June 8, 2011 12:53

Michael Jackson overtakes Freddie Mercury in NME's Greatest Singers poll

Cast your vote for the greatest singer of all time now

Photo Gallery: Michael Jackson
Photo: PA

Michael Jackson has overtaken Freddie Mercury in NME's poll to crown the Greatest Singer Of All Time.

Jackson has leapt ahead into first place in our user-voted poll, scoring an average rating of 8.65. The late Queen frontman remains a close second with a score of 8.5. Guns N’Roses singer Axl Rose is currently trailing in third place with a score of 7.06.

You can take part in the poll by clicking here. Voters rate each performer with a mark out of ten to determine the winner. NME has already received over four million votes – stay tuned for the final result later this month.

Currently, Matt Bellamy from Muse is the only singer within the top 20 to have emerged in the past 25 years. He's at number nine with an average rating of 5.95. Meanwhile, Aretha Franklin has been inched to number eleven with 5.78, meaning there are no longer any women in the top ten. As the chart stands, exactly half of the top 20 are dead, with Rose being the highest-placed living artist.