I guess I should add Dan Hartman - I can dream about you to my list too.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=621Nk3Ubz4A


I thought so with that one too.  In the film 'Streets of Fire', the song is performed by the fictional group The Sorrels.  The most commonly shown music video of it is just footage of The Sorrels performing the song on stage, but the actual music video is that one above showing Hartman in a bar with The Sorrels on TV in the background

The big one for me is the Canadian folk-Alt rock group Crash Test Dummies.  Their first hit was in 1991 called Superman's Song and their deep barritone voiced lead singer Brad Roberts certainly did not look like I pictured him to be.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ihUIPlLw2ZE

I totally thought Rick Astley was a big , Barry White-like black man when I first heard him and when I saw that he looked Clay Aiken, I almost fainted. I couldn't beleive that big, booming voice was coming out that little body.

I also thought Joss Stone was black. I pictured her something like Lauren Hill, like a neo-soul chick with an afro and I was surprised to see Joss. She was still like hippie-chic, but I has assumed she was black.

You should have seen the look on the face of a guy I know when he said he would go on his knees and do anything for the "girl"  who sings "Money To Tight To Mention", because of that voice.  Then I told him that it was a guy named Mick Hucknall.  ;D ;D 

to me F. R. David in "Words Don`t Come Easy" sounds just like Annie Lennox: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nStlMDx3ZeM  ;)

You should have seen the look on the face of a guy I know when he said he would go on his knees and do anything for the "girl"  who sings "Money To Tight To Mention", because of that voice.  Then I told him that it was a guy named Mick Hucknall.   ;D ;D 


I remember when Hanson was just becoming popular and how alot of guys thought the drummer "girl" was so cute.  ;D

A long-awaited update.
What's strange is that I've found out that a female singer that covered 'Yes Sir, I Can Boogie' in Czech looks almost exactly like I imagined Baccara (save for the glasses):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=llYQK73SurA

Do you get annoyed/disappointed when you find out that the mental image of a singer/radio presenter you had is very different than the reality? I hate this and that's why I no longer look up singers I heard on the radio online. I don't have a problem if I've seen the music video *before* listening to the song on the radio. However, most often than not I'm disappointed when I see the music video to a song I got to now through the radio. It's like my idea about the video is totally different to reality and even the artists never look the same way they do in my mind. Anyone can relate?

I always thought Dan Hartman was a black guy but turns out when I finally saw him he was white.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=laStiu_sUd4

I grew up listening to this song, and I always thought Bobby Caldwell was black. My mouth practically dropped when I discovered he wasn't a couple years ago. Still love that song to this day.

I had the same reaction to the following when I discovered they also weren't black:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o9wotiDai5U

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ud6sU3AclT4

Love these songs as well!

I always thought Dan Hartman Micheal Jackson was a black guy but turns out when I finally saw him he was white.


fixed  :D ;D

fixed  :D ;D


HEY!  >:(

When I first heard Adele's "Rolling In the Deep," I thought she was black.

That's the reason why I prefer discovering new music and artists via a music video. I hate it that every single time I hear an unknown artist on the radio and look them up on the Internet, they turn out nothing like I thought. Sometimes I even mistake races and gender. And I mistake between groups and soloists, too. It's so annoying and I can never enjoy radio again. :-[

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=laStiu_sUd4

I grew up listening to this song, and I always thought Bobby Caldwell was black. My mouth practically dropped when I discovered he wasn't a couple years ago. Still love that song to this day.

I had the same reaction to the following when I discovered they also weren't black:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o9wotiDai5U

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ud6sU3AclT4

Love these songs as well!
You thought Taylor Dayne was black? Thats funny. I remember somebody asking on the net if she was half-black. I used to love her music in 1999-2000 I just liked listening to her songs from the late 80's at the time.

Bobby Caldwell I think he hid that he was white for awhile when "What Won't You Do For Love" was popular in 1978.

Teena Marie-Even one of her best friends growing up thought she was 100% Black mostly because of the way Teena talked. Her friend was shocked to  see she had a white mom though her father was white too. I saw that on a documentary about Teena Marie I think it was on "TV One" a few months after her death.

I thought Taylor Dayne was black too, just light skinned. It was YEARS before I got hip to it she was white. The same went for Eddie Money. (I looked him up cause someone said Apollonia was in oen of his music videos) and I was shocked. I mean with the name Eddie Money, I really saw a black guy in my head.

