Who was the lead singer of the punk band X-Ray Spex?

Poly Styrene was the lead singer of the punk band X-Ray Spex.

Poly Styrene was the stage name of Marianne Joan Elliott-Said, who founded X-Ray Spex in London in 1976. She became known for her expressive voice, vivid clothing, and lyrics that questioned consumerism, conformity, and artificial beauty. Her performance style helped make X-Ray Spex one of the most distinctive bands of British punk’s first wave.

The group’s best-known song is “Oh Bondage Up Yours!,” released as a single in 1977. Styrene also sang on the band’s 1978 studio album, Germfree Adolescents, which featured the prominent saxophone playing of Lora Logic and Jak Airport at different stages of the band’s history.

Styrene’s stage name was a reference to polystyrene, a common plastic material. She later pursued a solo career and released the album Translucence in 1980. She died in 2011 at the age of 53. Her name is sometimes confused with other influential women in British punk, including Siouxsie Sioux and Ari Up, but they led different bands.