This topic came to mind because of the band Jinjer. For those that don't know, they are a band from a small town in Ukraine. I first became acquainted with them through the video for the song
Pisces. I have checked out some of their other songs since then as well, and I was struck by a couple of things about the vocals:
-When Tatiana Shmailyuk uses her clean voice, there is not only no trace of Ukrainian accent, but her accent actually sounds very American. She also uses a lot of phrasing and little vocal accents that are reminiscent of American pop and R&B.
-The lyrics are very poetic and symbolic in almost all of their songs, and there is a lot of wordplay and poetic device that works really well in English.
In contrast, when I heard her and her bandmates talk in Interviews, I was struck by how thick their Ukrainian accents are when they just talk. And given point #2 above, I was also struck by the fact that they (and especially Tatiana) have to speak very slowly, pausing often, to be able to phrase their (her) thoughts in English.
I understand that singing in English for non-native speakers in bands from other countries makes sense because the music is then more accessible to a wider audience around the world. But as I thought about this band, it made me wonder why they and other bands from non-English speaking countries often (not always) will employ an American accent on the vocals. Is it maybe in part because the U.S. was kind of the birthplace of modern rock and pop, and so there is a perception that that is the most accessible accent? Other reasons? Other thoughts?