The 5 Best Female-Led Supergroups In Rock History

The history of rock 'n' roll has been blessed with rare moments of celestial convergence when rock stars, solo artists, and unlikely friends escape their individual schedules to come together and create something greater than themselves — they're called supergroups. Music history is dotted with them: The Traveling Wilburys, The Highwaymen, Cream, etc. But how many of these groups were formed and led almost exclusively by women?

We've compiled a list of five exclusively female or female-led supergroups from across the rock spectrum that had an undeniable impact on rock history. From the early days of R&B in the '60s, the urban cowboy movement of the '80s, to the alt-grunge wave of the '90s, these groups have earned chart topping hits, platinum selling albums — and a couple Grammys to boot. 

Formed in 1968, Honey Cone is an R&B and soul supergroup that consisted of Edna Wright, Carolyn Willis, and Shelly Clark. Wright's early career included singing back-up vocals for the Righteous Brothers, Johnny Rivers, and Ray Charles, the latter of whom made her a member of his backing group, the Raelettes. Willis began her career as a singer for the girl group, the Girlfriends, and Clark was performing as a backup singer and dancer for several touring acts including Ike & Tina Turner, Little Richard and Dusty Springfield.

The group first appeared together when Wright's sister, Darlene Love, had to cancel a performance on an Andy Williams TV special, and she asked Wright to fill in for her. Wright asked Willis and Clark to join her, and after the performance the trio was offered a contract by Hot Wax Records. The group released four studio albums from 1970 to 1972, and had one chart-topping single in the US, 1971's "Want Ads," which went No.1 on the Billboard pop and R&B charts.

Willis left the group in 1973 due to dissatisfaction with the material they were recording, and although the group tried to replace her, the chemistry wasn't there and Honey Comb disbanded. Although the group tried to reunite on several occasions, a reunion with the original trio never materialized before Edna Wright's death in 2020. A new incarnation of the group led by Shelly Clark released a single in 2024, a cover of the Eurythmics' "Here Comes the Rain Again."

One of the greatest collaborations in country music to almost never happen, "Trio" and "Trio II" are the only albums recorded through the efforts of Dolly Parton, Linda Ronstadt, and Emmylou Harris. Although the three country stars were mutual fans and friends, their busy schedules and the fact that they were all signed to different labels made this collaboration a scheduling nightmare. After recording together several times across the 1970s, the three were finally able to get together to record and release their first collaboration, "Trio," in 1987.

The record went to No. 6 and No. 1 on the US Billboard 200 and Country Album charts respectively. It won the Grammy for best country performance by a duo or group with vocal in 1988 and was nominated for Album of the Year. The trio did not reunite again until 1994, when they recorded their follow-up, "Trio II." Once again struggling with scheduling issues, the album wasn't released until 1999.  "Trio II" was not as commercially successful as its predecessor, but its second single, a cover of "After the Gold Rush" by Neil Young, earned a Grammy for best country collaboration with vocals in 2000.

While some supergroups are known for their blinding star power or commercial spectacle, News from Babel was formed as an artistic endeavor and never left the depths of underground experimentalism. Formed out of the English avant-rock movement of the late 1970s, News from Babel was a collaborative experimental prog-rock outfit comprised of several members of Henry Cow and Art Bears, and led by Henry Cow's woodwind player, Lindsay Cooper. A classically trained bassoon and oboe player, she composed all of the band's music, while drummer Chris Cutler wrote the lyrics. The band was rounded out by German singer Dagmar Krause and harpist Zeena Parkins.

Primarily a studio band, the group released two records, "Work Resumed on the Tower" in 1984 and "Letters Home" in 1986 before disbanding. The band's musical and lyrical content was heavily inspired by their literary influences at the time, crediting George Steiner's 1975 book, "After Babel," as the inspiration behind their band name and their first album, and Sylvia Plath's "Letters Home" as the title of their second album. The band performed live for the first time in 2014 along with Henry Cow and other Cooper projects to celebrate her life after she died in 2013 of multiple sclerosis disease.

How many supergroups can claim to have a record listed on Kurt Cobain's list of 50 favorite albums of all time? Only one: The Breeders. Formed in 1989 by Kim Deal, bassist and co-vocalist of The Pixies, and her twin sister Kelley Deal, The Breeders boast a wide range of artists cycling through their ranks, and charting records to boot. The band's first record, "Pod," was recorded in 1990 and included Britt Walford of Slint on drums, and was produced by engineer extraordinaire Steve Albini.

After several line-up changes and recording an EP, The Breeders released their most successful record, "Last Splash." The album went platinum in the US, selling over a million copies, and received rave reviews upon release, and is still considered one of the best from a female rock group. Writing for Stereogum in 2013, Tom Breihan wrote, "It's a completely tossed-off garage-pop trifle that rightfully stands as one of the defining hits of alt-rock's boom period."

The influence of The Breeders on modern rock 'n' roll has been noticeably present in the 2020s, marked by a performance slot at the 2023 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, a stint opening for the Foo Fighters in 2024, and a celebrated performance opening for Olivia Rodrigo at Madison Square Garden in 2023. 

"What is the sound of an avalanche taking out a dolphin? What do get when you cross a hamburger with a hot dog? The answer is: WILD FLAG." The most recent supergroup to appear on this list, Wild Flag formed in 2010 as an amalgamation of the women-driven alt-rock movement of the '90s. Led by Carrie Brownstein of Sleater-Kinney fame, she was joined by Mary Timony of Helium, Rebecca Cole of the Minders, and Janet Weiss, also of Sleater-Kinney.

Wild Flag embarked on a short tour in 2010, released a self-titled album in 2011, and performed a few one-off shows in 2012 before going silent. Their album received critical praise from Rolling Stone, Pitchfork, and Spin magazine, and boasted five singles. Inevitably, in 2014 Brownstein finally declared that the group had disbanded. In a 2013 interview Weiss stated, "It was great but I think it just kinda ran its course... It's hard to have a band when you live five hours apart by plane."