These 20 Best music biographies of all time contain numerous award winners and nominees. There’s something for fans of every music genre in this list of movies, taking you behind the scenes and into the lives of these stars.
20. Great Balls of Fire! (1989)
Dennis Quaid delivers a standout performance as early rock ‘n’ roll/rockabilly pioneer, singer-pianist Jerry Lee Lewis. The film pulls no punches, chronicling Lewis’ rise to stardom and his marriage to his 13-year-old cousin (played by Winona Ryder) that deprecated his image and led to his downfall. Alec Baldwin plays Lewis’ second cousin, televangelist Jimmy Swaggart.
19. Lady Sings the Blues (1972)
Nominated for five Academy Awards, including Best Actress for Diana Ross for her portrayal of legendary jazz singer Billie Holiday. It also stars Richard Pryor and Billy Dee Williams. The film evades the grim truths about Holiday’s drug addiction and skates over her early life and first two marriages. Nonetheless, Ross sells the performance in both acting and singing.
18. Sid and Nancy (1986)
This film delivers a realistic look at the life of punk rock pioneers the sex pistols, focusing on bassist Sid Vicious and his girlfriend, Nancy Spungen. Gary Oldman and Chloe Webb are outstanding in the lead roles. It highlights the boredom, delusion, and mystery of life on the road. Moreover, it spotlights the destructive addiction of celebrity and heroin.
17. Sweet Dreams (1985)
Actress Jessica Lange was nominated for a Best Actress Oscar playing country singer Patsy Cline. She lip-synced to the original recordings. It follows the unhappily married Cline as she plays small gigs in West Virginia. As she becomes a rising star, her husband becomes abusive. At the peak of her popularity, she died in a plane crash at age 30.
16. Rocketman (2019)
Elton John authorized this biopic that showcases his life and career before 1990. It focuses on his early years and partnership with lyricist Bernie Taupin. It won an Oscar and Golden Globe for Best Original Song. Taron Egerton won a Best Actor Golden Globe for his portrayal of Elton and he even sang the songs in the film.
15. Straight Outta Compton (2015)
This gritty biopic chronicles the creation and rise of West Coast hip-hop through the rise and fall of its pioneers NWA. It also highlights the surrounding atmosphere of gang life, racism, and police brutality in south-central Los Angeles. The film won many awards and was nominated for an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay.
14. La Bamba (1987)
This Golden Globe-nominated biopic follows the short life of pioneering Chicano rock and roll star Ritchie Valens. The film begins in 1957, following Valens, 16, from his poor roots to his joining a band and being discovered. A year later, Valens, 17, died in a plane crash that killed Buddy Holly and The Big Bopper.
13. Backbeat (1994)
This film looks at the early days of the Beatles, particularly their pre-fame, hard-working days of gigging in Hamburg in the early 1960s. It focuses on early band member, bassist Stuart Sutcliffe, and singer-guitarist John Lennon. The pair are credited with inventing the name “Beatles.” Sutcliffe quit in 1961 and died at age 21 from a brain hemorrhage in 1962.
12. Last Days (2005)
This film is a fictionalized account of the last days of Nirvana singer-songwriter and guitarist Kurt Cobain. It attempts to look into the tortured and unhappy mind of the singer during his final hours. The film is brilliant in its atmosphere of sadness and depression, showing the singer roaming in his mansion as if a wounded animal.
11. Superstar: The Karen Carpenter Story (1988)
Stylishly experimental, the film uses archived footage and presents some dialogue scenes with Barbie dolls playing the main characters. Nonetheless, it’s riveting. This cult biography follows the last 17 years of Karen Carpenter’s life and her struggle with anorexia. Because the film used Carpenters’ recordings without permission, it lost a copyright infringement lawsuit and was withdrawn from circulation in 1990.
10. Control (2007)
This film chronicles the life of Ian Curtis, the vocalist and guitarist of British post-punk band Joy Division. On the eve of what would have been the band’s first North American tour in May 1980, Curtis took his own life at age 23. He was troubled by numerous problems including epilepsy, on-stage seizures, depression, and a failing marriage.
9. The Doors (1991)
This film perfectly captures the mood and feeling of the 1960s rock scene and places you there. It’s criminal Val Kilmer didn’t receive an Oscar nomination for his uncanny portrayal of The Doors singer Jim Morrison. Kilmer delivers a mesmerizing performance and sings the songs. The surviving Doors members said they couldn’t distinguish Kilmer’s voice from the real Morrison.
8. Walk the Line (2005)
This film chronicles the love between a then-married Johnny Cash and June Carter. It’s a real tearjerker. It follows Johnny’s early success, love for Carter, and drug addiction. A drug arrest leads to his divorce. June influences Johnny to get clean and finally agrees to marry him. The film won Golden Globes for best picture and best actor.
7. Bound for Glory (1976)
David Carradine plays folksinger and troubadour Woody Guthrie. Set in the 1930s Dust Bowl, it follows the singer’s journey of leaving Oklahoma to live in California. Along the way, he rides the rails, lives with hobos and workers in camps, and entertains them with his songs. He stays on the move, bringing his music to working people and motivating lives.
6. What’s Love Got to Do With It? (1993)
Angela Bassett snagged an Oscar nomination and won a Golden Globe for Best Actress for her portrayal of singer Tina Turner. It chronicles her rise and the domestic abuse from her husband Ike Turner. To escape, Turner walks away with nothing and rebuilds herself into a superstar. Lawrence Fishburne got an Oscar nomination for his performance as Ike Turner.
5. Coal Miner’s Daughter (1980)
Titled after the song of the same name by Loretta Lynn, Sissy Spacek won an Academy Award for Best Actress for her portrayal of the country singer. The film garnered 7 Oscar nominations. It follows her tough upbringing, childhood poverty, marriage at 15, music mentoring by Patsy Cline, and rise to musical superstardom. Spacek actually sang Lynn’s hits.
4. Bohemian Rhapsody (2018)
This film chronicles the formation of the British rock band Queen. It particularly focuses on singer-songwriter and keyboardist Freddie Mercury. It takes you through his recruitment into the group, his battle with AIDS, and their famous performance at Live Aid in 1985. Rami Malek won an Oscar for Best Actor for his portrayal of the legendary vocalist.
3. Elvis (1979)
There have been many movies made of Elvis, but this 1979 made-for-TV film by John Carpenter is the best of the bunch. Kurt Russell, then 27, delivers an excellent performance of the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll. The film chronicles Elvis’ life from his earliest days to the start of his biggest years (before his weight problems).
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2. Ray (2004)
Jamie Foxx won an Oscar for Best Actor for his portrayal of soul musician Ray Charles. This moving film takes you through Ray becoming blind at nine years old to his success as a multimillion-selling recording star. Foxx, an excellent singer in his own right, lip-syncs to the real thing and perfectly mimics every nuance of Charles’ movements and idiosyncrasies.
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1. Funny Girl (1968)
This film was loosely based on the life and career of comedienne Fanny Brice. It chronicles her stormy relationship with entrepreneur and gambler Nicky Arnstein. Barbra Streisand won a well-deserved Oscar for Best Actress for her performance. It also laid the foundation for Streisand developing a fan base that spanned the globe.
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