Terri Gibbs - Best known for the 1981 hit Somebody's Knockin'
http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQ9z12XJca5E9LxMPToE2kpAiHQduykl47iUtPZmW0iYvZa5opZxvknvpWHIA

Cindy Bullens - She had a few minor US hits in the late 70s/early 80s. 
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-iQ-RighYFgU/TW_Sm8uPkaI/AAAAAAAAA9Q/6tuuF3OSPLw/s1600/3f55c060ada0433f75de8110.L.jpg

Let's just say when I learned what both looked like, I still wasn't convinced
(for the record, both are females)

That Cindy chick looks like Leif Garrett. You know, before the drugs, alcohol and police fists hit him.

You thought Taylor Dayne was black? Thats funny. I remember somebody asking on the net if she was half-black. I used to love her music in 1999-2000 I just liked listening to her songs from the late 80's at the time.


I believe Taylor Dayne is Jewish but she does sound black.

Teena Marie-Even one of her best friends growing up thought she was 100% Black mostly because of the way Teena talked. Her friend was shocked to  see she had a white mom though her father was white too. I saw that on a documentary about Teena Marie I think it was on "TV One" a few months after her death.

Maybe she grew up listening to R & B music during her childhood.

Christopher Cross 

With that voice, thought he might have looked like a heatthrob.

http://img1.bdbphotos.com/images/orig/w/b/wbkcjrv7p0bnp7bj.jpg

Christopher Cross 

With that voice, thought he might have looked like a heatthrob.

http://img1.bdbphotos.com/images/orig/w/b/wbkcjrv7p0bnp7bj.jpg


Holy crap. He looks nothing like I thought he would.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HNOn6enPC7U

He almost looks like a hippie.  ;D

Walter Egan.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B7DAHi_Cks8

Am I the only one who thinks this creepy?  :o

Holy crap. He looks nothing like I thought he would.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HNOn6enPC7U

He almost looks like a hippie.  ;D


He does look like a hippie in a way.

The Osmonds and New Edition, kinda sworn both of them sounded like Michael Jackson when he was young.

The Osmonds and New Edition, kinda sworn both of them sounded like Michael Jackson when he was young.
New Edition was thought to be the second coming of Jackson 5 back in the early to mid 80's. Thats what their manager at the time who was Maurice Starr had in mind. Maurice Starr later managed "New Kids On the Block" as well.

New Edition was thought to be the second coming of Jackson 5 back in the early to mid 80's. Thats what their manager at the time who was Maurice Starr had in mind. Maurice Starr later managed "New Kids On the Block" as well.


Yeah, I remember when I first heard "Candy Girl" by New Edition, I thought it was a young MJ in his Jackson 5 days.

Thought these song's were sung by women...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_UVOPfotYRs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uec35ppYLIc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-5Y5PX2qHQ

Yeah, I remember when I first heard "Candy Girl" by New Edition, I thought it was a young MJ in his Jackson 5 days.


or maybe MJ collaborated with New Edition.

Thought these song's were sung by women...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_UVOPfotYRs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uec35ppYLIc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-5Y5PX2qHQ


why does Nick Gilder remind me of Tom Petty in some sort of way? ???

why does Nick Gilder remind me of Tom Petty in some sort of way? ???

The hair.

Both Nick Gilder & Bryan Adams were in a band called "Sweeney Todd" (but not at the same time)

I thought for like 5 years  "Starpoint" had Spanish People in their group. Then I saw the music video for "Object Of My Desire" a few days ago and and the members were black. I was surprised.

I didn't really know about Starpoint until like 5-6 years ago. I did know about Stevie B. and Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam when I was younger because I remember hearing their songs when they were popular back in the day. "Starpoint" sorted of sort of sounded like Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam maybe poppier though.

I thought for like 5 years  "Starpoint" had Spanish People in their group. Then I saw the music video for "Object Of My Desire" a few days ago and and the members were black. I was surprised.

