Kimberly Denise Jones, better known by her stage name Lil' Kim, is an American rapper. She was born and raised in New York City and lived much of her adolescent life on the streets after being expelled from home. In her teens, she would freestyle rap, influenced by fellow female hip-hop artists like MC Lyte and the Lady of Rage. In 1994, she was discovered by fellow rapper The Notorious B.I.G., who invited her to join his group Junior M.A.F.I.A.; their debut album, Conspiracy, generated two top 20 singles in the United States and was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
Joanna Noëlle "JoJo" Levesque is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She began performing in singing competitions and local talent shows as a child. In 2003, record producer Vincent Herbert noticed her after she competed on the television show America's Most Talented Kids and asked her to audition for his record label Blackground Records. After signing with the label, JoJo released her eponymous debut studio album in 2004. It peaked at number four on the U.S. Billboard 200 and was later certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), selling over four million copies worldwide to date.
Mates of State are an American indie pop duo, active since 1997. The group is the husband-and-wife team of Kori Gardner and Jason Hammel.
Arcade Fire is a Canadian indie rock band from Montreal, Quebec, consisting of husband and wife Win Butler and Régine Chassagne, alongside Richard Reed Parry, Tim Kingsbury and Jeremy Gara. The band's touring line-up also includes former core member Sarah Neufeld and multi-instrumentalists Paul Beaubrun and Dan Boeckner. Each of the band's studio albums features contributions from composer and violinist Owen Pallett.
Hakeem Temidayo Seriki, better known by his stage name Chamillionaire, is an American rapper. He began his career with locally-tailored releases in the early 2000s, and signed with Houston's Paid in Full Entertainment to release the collaborative album Get Ya Mind Correct (2002) with labelmate and hometown native Paul Wall. He signed with Universal Records in 2005 and released his debut studio album, The Sound of Revenge in November of that year to commercial success. It was supported by the singles "Ridin'" —which peaked atop the Billboard Hot 100 and won a Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group—and "Turn It Up". His second album, Ultimate Victory (2007) was met with continued success; it became notable for its lack of profanity and lead single "Hip Hop Police" —as well as its accompanying music video. His pop rap 2009 single, "Good Morning" peaked within the top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100 was intended to lead his third album Venom, which was ultimately never released.
Bullet for My Valentine, often abbreviated as BFMV, are a Welsh heavy metal band from Bridgend, formed in 1998. The band is currently composed of Matthew Tuck, Michael Paget, Jason Bowld (drums) and Jamie Mathias (bass). Former members include Michael Thomas, Jason James and Nick Crandle; the latter were on bass. They were formed under the name Jeff Killed John and started their music career by covering songs by Metallica and Nirvana. Jeff Killed John recorded six songs which were not released; two of these tracks were reworked later in their career as Bullet for My Valentine. A change of style from that of Jeff Killed John led the band to change their name. In 2002, the band secured a five-album deal with Sony BMG. The band has stated that their music is influenced by classic metal acts such as Metallica, Iron Maiden and Slayer. The band is part of the Cardiff music scene.
Tremaine Aldon Neverson, known professionally as Trey Songz, is an American R&B singer. He was discovered by record producer Troy Taylor in 2003, and signed to his label, Songbook Entertainment, in a joint venture with Atlantic Records shortly after. His debut studio album, I Gotta Make It (2005), entered the Billboard 200 at number 20, while his second album, Trey Day (2007) peaked at number 11. The latter was supported by the single "Can't Help but Wait", which peaked at number 14 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was nominated for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance at the 51st Annual Grammy Awards. His third album, Ready (2009), peaked at number three on the Billboard 200, spawned the Billboard Hot 100-top ten single "Say Aah", and earned a nomination for Best Contemporary R&B Album at the 52nd Annual Grammy Awards.
Olubowale Victor Akintimehin, better known by his stage name Wale, is an American rapper. He first became known for his 2006 song "Dig Dug ", which became popular in his hometown of Washington, D.C. and led Wale to gain further local recognition as he amassed a number of follow-up releases. He signed a recording contract with English DJ-producer Mark Ronson's Allido Records in 2007, which, after a three-label bidding war, entered a joint venture with Interscope Records for US$1.3 million the following year. During this time, Wale's mixtapes and singles saw national attention as he appeared on MTV and various Black America-focused magazines.
Justin Jude Clarke-Samuels, better known by his stage name Ghetts, is a British grime MC, rapper, songwriter and actor. His music has been played on national radio stations such as BBC Radio 1, Kiss 100, BBC Asian Network, and BBC Radio 1Xtra. Currently, Ghetts is signed to independent record label Disrupt, and released his debut studio album, Rebel with a Cause, on 9 March 2014. Known for his hard hitting lyrics and intricate rhyme schemes, he is associated and has toured internationally with such acts as Kano and was a member of NASTY Crew.
