mars as Michael Jackson

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It’s no surprise that Jackson is one of the most imitated musicians in history. But it’s hard to believe that anyone could capture the “King of Pop” better than Bruno Mars, who impersonated the music icon during one particularly legendary episode of Saturday Night Live. During the performance, Bruno absolutely killed it with covers of “Billie Jean”, “Smooth Criminal”, and “Man in the Mirror”. Of course, we can’t forget to mention Mars’ other famous impression, of the “King of Rock and Roll” Elvis Presley, which he’s been doing since he was a kid.

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#2: Christina Aguilera as Britney Spears

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Okay, okay, so we’ve already showcased a singer with an awesome Britney Spears impression. But leave it to this best-selling artist, who’s also featured on Rolling Stone's list of the 100 Greatest Singers of All Time, to up the ante. Appearing on Musical Wheel of Impressions, she made us laugh as Cher singing the Folgers coffee jingle, and as Shakira performing the “Golden Girls” theme. But hearing her rendition of Spears singing “This Little Piggy” was pure gold and got a standing ovation from “The Tonight Show” host. Here’s hoping she comes back for a rematch!

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#1: Ariana Grande

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Ariana seems to possess the Midas touch when it comes to impressions. Because every impression that this multi-platinum artist attempts is pure gold! She made jaws drop with her impressions of Celine Dion, Rihanna, Whitney Houston, Britney Spears, and Shakira on “Saturday Night Live”. It doesn’t stop there though; when she appeared on Musical Wheel of Impressions, she absolutely killed additional impressions, including that of Christina Aguilera. As if that’s not enough, a young Grande can be found on Youtube nailing impressions like that of Ariel from the 1989 film “The Little Mermaid”.