I didn't really know about Starpoint until like 5-6 years ago. I did know about Stevie B. and Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam when I was younger because I remember hearing their songs when they were popular back in the day. "Starpoint" sorted of sort of sounded like Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam maybe poppier though.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TPAaWPcKoYI

What a great dance jam.  :)

Thought these song's were sung by women...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_UVOPfotYRs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uec35ppYLIc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-5Y5PX2qHQ


Totally with you on that one, especially with the second clip---after learning that it was Neil singing, for months I was puzzled.

And here's another song that I got mixed up about the gender:

http://www.apartmentinfo.ca/apartmentrentals/bc/victoria.htm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2ozuCXpVJY

Try that again!  I used to think it was a 16-year-old girl singing this song...

By any means I beat you all with the shocker!!

as a 5 year old and having no idea who cher was, I thought this song was sunged by a drag queen

Cher - Believe

this became the most nostalgic song ever for me and I was surprised to find out it was sunged by an old lady of 52 at the time it was released!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2ozuCXpVJY

Try that again!  I used to think it was a 16-year-old girl singing this song...


Justin by day Justin(e) by night  :D

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mYpNQXK6lpM

I always this song was sung by a guy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=laStiu_sUd4

I grew up listening to this song, and I always thought Bobby Caldwell was black. My mouth practically dropped when I discovered he wasn't a couple years ago. Still love that song to this day.




mind BLOWN.

One of my and my hubby's favorite songs.  :)

I see your Looking Glass and raise you a Climax Blues Band.  ;) ;D

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BgjSEbyWDeI


Climax Blues Band was a definite weird one for me because I always believed they were American. They actually came from just up the road from where I was born, Stafford in England. The mind boggles...

Erm...Nick Gilder, the person who sung 'Hot Child in the City'. I couldn't believe he was anything other than a woman.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CJ3DWa_QLO4

I thought the guy who sang was black.

I concur on the Terri Gibbs song posted upthread.  I totally thought that was a dude.

Not me personally, but I've read of people who initially thought Chicago singer/guitarist Terry Kath was black.

Btq4MnwvQgM

The two main guys in OMD were Paul Humphreys and Andy McCluskey.  I had the two of them mixed up until I saw them on American Bandstand in 1985. 

http://musicblog.merseyblogs.co.uk/omd.jpg
l. Andy, r. Paul

When I saw them on stage, I thought, "Wow, they're even dorkier than in the magazines!"
;D

I thought for sure this was a woman...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HhxKwVPuumE

Mark Holmes from Platinum Blonde looks different.  Possibly because he has been without his signature spiky platinum blonde hair and hasn't worn any make up since he was in his mid-late 20s.  :(

http://bp3.blogger.com/_I2PhZDEXSaY/R6Uh7nQK8-I/AAAAAAAAAyw/7GYb3tsQhTk/s400/Platinum+Blonde+2.jpg http://blu.stb.s-msn.com/i/3C/D7A613F33FD13A2856DDBCA4233E9.jpg

Op was me but in addition to it I have some updates.
Back in 2013 I didn't watch MTV so I discovered new music trough radio. They rarely say the singers' names here so I thought Rihanna sang "Wrecking Ball" & "We Can't Stop".  ;D  I correctly picked up Rihanna in her real hits that year though. It's just that somehow Miley sounded like Ri on those two songs at least to me.

I also sometimes had trouble with picking up Demi Lovato out of the bunch. I didn't know it was her singing.

I thought Lorde wasn't a solo singer but a duet of two girls on "Royals". I even imagined them as one black, one white girl. Think about Icona Pop circa 2013, but with hairstyles swiched with the white singer having the short cut and the black one having longer hair. :D

I thought One Direction were a cool sounding band on radio, despite all the hatred from serious music fans. I didn't know I am not supposed to like their music according to popular opinin. ::) Ditto for Miley, Selena, Demi and countless other pop stars.

Hearing the vocals on the song "Africa" by Toto made me think the singer was a handsome, New Wave looking guy. And the actual singer looked like Zach Galifianakis.

I always thought the Righteous Brothers were Black until I looked them up. I always thought Phil Philips (Sea of Love) was White.

I thought Kelly Clarkson was black; I only knew her from one song then (Because Of You).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BgoTDGu8cho
Bobby Caldwell- What You Won't Do For Love

and all these years I thought he was black  :o

Sia. Just thought she looked very different then what I imagined her to look like

I thought Iggy Azalea was black when Fancy first came out 😕.

I assumed this guy was black:

GIpzNd7eM3c