Aretha Franklin vocal range: G2 to D6

Aretha Franklin's documented vocal range runs from G2 to D6, a span of about 3 octaves and 7 semitones. Aretha Franklin is usually described as a mezzo-soprano.

How does your range compare with Aretha Franklin's?

Measure your own lowest and highest notes with the free vocal range test, then come back to this page to see how much of Aretha Franklin's range you cover.

Aretha Franklin and the mezzo-soprano range

The typical mezzo-soprano range is A3 to A5, so the documented notes reach 14 semitones below and 5 semitones above it. A wide documented range does not change a singer's voice type: the type describes where the voice is most comfortable, and the extremes are often reached only once or twice, in a studio or on a good night.

Where these notes come from

The notes on this page are taken from The Range Planet, a community forum that documents singers' notes song by song (archived copy). We did not measure them ourselves. We also read Classic FM. Classic FM gives G2 to E6, and the 2014 Concert Hotels chart lists B5 as the highest note.

Published ranges count every note a singer has been recorded producing, including falsetto, whistle notes and very low spoken or growled notes where the source includes them. The range a singer uses comfortably in most songs is narrower.

Can you learn to sing in Aretha Franklin's range?

You can extend your own range with regular, gentle practice, a note at a time at each end. Whether you can reach these exact notes depends on your voice type. A song that sits too high or too low for you can always be sung in a different key. Start with 5 tips to improve your vocal range, or find your voice type first.

Other mezzo-sopranos

• Adele: B2 to B♭5
• Beyoncé: G♯2 to E6
• Rihanna: C3 to E6
• Miley Cyrus: G2 to E6