Whitney Elizabeth Houston was an American singer, actress, and film producer. Known as "the Voice", she is one of the most awarded performers and one of the best-selling music artists of all time, with sales of more than 220 million records worldwide. Her crossover appeal on the popular music charts influenced the breaking down of gender and racial barriers in popular culture. Known for her vocal delivery and live performances, Houston was ranked second by Rolling Stone on their 2023 list of the "200 Greatest Singers of All Time". Her life and career have been the subject of multiple documentaries and television specials.
Roxette is a Swedish pop rock duo originally consisting of Marie Fredriksson and Per Gessle, both of whom were already established musicians in Sweden prior to the band's formation. Fredriksson had released a number of successful solo albums, while Gessle had been the lead singer and songwriter of Gyllene Tider, a band which had three number one albums in Sweden. Acting on the advice of Rolf Nygren, the CEO of their mutual record label EMI, Fredriksson and Gessle collaborated to record "Neverending Love", the first single from Roxette's 1986 debut album Pearls of Passion, which were both hits in Sweden.
Whitney is the second studio album by American singer Whitney Houston, released on June 1, 1987, by Arista Records as the follow-up to her debut album. Whitney is one of the best-selling albums of all time, with sales of over 20 million copies worldwide. The album features five top-10 hits on the US Billboard Hot 100, which also became international hits. The album's first four singles—"I Wanna Dance with Somebody ", "Didn't We Almost Have It All", "So Emotional" and "Where Do Broken Hearts Go"—all peaked at number one on the US Hot 100, making her the first female act to achieve four number-one hits from one album.
Marit Elisabeth Larsen is a Norwegian singer and songwriter. She began playing violin aged five and played it until the age of eight. She gained international fame during her teenage years as a member of the pop duo M2M with childhood friend Marion Raven. She then pursued her own music career, releasing her debut solo album Under the Surface in 2006. Her second album, The Chase, was released in Norway in October 2008. Her third album, titled Spark was released in Norway, Denmark, Sweden and Finland on 18 November 2011, and in Germany, Austria and Switzerland on 16 December 2011. Her fourth studio album When the Morning Comes was released on 20 October 2014. Larsen toured in its support within Norway with her own concerts, played songs from the album in Germany and Switzerland at public festivals and was the opening act at two of Johannes Oerding's concerts in November 2015.
Agnes Emilia Carlsson, known mononymously as Agnes, is a Swedish singer. She rose to fame as the winner of Idol 2005, the second season of the Swedish Idol series. She was then signed to Sony Music, through which she released her self-titled debut album, Agnes, and follow-up, Stronger, both of which topped the Swedish Top 60 Albums Chart. In early 2008, it was announced that Agnes had parted ways with her record label, and was now signed to small independent label Roxy Recordings. Released on 28 October 2008, her third album, Dance Love Pop, reached number five in Sweden, 70 in Austria, 38 in France, 45 in Switzerland and 13 in the United Kingdom. With 200,000 albums sold worldwide this is her most successful album, 50,000 albums were sold in France, 40,000 in Sweden. Its first two singles, "On and On" and "Release Me" became international hits, reaching the top-ten in charts worldwide. "Release Me" topped the Billboard Hot Dance Club Songs and peaked at three in the United Kingdom, selling over 900,000 copies worldwide.
Arthur Carl "Ace" Enders III is an American musician who is the lead singer and guitarist of the band The Early November. He is also the lead musician, songwriter and co-producer in his band I Can Make a Mess Like Nobody's Business. He has also released music under the name Ace Enders and a Million Different People.
Lars Salem Al Fakir is a Swedish musician, singer, songwriter and record producer. He regularly collaborates with Vincent Pontare as the songwriting and production duo Vargas and Lagola. Together, they have worked with many artists, including Avicii, Axwell & Ingrosso, Madonna, Seinabo Sey, Lady Gaga and the Swedish band Ghost. In addition to his songwriting and production work, he releases alternative pop music as Vargas & Lagola.
Thomas Luther "Luke" Bryan is an American country singer, songwriter, and television personality. Bryan is a five-time "Entertainer of the Year", being awarded by both the Academy of Country Music Awards and the Country Music Association. In 2019, Bryan's 2013 album Crash My Party received the first Album of the Decade award from the Academy of Country Music. He is one of the world's best-selling music artists, with over 75 million records sold. Since 2018, Bryan has been a judge on the singing competition television show American Idol.
