Rammstein is a German Neue Deutsche Härte band formed in Berlin in 1994. The band's lineup—consisting of lead vocalist Till Lindemann, lead guitarist Richard Kruspe, rhythm guitarist Paul Landers, bassist Oliver Riedel, drummer Christoph Schneider, and keyboardist Christian "Flake" Lorenz—has remained unchanged throughout their history, along with their approach to songwriting, which consists of Lindemann writing and singing the lyrics over instrumental pieces the rest of the band has completed beforehand. Prior to their formation, some members were associated with the punk rock acts Feeling B and First Arsch.
The Pogues were an English or Anglo-Irish Celtic punk band fronted by Shane MacGowan and others, founded in King's Cross, London, in 1982, as Pogue Mahone—an expression found in James Joyce's novel Ulysses as an anglicisation of the Irish phrase póg mo thóin, meaning "kiss my arse". Fusing punk influences with instruments such as the tin whistle, banjo, cittern, mandolin and accordion, the Pogues were initially poorly received in traditional Irish music circles—the noted musician Tommy Makem called them “the greatest disaster ever to hit Irish music”—but were subsequently credited with reinvigorating the genre. The band later incorporated influences from other musical traditions, including jazz, flamenco, and Middle Eastern music.
The Pet Shop Boys are an English synth-pop duo formed in London in 1981. Consisting of primary vocalist Neil Tennant and keyboardist Chris Lowe, they have sold more than 50 million records worldwide, and were listed as the most successful duo in UK music history in the 1999 edition of The Guinness Book of Records.
Sloan is a Canadian rock band based in Toronto and originally from Halifax, Nova Scotia. Sloan have released thirteen full-length albums and have received nine Juno Award nominations, winning one. Between 1996 and 2016, Sloan was among the top 75 best-selling Canadian artists in Canada and among the top 25 best-selling Canadian bands in Canada. The band is known for their sharing of songwriting and lead vocals from each member of the group and their unaltered line-up throughout their career.
New Kids on the Block is an American boy band from Dorchester, Massachusetts. The band consists of brothers Jonathan and Jordan Knight, Joey McIntyre, Donnie Wahlberg, and Danny Wood. New Kids on the Block enjoyed success in the late 1980s and early 1990s and have sold more than 80 million records worldwide, and are often credited for paving the way for future boy bands such as Take That, Backstreet Boys and NSYNC. They won two American Music Awards in 1990 for Favorite Pop/Rock Band, Duo, or Group and Favorite Pop/Rock Album. In 1991, they performed the halftime show at Super Bowl XXV, a first for a popular music group.
The Hives are a Swedish rock band formed in Fagersta in 1993. After gaining traction in Sweden through the 1990s, they rose to worldwide prominence in the early 2000s during the garage rock revival. The band's line-up—consisting of Howlin' Pelle Almqvist (vocals), Nicholaus Arson, Vigilante Carlstroem, Dr. Matt Destruction (bass), and Chris Dangerous (drums)—remained unchanged from 1993 until 2013, when Matt Destruction retired for health reasons and was replaced by The Johan and Only.
Zdob și Zdub is a Moldovan folk punk band, based in Chișinău. The band represented Moldova in the Eurovision Song Contest 2005 in Kyiv, Ukraine, on 21 May 2005, finishing 6th. They also represented Moldova in the Eurovision Song Contest 2011 in Düsseldorf, Germany, on 14 May 2011, finishing 12th, and represented Moldova again, in the Eurovision Song Contest 2022 in Turin, Italy, on 14 May 2022, finishing 7th. The band is often referred to by its fans as ZSZ. To date, Zdob si Zdub are the only artists to have qualified from a Eurovision Song Contest semi-final three times.
"Do They Know It's Christmas?" is a charity song written in 1984 by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise money for the 1983–1985 famine in Ethiopia. It was first recorded by Band Aid, a supergroup assembled by Geldof and Ure consisting of popular British and Irish musical acts. It was recorded in a single day at Sarm West Studios in Notting Hill, London, in November 1984.
