5 Artists Who Completely Shattered Expectations

Who do you see in your mind when you think “rock star”? Are you surprised when you see someone onstage and they don’t conform to your expectations? 

Like it or not, we all have prejudices. We all have expectations for different genders, ethnicities, body types, and other traits over which people have little control. But music casts its spell over all sorts of people. It belongs to no one group, culture, or nation. When musicians want to play, there’s not much that can stop them. Here's a sampling of five artists who prove it.

1. Bonnie Raitt

Photo by David Gans via Flickr / CC BY 2.0

The redheaded singer and slide guitarist released her first album in 1970, but she didn’t pick up any sort of mainstream success until 19 years later. This wasn’t because the media passed her over; Raitt was repeatedly written up in Rolling Stone, asked in for sessions by heavy hitters like Warren Zevon, and even signed to a record deal on Warner Brothers. She’s a deft songwriter as well as a skilled performer.

Were some music fans resistant to a female lead guitarist? Raitt was one of the first women artists to be respected that way, and she bucked trends again by becoming a female star at 40 years old with her 1989 album, Nick of Time, which sold six million copies.

2. Rick Allen (Def Leppard)

Photo by Matt Becker via Wikimedia Commons / CC BY 3.0

In 1984, heavy-metal basher Rick Allen was thrown from his car during a horrific accident, resulting in the amputation of his left arm. The enormous difficulties posed by this situation in day-to-day life seemed like enough of a challenge. But encouraged by his Leppard mates and other musical friends, Allen continued to play music. Using a set configured with an additional foot pedal, he was able to play the snare with his left foot. Today he has four different electronic pedals on the left and can play the snare, bass drum, hi-hat, and a rack tom using just his foot.

There's recently been a great deal of attention paid to amputations in the aftermath of the Iraq War, but in the 1980s, Allen’s triumph was a revelation to many.

3. Brian Wilson (The Beach Boys)

Photo by Takahiro Kyono via Wikimedia Commons / CC BY 2.0

Critical favorite Brian Wilson, primary songwriter in the famed sunny pop group, battled with mental health issues throughout the band’s career. Despite the massive success of his band, Wilson slipped into a pattern of heavy sleeping and drug use that brought his career to a standstill… and left the classic record Smile unfinished.

Eventually, Wilson was diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder, a condition so severe that he was literally hearing voices. Getting a handle on this condition later in life, Wilson returned to complete his album 48 years after it was mothballed. Released in 2004, Brian Wilson Presents Smile is a symbol of perseverance and the idea of never giving up.

4. Willie Dixon

Photo by Brian McMillen via Wikimedia Commons / CC BY 3.0

What do the Doors, Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, the Rolling Stones, and Bob Dylan have in common? They all had hit covers of Willie Dixon songs. Born in Mississippi in 1915, Dixon grew up rough, learning to sing the blues while working on prison farms as an incarcerated teenager. As a young man, he moved to Chicago and became a professional musician and songwriter. Appalled by the institutional racism in America, he refused to serve in World War II and was imprisoned again for 10 months.

Once he was released, Dixon didn’t miss a beat. His talent scouting, bass playing, singing, and songwriting and business chops made him a key figure in the creation of the Chicago blues sound, and his work has been covered by too many artists to count. What’s more, he’s generally gotten credit for his hits, even suing Led Zeppelin for failing to pay up when they appropriated some of his work.

Dixon was highly conscious of the exploitation of African-American artists and was a pioneer in fighting for their rights. When he passed in 1992, he had released more than 20 solo albums and written more than 500 songs.

5. Freddie Mercury (Queen)

Photo by Carl Lender via Wikimedia Commons / CC BY 3.0

Freddie Mercury is often thought of as one of the first openly gay pop artists, but the truth is somewhat more complicated. Mercury carried on relationships with both women and men and was generally vague on the subject when asked directly. However, what isn’t in doubt is Mercury’s ethnicity. He was born Farouk Bulsara in the Protectorate of Zanzibar (now part of Tanzania), and his parents were of Indian and Persian origin. Freddie grew up in Zanzibar and India, only moving to England as a teenager, where his friends noticed that he spoke with a “Bombay accent.” This may make Mercury the first Asian rock star, and certainly one of the least conventional luminaries in all of music.

Jesse Sterling Harrison is an author, recording artist, and part-time farmer. He lives in Massachusetts with his wife, three daughters, and a herd of ducks.