Fred Vincent Pontare is a Swedish songwriter, producer, and singer. He is also known by the mononym Vincent. He regularly collaborates with Salem Al Fakir as songwriting, producer, and duo Vargas & Lagola. Together, they have worked with many pre-eminent artists, including: Avicii, Axwell Ʌ Ingrosso, Madonna, Seinabo Sey and Lady Gaga. In addition to their songwriting and production work, they release alternative pop music as Vargas & Lagola.
First Aid Kit is a Swedish folk duo consisting of the sisters Johanna and Klara Söderberg, born in 1990 and 1993 respectively. When performing live, they are accompanied by a drummer, a guitarist and a keyboard player. First Aid Kit started to become internationally known in 2008 with their YouTube uploaded cover of the Fleet Foxes' song "Tiger Mountain Peasant Song". In 2012 Rolling Stone magazine had their song "Emmylou" as 10th on their "Single of the Year" list. First Aid Kit has released five albums, four EPs and several singles. In 2015, they were nominated for a Brit Award as one of the five best international groups. They were nominated again in 2019 and 2023.
Gravitonas is a Swedish electronic rock band formed in 2009 and signed to Sofo Records (Sweden) and Universal Music (worldwide) in 2010. The band is fronted by vocalist Andreas Öhrn and formerly by record producer and songwriter Alexander Bard. Other collaborators in the project include keyboardist and producer Henrik Wikström and guitar player Ben Smith. Gravitonas are among the front figures of the Scandinavian electronica scene, often linked to artists like Robyn, The Knife, Lykke Li, Röyksopp, The Sound of Arrows, and Miike Snow, with whom they have also performed on several occasions.
Rizzle Kicks are a British hip hop duo from Brighton, England, consisting of Jordan "Rizzle" Stephens and Harley "Sylvester" Alexander-Sule. Their debut album, Stereo Typical, was released in 2011. As of May 2012, Rizzle Kicks had sold over 1 million singles and over 600,000 albums in the UK.
English recording artist Olly Murs has released seven studio albums, twenty-five singles and twenty one music videos on recording labels Epic and Sony subsidiary Syco. Olly rose to prominence in the United Kingdom after being a contestant on The X Factor during its sixth series, ultimately finishing in second place on 12 December 2009. During his time on the show, Murs appeared on the number-one charity single "You Are Not Alone" alongside the other finalists. His debut single, "Please Don't Let Me Go" was released on 27 August 2010—where it became his second number-one single and first as a solo artist. The accompanying album, Olly Murs was released on 26 November, where it debuted at number two, and was preceded by the number four single "Thinking of Me" on 19 November. The singles "Heart on My Sleeve" and "Busy" were also released from the album on 27 March and 27 May 2011—peaking at number twenty and forty-five in the UK respectively.
Scars on 45 are an English indie rock band from Bradford.
Melanie Joy Fontana is an American singer, composer and songwriter signed to Universal Music Group.
Matthew Alexander "Max" Frost is an American singer, songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist from Austin, Texas, who is signed to Atlantic Records. He has released two EPs: Low High Low in October 2013, and Intoxication in September 2015, followed by the release of his debut album, Gold Rush, in 2018.
Push Baby are a British pop duo from Manchester, England consisting of singer Jake Roche and multi-instrumentalist Charley Bagnall. They are signed to their own indie label, Wow, Big Legend.
Cameron Alexander Francis Walker-Wright professionally known as Cameron Walker, is a singer, songwriter, producer, and artist from Southport, Connecticut. He is currently in the supergroup band Twin XL along with John Gomez and Stephen Gomez.
About a Feeling is the debut album by Summer Heart, released April 25, 2012 by Swedish label Sommarhjärta.
Amy Rose Allen is an American songwriter, record producer, and singer. She has been credited with songwriting work on commercially successful releases performed by artists including Sabrina Carpenter, Harry Styles, Justin Bieber, Selena Gomez, Tate McRae, Halsey, Rosé, and Shawn Mendes, among others.
