When the Beach Boys released Pet Sounds, the world had never seen an album so powerful, so deeply depressed, yet so profoundly bright. Brian Wilson was known for being fairly low energy on stage, but a whirlwind in the studio. He was a teacher, a mentor, and probably unbeknownst to him, a rockstar. Brian Wilson had an uncanny ability to write extremely powerful ballads over and over, so many times that you'd assume that the man lived 5 lifetimes as a musician. Wilson was deeply plagued by his own depression and insecurity, but at the end of the day, he was able to brighten the lives of millions through his art.
Aretha Franklin
If you don't think Aretha Franklin was a rockstar, you're dead wrong. Just because she didn't have the sound, the guitars, the adoring fans, or the sex appeal. She simply had spirit, drive, and talent.
If you haven't danced to "Respect" by Aretha Franklin at some point in your life, you haven't lived yet. All of Franklin's music was a call to action, every single song was a reminder to herself and others to keep moving and never stop. Franklin was pivotal in the civil rights movement, and she advocated for gender equality better than virtually anyone else in music in the 1950s-60s. She made most of her songs alone and wrote the instrumentals as well. If that's not punk, then what is?
Chuck Berry
Chuck Berry was the OG guitar innovator. The largest bands in the history of music credit him for influencing them, he was outstandingly inspiring and unique for his time period.