Soul singer hire in Australia: the complete guide

Soul is the safest bet in live music for a mixed-age room. A grandmother and a twenty-two year old will both get up for the same Motown song, and they will both know the words. That is a rare thing, and it is why soul singers dominate the wedding and milestone birthday market.

The category also carries one of the higher top ends on this site, because soul sounds best with players behind it and a band costs what a band costs. Prices here are live from the performers listed, and the spread mostly tracks how many people are on stage.

The sixties and seventies catalogue is up-tempo, communal and built for a dance floor. Everybody recognises it and nobody has to be persuaded. Modern soul and neo-soul is slower, richer and closer to R&B, and it is better for a dinner or a cocktail hour than a party.

Most singers do both and will happily build an evening that moves from one to the other. That progression is the single most reliable structure for a wedding reception, and any experienced soul vocalist will suggest it before you do.

Soul was written for horns, an organ and a rhythm section, and a backing track version always loses something. A solo soul vocalist with good tracks is perfectly enjoyable, but the moment you add a real bass and drums the music starts to breathe and the room feels it.

If the budget can stretch anywhere, stretch it here. Even a trio of singer, keys and drums is a noticeable jump. Many of the vocalists on this site quote a solo, a duo and a full band version of the same act, so ask for all three in one email.

Two things transform a soul set. Backing vocals give you the call and response that half these songs are built on, and horns give you the punch in the chorus. Both are extra fees, and both change a good night into one people talk about afterwards.

If you cannot have both, take the backing vocals. Horns are thrilling but intermittent. Harmony runs through every song and does more work across a whole set.

Brisbane leads, then Melbourne and Sydney very close behind, with the Gold Coast and Perth each holding a decent pool. Queensland overall carries more soul listings than any other state, which is partly the coastal function trade and partly the number of horn players who live up there.

Outside those centres the numbers drop quickly. In Tasmania, the Territory and regional South Australia expect a short list and a travel component, and start looking a long way out from the date.

Solo, duo or band, and what does each cost? Are backing vocals included or extra? Do you have horn players you work with regularly? How much of your set is the classic catalogue? And can you start quiet and build, or is this a one-volume act?

Ask about the first hour specifically. Plenty of soul acts are superb after dinner and far too big for arrival drinks, and it is better to book them for the right two hours than to stretch them across five.