Last Updated: Feb 8, 2009 10:26pm
Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949), nicknamed "The Boss", is an American songwriter, singer and musician. He has recorded and toured with the E Street Band. Springsteen is widely known for his brand of heartland rock infused with pop hooks, poetic lyrics, and Americana sentiments centered around his native New Jersey.
Neil Percival Young[1] OM (born November 12, 1945) is a Canadian singer-songwriter, musician and film director. Young's work is characterized by deeply personal lyrics, distinctive guitar work, and signature falsetto tenor singing voice. Although he accompanies himself on several different instruments—including piano and harmonica—his claw-hammer acoustic guitar style and often idiosyncratic electric guitar soloing are the linchpins of a sometimes ragged, sometimes polished sound. Although Young has experimented widely with differing music styles, including swing, jazz, rockabilly, blues, and electronic music throughout a varied career, his best known work usually falls into either of two distinct styles: folk-esque acoustic rock ("Heart of Gold", "Harvest Moon" and "Old Man") and electric-charged hard rock (like "Cinnamon Girl", "Rockin' in the Free World" and "Hey Hey, My My (Into the Black)"). In recent years, Young has adopted elements from newer styles like industrial, alternative country and grunge. Young's profound influence on the latter caused some to dub him "the godfather of grunge".
Sidney Matthew Sweet (born October 6, 1964, in Lincoln, Nebraska) is an American alternative rock/power pop musician. He was part of the burgeoning Athens, Georgia music scene in the early and mid-1980s before gaining commercial success during the early 1990s. He continues to release albums and tour.
The New Pornographers is a Canadian/American indie rock supergroup formed in 1997 in Vancouver, British Columbia. Their music is often described as power pop, with several critics likening their sound to that of Cheap Trick.
Kanye Omari West (pronounced /ˈkɑnjɛj/; born June 8, 1977)[1] is a ten-time Grammy Award-winning American rapper, record producer and singer. He released his debut album The College Dropout in 2004, his second album Late Registration in 2005, his third album Graduation in 2007, and his fourth album 808s & Heartbreak in 2008. His first three albums have received numerous awards,[2][3][4] critical acclaim,[5] and commercial success. West also runs his own record label GOOD Music.[6] West's mascot and trademark is "Dropout Bear," a teddy bear which has appeared on the covers of three of his four albums as well as various single covers and music videos
Dante Terrell Smith (born December 11, 1973),[1] better known by his stage name Mos Def (MOSt DEFinitely), is an American MC and actor. Mos Def started his hip hop career in a group called Urban Thermo Dynamics, after which he appeared on albums by Da Bush Babees and De La Soul. With Talib Kweli, he formed the duo Black Star, who released the well-received album Black Star in 1998. He was a major force in the late 1990s underground hip hop explosion spearheaded by Rawkus Records. As a solo artist he has released the albums Black on Both Sides in 1999, The New Danger in 2004, and True Magic, 2006