It is very common practice for bands to change personnel over the years, but perhaps the rarest is when bands replace their lead singer. Often this comes at a time that signals the group's downward trajectory. However, there have been a number of instances in which bands become even more successful once they replace their front person.

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In some instances, otherwise faltering or struggling bands only find fame once their front person leaves. Rather than break up entirely, these artists decided to soldier on with a new lead vocalist. Sometimes a change of singer is all a group needs in order to enjoy a long and prosperous career. Keep reading to find out which bands became more famous once their front person left.

10 No Doubt

Considering her agelessness, it's hard to believe that Gwen Stefani began fronting No Doubt 35 years ago. But she actually wasn't the group's first front person.

Initially, John Spence was lead vocalist and Stefani had backing vocal duties. Tragically, Spence ended his life in 1987 and Alan Meade took over as frontman. However, things weren't working out with him and eventually Stefani became the frontwoman, a decision that no doubt paid off.

9 Iron Maiden

Heavy metal pioneers Iron Maiden made 2 albums with original singer Paul Di'Anno, their self-titled first album and Killers, released in 1980 and 1981 respectively. Although these first 2 records were well received and led to the band developing a loyal live following early on, they didn't break through until Bruce Dickinson replaced Di'Anno in 1981.

Once Dickinson joined, they released The Number of the Beast in 1982. The album spawned their first top 10 single, "Run to the Hills", and they topped the UK album chart, while also breaking into the top 40 of the Billboard 200 in the U.S.

8 AC/DC

Aussie rockers AC/DC released 7 albums with original singer Bon Scott throughout the '70s. Already very successful, the last album they did with him, Highway to Hell, reached the top 20 of the Billboard 200.

Tragically, Scott died in 1980, aged just 33. The band then recruited Brian Johnson and they made Back in Black later that year. The album is the second best selling album of all time, after Michael Jackson's Thriller.

7 Pink Floyd

Synonymous with reflective progressive rock, Pink Floyd were a markedly different group with their first singer, Syd Barrett. With Barrett, they made their debut album, 1967's The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, which was notable for its psychedelic pop complete with vocals and lyrics steeped in childhood regression.

As Barrett's mental health declined, the group enlisted David Gilmour and went on to enjoy phenomenal success, most notably with the iconic The Dark Side of the Moon, one of the best selling albums in music history.

6 Fleetwood Mac

Fleetwood Mac first emerged in the '60s British blues scene, with singer Peter Green at the helm. After a few years, they parted ways with him and it wasn't until the American folk duo of Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks joined that the group's popularity exploded.

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The band's self titled 1975 album peaked at number one on the Billboard 200, while 1977's Rumours would sell an incredible 10 million copies within a month of its release and is now one of the biggest selling albums of all time.

5 Black Flag

Pioneers of the hardcore punk scene, Black Flag are now widely regarded as one of the most influential underground bands of the 1980s. The band went through multiple lead singers, including Keith Morris and Ron Reyes; however, it was not until 20-year-old fan Henry Rollins joined that Black Flag became a more focused unit. The band's 1981 debut album Damaged, and its polarizing follow-up My War (1984), are now considered classics of the punk genre.

4 Genesis

British prog rock band Genesis were musically and lyrically very different before drummer Phil Collins took over vocal duties. With their first frontman, Peter Gabriel, the group recorded 6 albums that featured politically charged, meditative lyrics in line with Gabriel's left-wing views.

Their commercial performance improved dramatically when Gabriel left and Collins became the lead singer on 1976's A Trick of the Tail, becoming one of the best selling musical artists in the world.

3 Slipknot

Masked metallers Slipknot recorded their demo, Mate. Feed. Kill. Repeat, with their original vocalist Anders Colsefni. He quit the band before they were signed to the major label Roadrunner Records, a decision that surely goes on to haunt him.

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With their new singer, Corey Taylor, the band became chart-topping despite their heavy, death metal-inspired sound; their 2001 album Iowa has been certified Platinum in the United Kingdom.

2 Pantera

Pantera began life in the early '80s with vocalist Terry Glaze, taking inspiration from the popular glam rock scene of the time. Following Glaze's replacement by Phil Anselmo in 1988, Pantera reinvented themselves as a heavier groove metal band. The band's popularity peaked in 1994 when their album Far Beyond Driven went straight to number one on the Billboard 200, a remarkable feat for an album of its abrasive nature.

Ultimately, internal tensions would cause the band to break up in the early '00s; not long after, guitarist Dimebag Darrell would be tragically murdered on stage by an audience member at a concert in Columbus in 2004.

1 Faith No More

Alternative metal band Faith No More have had an unbelievable five different lead singers during their lifespan. Early iterations of the band included a young Courtney Love (yes, really) and Chuck Mosley, who appeared on the band's first two albums.

However, it was not until their fifth, and to date final, vocalist Mike Patton that the band crossed over to the mainstream. The band's breakthrough third album, The Real Thing (1989), spawned the hit single "Epic", while the critically acclaimed follow-up Angel Dust (1992) broke the top 10 on the Billboard 200.

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