The Irish Rovers is a group of Irish musicians that formed in Toronto, Canada in 1963 and named after the traditional song "The Irish Rover". They are best known for their international television series, contributing to the popularization of Irish Music in North America, and for the songs "The Unicorn", "Drunken Sailor", "Wasn't That a Party", "The Orange and the Green", "Whiskey on a Sunday", "Lily the Pink", "Finnegan's Wake" and "The Black Velvet Band".
Christopher Alan Kirkpatrick is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, music producer, podcaster, and actor. He founded the pop group NSYNC, in which he sang countertenor. The band has sold over 70 million records, becoming one of the best-selling boy bands of all time. Kirkpatrick was the lead singer in various songs including "Thinking of You ", "Together Again", "The Lion Sleeps Tonight", "I Thought She Knew", "Just Got Paid", and many songs from their Christmas album, Home for Christmas. He has also regularly worked as a voice actor, most notably as the character Chip Skylark on the Nickelodeon series The Fairly OddParents, and participant in numerous reality TV shows, including Celebrity Big Brother, The Masked Singer, and Gone Country.
Parokya ni Edgar is a Filipino band formed in 1993, composed of Chito Miranda, Gab Chee Kee, Buwi Meneses, Darius Semaña, Dindin Moreno, and Vinci Montaner. The band is known for its original rock novelty songs and often satirical covers of popular songs both foreign and local. The band is adept at playing in various musical genres.
"Everybody (Backstreet's Back)" is a song by American boy band Backstreet Boys, written and produced by Denniz Pop and Max Martin. It was released as the first single from the band's second international studio album Backstreet's Back in June 1997, and the third single from their self-titled debut US studio album on March 9, 1998, although the song was already being played by many American radio stations unofficially by importing the Canadian single. The accompanying music video was directed by American director Joseph Kahn.
"Do It Again" is a song by the American rock band the Beach Boys that was released as a standalone single on July 8, 1968. It was written by Brian Wilson and Mike Love as a self-conscious callback to the group's earlier surf image, which they had not embraced since 1964. Love and Wilson also share the lead vocal on the song.
Hardcore Superstar is a Swedish rock band from Gothenburg, formed in 1997. They have released eleven studio albums.
The Boys are an English punk rock band formed in London in 1976.
Innosense was an American girl group that were active from 1997 to 2003.
The Backstreet Boys are an American vocal group consisting of Nick Carter, Howie Dorough, AJ McLean, and cousins Brian Littrell and Kevin Richardson. They were formed in 1993 in Orlando, Florida.
NSYNC is an American vocal group and boy band formed by Chris Kirkpatrick in Orlando, Florida, in 1995 and launched in Germany by BMG Ariola Munich. The group consists of Chris Kirkpatrick, Justin Timberlake, Joey Fatone, Lance Bass, and JC Chasez. Their self-titled debut album was successfully released to European countries in 1997, and later debuted in the U.S. market with the single "I Want You Back".
"Everybody in Love" is a song by English boyband JLS from their self-titled debut album (2009). The song was released as a digital download on 1 November 2009, followed by a physical release the following day. The song became the band's second number one single in the UK on 8 November 2009, with a total of 600,000 copies being sold so far in the UK, earning the single a Platinum certification. The song was released to U.S. Mainstream Top 40 radio on 23 February 2010, but failed to chart on Billboard Hot 100.
A Very Backstreet Christmas is the tenth studio album and the first Christmas album by the Backstreet Boys. Initially slated for release in 2021, it was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic and was released on October 14, 2022. It entered the Billboard Top Holiday Albums chart at number 1, and debuted at number 17 on the Billboard 200 chart. A related television special, "A Very Backstreet Holiday," was pulled from airing and streaming debuts after sexual assault allegations against Nick Carter, who has since filed a defamation lawsuit.
