Oasis, formerly known in a previous incarnation as Rain, was formed in Manchester, UK in 1991. It’s comprised of Liam Gallagher, Noel Gallagher, Gem Archer, Andy Bell and Chris Sharrock. The band initially gained prominence performing on the Manchester club circuit. They were signed to independent record label Creation Records in 1993. Their debut album, Definitely Maybe was released in 1994. It was an immediate commercial success in the UK. It was the fastest selling debut album of all time in the UK when released, and has been certified seven times Platinum. Their first single, "Supersonic", was released in April 1994, reaching number 31 in the charts. The release was followed by the single "Shakermaker". Oasis released their third album, Be Here Now in 1997, which is the fastest-selling album in UK chart history. Since their debut, Oasis has released six records total. Oasis have sold over fifty million records worldwide, have had eight UK number-one singles and have collected fifteen New Musical Express Awards, five BRIT Awards, nine Q Awards and four MTV Europe Music Awards. Oasis has also won a Vodafone Live Music Award in 2007 for the album, Morning Glory.
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Michael Jackson was born on August 29, 1958 in Gary, Indiana. He is the youngest of seven children and started his career at the age of 11 by performing in the Jackson Five. Then in 1971 he started what would become a very successful solo career. Michael Jackson has created some of the highest grossing records of all time including Thriller, Bad, Dangerous and Off The Wall. All together he has released ten albums. During the eighties Michael Jackson popularized a number of physically complicated dance techniques, such as the robot and the moon walk. His highly stylized videos transformed music videos to an art form and helped popularize the fairly new music channel, MTV. Michael Jackson is one of the most successful entertainers of all time. He has had over seven hundred and fifty million record sales worldwide and has13 Grammy Awards and 13 number one singles. Michael Jackson also has the honor of having the most expensive music video of all time. It was to the single "Scream" , directed by Mark Romanekand and co-starring his sister Janet Jackson. It cost roughly seven million dollars. In 1984 Michael Jackson was inducted into the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He was also inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame twice. Once for his role in the Jackson 5 in 1997 and as a solo artist in 2001.
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LL Cool J is the stage name of James Todd Smith. He was born on January 14, 1968 in Queens, New York. At age 16, LL Cool J produced and created demos using a mixing table purchased by his grandfather at Sears. He then sent them to various record companies, including Def Jam Recordings. Def Jam released his first record, the 12" single "I Need a Beat". The single sold over 100,000 copies and helped establish LL as a rapper in the music industry. The success of "I Need a Beat" helped lead to a distribution deal with Def Jam and Columbia Records in 1985. Soon after, LL Cool J dropped out of Hillcrest High School to record his debut album, Radio. The album earned considerable Billboard chart success and sold in excess of 500,000 copies within its first five months of release. On April 19, 1989, it was certified platinum in sales by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). LL Cool J has since released thirteen records which include Bigger and Deffer (1987), Mama Said Knock You Out (1990), Phenomenon (1997) and Exit 13 (2008). He now resides in Manhasset, New York with his wife and four children. The couple has also adopted several times.
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Casting Crowns is a Grammy Award winning Christian band that was created in 1999 by youth pastor Mark Hall at First Baptist Church in Downtown Daytona Beach, Florida as part of a youth group. He also serves as a lead vocalist. Later they moved to McDonough, Georgia and more members joined creating the band now known as Casting Crowns. It’s members include Mark Hall - lead vocals, Melodee Devevo - violins, Juan Devevo - acoustic guitar and Andy Williams - drums. In 2003, Casting Crowns released their self titled debut album. The album peaked at the number two position on the Top Christian Albums Chart and at number fifty-nine on the Billboard 200 Chart. They followed up on it’s success with the release of their sophomore album, Lifesong. In 2007, they released their third album, The Altar and the Door. It includes two cover songs, including Chandler’s "I Know You’re There" and Steve Fee’s "All Because of Jesus". The album debuted at number two on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart, selling about 129,000 copies in its first week. Casting Crowns latest album was released on October 7, 2008 and is entitled "Peace on Earth". In 2008, Casting Crowns scored their eighth number one hit with "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day", a track from their newly-released Christmas album entitled Peace on Earth.
