The Cure are an English rock band formed in Crawley in 1976. The band has experienced several line-up changes, with vocalist, guitarist, and principal songwriter Robert Smith being the only constant member. The Cure first began releasing music in the late 1970s with their debut album Three Imaginary Boys (1979); this, along with several early singles, placed the band as part of the post-punk and new wave movements that had sprung up in the wake of the punk rock revolution in the United Kingdom. During the early 1980s, the band's increasingly dark and tormented music was a staple of the emerging style of music known as gothic rock.
Franz Ferdinand are a Scottish rock band formed in Glasgow in 2002. The band's original lineup was composed of Alex Kapranos, Nick McCarthy, Bob Hardy, and Paul Thomson. Julian Corrie and Dino Bardot joined the band in 2017 after McCarthy left during the previous year. The band has been notable for being one of the more popular post-punk revival bands, garnering multiple UK top 20 hits. They have been nominated for several Grammy Awards and have received two Brit Awards – winning one for Best British Group – as well as one NME Award.
Nickel Creek is an American Americana music group consisting of Chris Thile (mandolin), and siblings Sara Watkins (fiddle) and Sean Watkins (guitar). Formed in 1989 in Southern California, they released six albums between 1993 and 2006. The band broke out in 2000 with a platinum-selling self-titled album produced by Alison Krauss, earning a number of Grammy and CMA nominations.
The Billboard Music Award is an honor given out annually by Billboard, a publication and music popularity chart covering the music business. The Billboard Music Awards show had been held annually since 1990 and the event was formerly held in December until it went dormant in 2006. The awards returned in 2011 and are now held annually in May as the last of the Big Three major music awards. The 2018 Billboard Music Awards aired live on NBC on May 20.
Brooks & Dunn is an American country music duo consisting of Kix Brooks and Ronnie Dunn, both vocalists and songwriters. The duo was founded in 1990 through the suggestion of Tim DuBois. Before the foundation, both members were solo recording artists. Both members charted two solo singles apiece in the 1980s, with Brooks also releasing an album for Capitol Records in 1989 and writing hit singles for other artists.
The Black Keys are an American rock band formed in Akron, Ohio, in 2001. The group consists of Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney (drums). The duo began as an independent act, recording music in basements and self-producing their records, before they eventually emerged as one of the most popular garage rock artists during a second wave of the genre's revival in the 2010s. The band's raw blues rock sound draws heavily from Auerbach's blues influences, including Junior Kimbrough, Howlin' Wolf, and Robert Johnson.
Gerald Edward Levert was an American singer-songwriter, producer and actor. Levert is best known for singing with his brother, Sean Levert, and friend Marc Gordon of the vocal group LeVert. Levert was also a member of LSG, a supergroup comprising Keith Sweat, Johnny Gill, and himself. Levert is the son of Eddie Levert, who is the lead singer of the R&B/Soul vocal group The O'Jays.
112 is an American R&B quartet from Atlanta, Georgia. Formerly artists on Bad Boy Records, the group signed to the Def Soul roster in 2002. They had great success in the late 1990s and early 2000s with hits such as "Only You", "Anywhere" and the Grammy Award-nominated single, "Peaches & Cream". The group most notably won a Grammy Award in 1997 for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group, for featuring in the song "I'll Be Missing You" with Sean Combs and Faith Evans.
The Mavericks is an American country music band that combine Tex-Mex, neotraditional country music, Latin, and rockabilly influences. The Mavericks were founded in 1989 in Miami, Florida. Between 1991 and 2003, the band recorded six studio albums, in addition to charting 14 singles on the Billboard country charts. Their highest-peaking American single was 1996's "All You Ever Do Is Bring Me Down", a collaboration with accordionist Flaco Jiménez. They are best known in the UK for their 1998 single "Dance the Night Away", which spent 18 weeks on the chart, peaking at number 4. In 1996, The Mavericks won a Grammy Award for the song "Here Comes the Rain".
Rascal Flatts is an American country music trio formed in Columbus, Ohio in 1999. It is composed of lead vocalist Gary LeVox, his second cousin Jay DeMarcus on bass guitar, and Joe Don Rooney on guitar and banjo. DeMarcus is also a brother-in-law of country music singer James Otto, and formerly one-half of the Christian music duo East to West.
The Calling is an American rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1996 by lead singer Alex Band and guitarist Aaron Kamin. They are best known for their hit single, "Wherever You Will Go", which topped the Adult Top 40 for 23 weeks, making it the second longest running number one in the chart’s history and later named the number one song of the decade of 2000s on the Adult Pop Charts by Billboard magazine. Their debut album Camino Palmero was released in July 2001 and was a commercial success.
Montgomery Gentry is an American country music duo founded by vocalists Eddie Montgomery and Troy Gentry, both natives of Kentucky. Eddie Montgomery and Troy Gentry began performing in the 1990s as part of two different bands with Montgomery's brother, John Michael Montgomery. Although Gentry won a talent contest in 1994, he reunited with Eddie Montgomery after Gentry was unable to find a solo record deal, and Montgomery Gentry was formed in 1999. The duo was known for its Southern rock influences, and collaborated with Charlie Daniels, Toby Keith, Five for Fighting, and members of The Allman Brothers Band.
The Wilkinsons was a Canadian country music trio from Trenton, Ontario. Founded in 1997, the group consisted of lead singer Amanda Wilkinson, her brother Tyler Wilkinson, and their father, Steve Wilkinson. The Wilkinsons achieved success late in 1998 with the hit single "26 Cents", a Number One on the Canadian country music charts and Top 5 hit on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks charts. It was followed by "Fly ", also a No. 1 in Canada. A second album, Here and Now, produced the group's last American top 40 hit in "Jimmy's Got a Girlfriend". Afterward, the trio recorded three more albums, one of which was not released, and a Greatest Hits package.
The Johner Brothers were a Canadian country music duo from Midale. They won more than 40 awards from the Saskatchewan Country Music Association, including Entertainer of the Decade in 1999.
Brad Johner is a Canadian country music singer.
Orange Pekoe is a Japanese music duo which formed in 1998, and had its first major debut in 2002, with the single "Happy Valley". The band is named for orange pekoe, a type of tea.
Vladislav Mikhailovich Topalov better known as just Vlad Topalov is a singer, dancer and actor born in Moscow, Russia. He is most famous for his singing career, when he rose to fame as the blond-haired member of the group Smash!!. The group broke up in 2006. Since then Topalov has pursued a solo career.
Big & Rich is an American country music duo composed of Big Kenny and John Rich, both of whom are songwriters, vocalists, and guitarists. Before the duo's foundation, Rich was bass guitarist in the country band Lonestar, while Kenny was a solo artist for Hollywood Records.
Donny Parenteau is singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer. He is best for known his solo career and his work as fiddle player, guitarist, and mandolin player for country music singer Neal McCoy. In February 2011, Parenteau signed with the record label 306 Records/EMI Music Canada to help distribute his albums.
Jetty Road are an Australian country music trio comprising identical twin sisters Lee Bowman and Paula Bowman, both on vocals, with Julian Sammut on lead guitar. Founding multi-instrumentalist member, Simon Ross left in 2012. They have released five albums, Full Circle (2005), Dirt Roads City Lights (2007), Life at a Million Miles (2009), Far Away Places (2011) and Hearts on Fire (2015). The group have won two Country Music Awards of Australia Golden Guitar trophies. Hearts on Fire peaked in the top 40 on the ARIA Albums Chart.
