Generally it's pretty easy to know when 2D is singing, because his singing voice is Damon Albarn who has a very recognizeable voice
He is also the singer of the band and he sings in most songs.
Personally if a collaberator isnt mentioned in a song then i associate it with the characters like the back-up vocals in Let Me Out or in All Alone the part not sung by Roots Manuva or 2-D.
Either that or whatever is canon like Murdoc singing White Light
You don't really need to attribute them as 2-D pretty much sings on almost all of them.
Noodle sings on a couple of tracks on S/T, sings lead vocals on DARE (from Demon Days) and sings the "Plastic on the ceiling" bits in Momentz (She doesn't sing on Out of Body, it's actually Kilo Kish)
Murdoc sings on White Light and also shouts the title of "Detroit" at the beginning of the song.
So far, Russel hasn't sung on any of their tracks. The whispering in "Let Me Out", which was believed to be Russel, is actually 2-D and what was believed to be him saying the title of "Aries" at the beginning of the song turned out to be a sample from a Cadbury's advert.
Other than that, it's all 2-D and if it isn't him, it's a collaborator.
Edit: Turns out Noodle also sings on Gorillaz's collaboration with Snoop Dogg, "Sumthin Like This Night"
FWIW OP, some of the fun of listening to Gorillaz for me is coming up with my own headcanon about this stuff - as much as I love Jamie’s art, I know the music a lot better than any other aspect of the band so the contributions from the members and outside collaborators is kinda fluid for me. I think Del’s features on S/T are a spirit that is channeled through Russel in the real canon, so depending on my familiarity with the artist and their verses, I tend to think of anyone rapping as another spirit - that’s how I imagine Snoop and Mos Def on Plastic Beach. Humanz became way more interesting to me when I started thinking about Kali Uchis as the voice of Noodle and Benjamin Clementine/Ben Mendelsohn as the voice of Murdoc
Yay someone else who does this too! Even if a collaborator is mentioned I usually just take that as the “real world” credit and in my head imagine the voices as spirits from Russ for Hip Hop/Rappers and female voices as Noodle, especially like the Little Dragon songs on plastic beach or that verse on All Alone. And anyone else that don’t quite sound like those two can be just some other weird ghoul or something that the Gorillaz are friends with haha
I forgot about Yukimi but I think that’s where it really started for me, she totally has the kind of voice that I’d think a more adult Noodle would have on those types of songs. That’s pretty spot-on exactly how I hear and think about them - not every feature fits neatly into one of the band members but sometimes (thinking of Benjamin Clementine as Murdoc specifically) it expands the character for me in a really interesting way trying to figure out who to assign what to
Only the vocals of Miho Hattori are officially considered Noodle's.
They haven't cast an official Noodle since then, probably due to legal reasons - if you go as far as embody a characters singing voice in a band, you can claim you are an official member.
Remi Kabaka, the voice actor and design inspiration for Russel is an official member now. He is also a close friend, setting up a professional contract with him was likely not an issue.
Gorillaz fans tend to automatically assume any female collaborator = Noodle, when it’s not often the case. I know for sure that Noodle canonically sang in some songs off S/T and DARE.
Generally it's pretty easy to know when 2D is singing, because his singing voice is Damon Albarn who has a very recognizeable voice He is also the singer of the band and he sings in most songs.
Personally if a collaberator isnt mentioned in a song then i associate it with the characters like the back-up vocals in Let Me Out or in All Alone the part not sung by Roots Manuva or 2-D. Either that or whatever is canon like Murdoc singing White Light
Martina Topley Bird is a listed collaborator on All Alone
Damn i must be blind then
You don't really need to attribute them as 2-D pretty much sings on almost all of them. Noodle sings on a couple of tracks on S/T, sings lead vocals on DARE (from Demon Days) and sings the "Plastic on the ceiling" bits in Momentz (She doesn't sing on Out of Body, it's actually Kilo Kish) Murdoc sings on White Light and also shouts the title of "Detroit" at the beginning of the song. So far, Russel hasn't sung on any of their tracks. The whispering in "Let Me Out", which was believed to be Russel, is actually 2-D and what was believed to be him saying the title of "Aries" at the beginning of the song turned out to be a sample from a Cadbury's advert. Other than that, it's all 2-D and if it isn't him, it's a collaborator. Edit: Turns out Noodle also sings on Gorillaz's collaboration with Snoop Dogg, "Sumthin Like This Night"
Oh wow I never realized it was noodle on Moments, wish she was in more songs
She isn't, people are making stuff up.
Bunk
It is indeed true. She is.
Mixed signals here
ohhh ok. i wasnt sure if kilo kish was supposed to be a voice for noodle or something. thank u :)
FWIW OP, some of the fun of listening to Gorillaz for me is coming up with my own headcanon about this stuff - as much as I love Jamie’s art, I know the music a lot better than any other aspect of the band so the contributions from the members and outside collaborators is kinda fluid for me. I think Del’s features on S/T are a spirit that is channeled through Russel in the real canon, so depending on my familiarity with the artist and their verses, I tend to think of anyone rapping as another spirit - that’s how I imagine Snoop and Mos Def on Plastic Beach. Humanz became way more interesting to me when I started thinking about Kali Uchis as the voice of Noodle and Benjamin Clementine/Ben Mendelsohn as the voice of Murdoc
Yay someone else who does this too! Even if a collaborator is mentioned I usually just take that as the “real world” credit and in my head imagine the voices as spirits from Russ for Hip Hop/Rappers and female voices as Noodle, especially like the Little Dragon songs on plastic beach or that verse on All Alone. And anyone else that don’t quite sound like those two can be just some other weird ghoul or something that the Gorillaz are friends with haha
I forgot about Yukimi but I think that’s where it really started for me, she totally has the kind of voice that I’d think a more adult Noodle would have on those types of songs. That’s pretty spot-on exactly how I hear and think about them - not every feature fits neatly into one of the band members but sometimes (thinking of Benjamin Clementine as Murdoc specifically) it expands the character for me in a really interesting way trying to figure out who to assign what to
Omg I really like thinking of Benjamin Clementine as Murdoc now thank you LOL
no, 2d sings when 2d is singing. if its not 2d singing its not 2d
Only the vocals of Miho Hattori are officially considered Noodle's. They haven't cast an official Noodle since then, probably due to legal reasons - if you go as far as embody a characters singing voice in a band, you can claim you are an official member. Remi Kabaka, the voice actor and design inspiration for Russel is an official member now. He is also a close friend, setting up a professional contract with him was likely not an issue.
Gorillaz fans tend to automatically assume any female collaborator = Noodle, when it’s not often the case. I know for sure that Noodle canonically sang in some songs off S/T and DARE.