Bobby Ray Simmons Jr., known professionally as B.o.B, is an American rapper, singer, and record producer. Raised in Decatur, Georgia, Simmons signed with producer Jim Jonsin through his Rebel Rock Entertainment label in 2006. Two years later, he signed a joint venture recording contract with fellow Georgia rapper T.I.'s Grand Hustle Records, an imprint of Atlantic Records. Following his major-label deal, Simmons quickly achieved commercial success when his 2009 debut single, "Nothin' on You", peaked the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart and received three nominations—Record of the Year, Best Rap Song, and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration—at the 53rd Grammy Awards.
Johnny Reed McKinzie Jr., better known by his stage name Jay Rock, is an American rapper from Los Angeles, California. Rock signed with local independent label Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE) in 2005. He secured a major label joint venture deal with Warner Bros. Records and Asylum Records to release his 2008 debut single, "All My Life ". Failing to chart, the mergers fell through and Rock departed from both of the latter labels shortly after. He then signed with Missouri rapper Tech N9ne's label Strange Music in a joint venture deal with TDE in 2011.
The Medic Droid was an American synthpop band from Phoenix, Arizona.
Jermaine Lamarr Cole is an American rapper and record producer. Born on a military base in Germany and raised in Fayetteville, North Carolina, Cole initially gained attention as a rapper following the release of his debut mixtape, The Come Up, in early 2007. Intent on further pursuing a musical career, he signed with Jay-Z's Roc Nation in 2009 and released two additional mixtapes: The Warm Up (2009) and Friday Night Lights (2010) to further critical acclaim as he garnered a wider following.
Dondria Nicole Fields is an American R&B singer and songwriter. She is best known for her 2009 single "You're the One", which peaked at number six on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 chart. The song preceded her debut studio album Dondria vs. Phatfffat (2010), which was released by So Do Def and Geffen Records, and peaked at number 51 on the Billboard 200.
Chidera Anamege, now known by his stage name Chiddy Bang, is an American rapper from Philadelphia. Prior to its breakup, Chiddy Bang was an American hip hop duo consisting of Anamege, under the stage name Chiddy, and Noah Beresin, under the stage name Xaphoon Jones. The duo was introduced by former band member Zachary Sewall in late 2008 while the two were studying at Drexel University, in Beresin's hometown of Philadelphia. Anamege's sound is based on the fusion of hip hop and alternative using samples from artists such as Ellie Goulding, Radiohead, Sufjan Stevens, Passion Pit, MGMT, Matt and Kim and Yelle. In 2013, Beresin left the group to focus on producing, and Anamege became a solo artist, with Beresin playing the role as frequent collaborator.
Millionaires is an American electronic music group consisting of Melissa Marie Green and Meredith Hurley. The group, formed in August 2007, originally consisted of Green and her sister Allison Green, as well as friend Dani Artaud. The group mix explicit lyrics with an electropop backing. Their image and lyrics generated controversy during their early years. The band released three EPs, several singles—including "Stay the Night", which charted for a short time in the UK, and their debut album, Tonight, released in March 2013. In 2016, they released a single with producer Wade Martin titled "When I'm Single".
Diddy – Dirty Money was an American musical trio, composed of R&B singers Dawn Richard and Kalenna Harper, and rapper Sean Combs. The group, formed and introduced by the latter in July 2009, refers to their billing with Combs, while the "Dirty Money" act refers solely to Richard and Harper. The group signed with Combs' Bad Boy Records, a then-imprint of Interscope Records to release five commercial singles leading up to the release of their debut collaborative album, Last Train to Paris (2010). Supported by the single "Coming Home", the album peaked at number seven on the Billboard 200 and saw positive critical reception. It was preceded by one mixtape and followed by another until their 2012 disbandment.
Friday Night Lights is the third official mixtape from Fayetteville, North Carolina rapper J. Cole. It was released on November 12, 2010. The mixtape was to originally be called Villematic and contain J. Cole's previous leaks and freestyles, however, Cole later stated it would have original material. The mixtape became the second most searched and trending topics on Google and Twitter respectively following its release. Most songs on the mixtape were slated to be on his debut album at one point or another. The mixtape has been viewed over 4,470,000 times, streamed over 1,280,000 times, and downloaded over 1,700,000 times on mixtape site DatPiff.
Daniel Dwayne "Diggy" Simmons III is an American rapper, singer and actor from Queens, New York City. The fourth child of Run DMC's Joseph "Rev. Run" Simmons, he began his recording career in 2009 and signed with Atlantic Records the following year. In 2011, his single "Do It Like You" and guest appearance on Mindless Behavior's single "Mrs. Right" marked his first and only entries on the Billboard Hot 100. The former preceded the release of debut studio album, Unexpected Arrival (2012), which peaked at number 11 on the Billboard 200 and was met with positive critical reception. He was chosen as part of XXL magazine's 2011 Annual Freshman List, and joined Lupe Fiasco's short-lived rap collective, All City Chess Club as its youngest member that same year.
Night Wave is the second studio album by Los Angeles-based electrohop group Hyper Crush, released on the iTunes Store on February 7, 2012. It was self-published by Night Wave Records after the group left its previous record label, Universal Motown, because it "really didn’t see eye to eye with them for a long time". The album consists of eleven songs, four previously released as singles. Three were cowritten and coproduced, and eight written and produced by Hyper Crush.
