Which singer/entertainer has the most imitators?

I would say Elvis...



There`s something really sad about imitators

Icicle said:

Vocals-wise, I hear Eddie Vedder in so many radio rock bands of the past decade or so, it's not even funny.

Definately Elvis. Some looney toons even have Elvis weddings.

Elvis for sure...folks have made careers out of imitating that man!

Icicle said:

Parodying him? Yes, imitating HIM? Nah, you can't imitate an imitator.

Here're my humble list from scratch:

Bessie Smith
Louis Armestrong(The MOST imitated song stylist)
Billie Holiday
Ella Fitzgerald
Sarah Vaughan
Dinah Washington
Aretha Franklin
Chaka Khan
Donny Hathaway(Even Stevie imitated him)
Marvin Gaye
James Brown
Little Richard
MJ
Prince
Minnie Riperton
Joni Mitchell

And from the young breed; Mary J, Lauryn Hill, Erykah Badu and Jill Scott.
[Edited 12/17/06 13:41pm]

Harlepolis said:

I misjudged the thread, i was thinking of impersonators

Blame it on my bad english...

Icicle said:

Obeviously you ain't alone,,,scroll up and look @ the rest of them co-signing your post

Harlepolis said:

That could have been an interesting thread, impersonators...

Icicle said:

#1

I forgot one more:


[Edited 12/17/06 16:39pm]

Another one:

Often imitated by celebs and others, but never duplicated.

Bt celebs i would ahve to say Marylin is the most imitated

Professional Imitators would be Cher and Elvis

the most famous of the Cher imitators and even appears on E from time to time talking about the importance of Cher in the world is Chad Michaels




chadmichaels.com

ehuffnsd said:

Cher is wonderful.

I prefer this over pale ass Monroe...


And I the 60's eyeliner,,,,,tell ya, 60s fashion does Mariah's facial justice.

Where the hell is PricelessHo when you need him on this?

Harlepolis said:

Mariah is a huge Marilyn fan and admits as much. She even owns Marilyn's baby grand piano and has it in her apartment in NYC.

Mariah is okay because she clearly told the photographer to just do a straight copy of Bert Stern's photo session for Vogue in '62 - and she must know her shit if she knows about the Stern photos.
[Edited 12/17/06 17:35pm]

VoicesCarry said:

Yeah I know, apparently, so does Prince

I tell ya, I'll never understand people's fascination with air headed blondies, must be something in the water

I personaly, will take bad ass Dorothy Dandridge over any of them looney dames.

MikeMatronik said:

that's Chad Michaels. a local drag queen and the worlds most famous Cher Imitator

Harlepolis said:

Different strokes for different folks, I guess. Monroe wasn't an airhead, as she was running her own production company and managing herself before it was really done by women in Hollywood. She was just really, really, really fucked in the head. It's clear how much of an impact she had considering how much she is copied. She had a certain vulnerability, and a certain sadness, I think, that people like.

Give Monroe credit for also giving Ella Fitzgerald a big break by insisting she play the Mocambo in the early 1950's. Ella never forgot that. "It was because of her that I played the Mocambo, a very popular nightclub in the '50s. She personally called the owner of the Mocambo, and told him she wanted me booked immediately, and if he would do it, she would take a front table every night. She told him - and it was true, due to Marilyn's superstar status - that the press would go wild. The owner said yes, and Marilyn was there, front table, every night. The press went overboard…. After that, I never had to play a small jazz club again. She was an unusual woman - a little ahead of her times. And she didn't know it."
[Edited 12/17/06 17:49pm]

Harlepolis said:

There is nothing wrong with being pale it keeps me looking younger than i am and will prevent me from getting skin cancer later
[Edited 12/17/06 21:36pm]

VoicesCarry said:

and her death. I think part of the legend and the tregedy comes from that. and i have a picture of her grave on my cell phone i took when i visited her grave in June.

ehuffnsd said:

I don't think her death would have mattered much if she hadn't been such a personality on screen and in still photos. Carole Landis was a suidide in 1948, but no one remembers her. No one remembers Carole Lombard these days (even though she died tragically in the war effort), although they seem to remember Harlow quite well, probably because of her forceful personality. Madonna always said she copied Monroe, I think she copied Harlow. Harlow & Dietrich.

If ya'll say so I know I'll lose this argument in no time anyway.

As for Ella, I know I sound cynical but seems to me that the favor is a 2 way street(for Monroe as much it is for Ella)

Never heard of this information though, intersting

Harlepolis said:

It's just opinion



Marilyn and Ella stayed friends, so I don't think it was a gimmick. I'm not quite sure how that would have been much of a beneficial gimmick for a white star in the early 50's. All Marilyn listened to in those days was Ella and Frank Sinatra.