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The track I’m recommending is the Postmodern Jukebox cover of Blackstreet’s “No Diggity” featuring Ariana Savalas on vocals.
For your requirements
popular song
Yes - the original got a ton of airplay on MTV and radio in the early 90s
from the 80s or 90s
Yes
hard rock or metal version
Nope
female vocalist
Yes
Link:
If Savalas sounds familiar, her dad is the actor Telly Savalas.
Wait...the actor from like the 70s? He would be over 100 if he were still alive. How is she herself not 70 or something? Or did you mean granddaughter?
(Nevermind, looked it up and did the math... I guess he was 65 when he had her and she's 40 or close to it.)
Country roads.
I never found a metal rendition of a 'softer' song that's better than the original so I got nothing on that.
But here's few of some artis I follow.
Eleanor Rigby - Josh Turner I think most of the song he cover is old (idk I don't really listen to classic song). But good lord, he's talented af.
Jack Conte (CEO of Patreon) are on both of these. Pomplamoose is his band with his wife Nataly Dawn.
Scary pockets brings different singer (and other instrument) each song, mostly funk forward.
Just the 2 of us - Scary Pockets
If you like those two, you probably also like Lawrence
This is just straight up jazz but they're super good. Young Original - Its a lovely day today
The standouts for me are A Perfect Circle doing covers of People are People by Depeche Mode and Peace, Love, and Understanding by Brinsley Schwarz.
Toto - Africa (metal cover by Leo Moracchioli feat. Rabea & Hannah)
This cover should meet just about all of your criteria, but it's already a few years old.
Dammit I was gonna suggest this. I love Frog Leap Studios, although my personal faves are hi us versions of Dance Monkey and Feelgood Inc.
Bring out the small drums!
His final countdown is awesome, but I really like most of what he does so I'm not exactly unbiased
Right round by Dope.
Absolute banger just no female singer.
Could have a look through the punk goes pop albums too there's some good stuff in there
I know there's a whole anti cars movement but I think it's a pretty good cover
The style is alt pop rock bullshit, so it might not be your bag, but Weezer has a whole album of covers from that era, and I am absolutely enamored with that album, the "teal" album.
Also featuring this banger of a music video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mk5Dwg5zm2U (Africa)
Yes Sir, I can Boogie as performed by The Fratellis. The original was from the 70's but I'm told people liked it.
GnR's Sympathy for the Devil is better than the original
Puddle of Mud has a nice Nirvana cover
Love this one: House of the Rising Sun - Lauren O'Connell
Marilyn Manson's cover of Sweet Dreams by Eurythmics is a personal favorite
The A.V. Club used to do a series where bands would come on and choose from a list of songs to cover. As the season goes on, the list shrinks and the covers get more exotic. You can search "av undercover" on YouTube to watch through the back catalog of old seasons for some pretty great covers. I don't think they do it anymore, but it ran for several years.
Anything by Me First and the Gimme Gimmes
The Protomen - The Cover Up
I really like this cover of Dead Man's Party
And for some Metal, as you requested, Everytime We Touch
How do you feel about ska?
The Replicants had a self-titled album of covers in 1995 and they are all killer rock versions. Check it out. No female singer though. They do a great cover of Cinnamon Girl by Neil Young.
Pomplamoose - Pumped Up Kicks/Radiohead's ~~Creep mashup comes to mind for me. Creep~~ Everything in it's right place which was recorded in the 90s
I think its " everything in its right place" instead of Creep. That's a cool song, thanks for sharing that.
Republica's cover of Gary Numan - Are Friends Electric
Which also Dead Weather did I think
Oh, I'm so bookmarking this discussi.
Perfect Strangers by Yob
Straight Up by Mares of Thrace (this is what you're looking for)
I misread the original post. This one isn't female but it is a (prog) metal cover of Take on Me (A-Ha) by the band Leprous
https://youtu.be/Te2MR6j5Qhg?is=pwBpxHfcAFXb5aiP
The whole channel is just great covers being made on the fly so I'm sure there's some stuff in there you'd enjoy
Deftones - No Ordinary Girl
Edit to add: Apparently bands like to cover This Must be the Place.
Maybe not what you are looking for, but unironically entertaining on several levels (at least to me)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWWBeaqdBas
Spice Girls - Wannabe (in the style of System Of A Down) feat. @macglocky
Doesn't quite fit the requirements perfectly but I love Ella Red's soft cover of MCR's I'm not okay (I promise).
If you want covers better than originals, Johnny Cash is your man. His 'America 1-4' albums are full of them.
Neither metal nor female singer, but this is one of the best covers ever.
Radio goo goo by electric Six. Is danger danger High Voltage!
Archenemy made a whole album of coversin metal, their vocalist is a woman (Alissa White-Gluz). It includes cover of bands like: Tears of Fear, Scorpions, Judas Priest, Europe and Manowar.
Jack Johnson covered Badfish by sublime for a tribute album. I'm not really familiar with his music, but damn his version is better than the original to me.
And iron and wine's cover of waiting on a Superman by the flaming lips. It's a heartbreaking song in his whisper-singing.
For a different feel, Tool's cover of No Quarter.
Liking Jack Johnson's version more than the classic sure makes me feel a certain way, but right on.
Same with Waiting for Superman, but I've always liked Iron and Wine's originals more than his covers
One dance cover of the Flaming Lips that i really like probably more than the original is Utah Saints's version of Feeling Yourself Disintegrate. (But it is so good by being in opposition to the original -- it wouldn't be good if it was the only version). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7LMsz3klt6s
Screaming Females have a cover of Shake It off that absolutely fucks: https://youtu.be/Zm1-bVYio1k
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=scZY7VNV-Go Halestorm - Get Lucky (and a bunch others)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kRKAL-i-UbE Alestorm - You are a Pirate
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wkRUF-aEkmI Animetal - Moonlight Densetsu