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Def Leppard was formed in 1977 as part of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal movement in Sheffield, England. Rick Savage (bass), Pete Willis (guitar), and Tony Kenning (drums), all students at Tapton School in Sheffield, formed a band called Atomic Mass in 1977. Following a chance meeting with Willis after missing a bus, 18-year old Joe Elliott tried out for the band as a guitarist. During his audition, however, it was decided that he was better suited to be the lead singer. Soon afterward they adopted a name proposed by Elliott, "Deaf Leopard", which was originally a band name he thought up while writing reviews for imaginary rock bands in his English class. At Kenning’s suggestion, the spelling was slightly modified in order to make the name seem less like that of a punk band and perhaps also as an indirect homage to Led Zeppelin. In 1980 Def Leppard released it’s debut album, On Through the Night. Then on July 11, 1981 they released High ‘n’ Dry. Its title song "High ‘n’ Dry" made #33 on VH1’s 40 Greatest Metal Songs and was a moderate success. But, it wasn’t until their 1983 release, Pyromania that the band would find super stardom. It broke the band across North America and in Japan, and would sell over 10 million copies in the US alone. It featured new guitarist Phil Collen and was produced by Robert John "Mutt" Lange. Def Leppard has since released eight more studio albums and have enjoyed record sales in excess of sixty-five million units.
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Brad Paisley was born on October 28, 1972 in Glen Dale, West Virginia. Brad Paisley graduated from John Marshall High School in Glen Dale, West Virginia, studied briefly at West Liberty State College (WV), and later was awarded a full-paid ASCAP scholarship to Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee (from 1993 to 1995). While in college, he met Frank Rogers, a fellow student who went on to serve as his producer. Paisley also met Kelley Lovelace, who became his songwriting partner. After graduating from Belmont, Brad Paisley signed a songwriting contract with EMI Music Publishing and he wrote David Kersh’s top 5 hit "Another You", as well as David Ball’s 1999 single "Watching My Baby Not Come Back". In 1999, he released his debut album, Who Needs Pictures. It features four singles, "Me Neither", "Who Needs Pictures", "He Didn’t Have to Be" and "We Danced". All of which became hit singles. Brad Paisley has since released seven albums. All of his albums certified gold or higher by the RIAA. In addition, he has charted twenty-three singles on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs charts, fourteen of which have reached Number One. His style crosses between traditional country and pop-rock, and his songs are frequently laced with humor and pop culture references.
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Prince is the stage name of Prince Rogers Nelson born on June 7, 1958 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He was born to pianist John L. Nelson and jazz singer Matti Shaw. He was named after his father, whose stage name was Prince Rogers, and who performed with a jazz group called the Prince Rogers Trio. On April 7, 1978 he released his debut album For You. It originally only sold 150,000 copies in the U.S. and 430,000 copies worldwide but with his latter success would eventually go on to sell almost a million copies. Between 1979 and 1981 he released three albums but his breakthrough album would come in 1982 with the studio release entitled 1999. It was his first top ten album on the Billboard 200 charts in the United States (peaking at number nine) and became the fifth best-selling album of 1983. Prince released his sixth album and his best selling through Warner Brothers in 1984. It was titled Purple Rain and it has gone platinum thirteen times over. Since the start of his career, Prince has won seven Grammy Awards, a Golden Globe, and an Academy Award. He was also inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame the first year he was eligible in 2004.
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Better known as Enrique Iglesias, Enrique Miguel Iglesias Preysler was born on May 8, 1975 in Madrid, Spain. He has dual citizenship in Spain and Maltese. He is the son of singer Julio Iglesias and philipina socialite and magazine journalist Isabel Preysler. In 1995, he released his self titled debut album, Enrique Iglesias. The album has sold more than five million copies worldwide and spawned five hit singles which include Si Tú Te Vas, Experiencia Religiosa, Por Amarte, No Llores Por Mí and Trapecista. In 1997 he released his sophomore album, Vivir. The album has since been certified platinum. On the success of Vivir, Enrique Iglesias released Cosas del Amor, which peaked at number 64 on the Billboard charts. In 1999 he released his debut English album entitled simply Enrique. The album debuted at number ten on the Billboard 200 album chart and would go on to be certified Platinum in the United States. The album was a success in Canada too, where it became 8 times Platinum and in Spain 10 times Platinum. Enrique Iglesias has sold over 60 million albums worldwide and holds the record for producing 19 number #1 Spanish-language singles on the Billboard’s Hot Latin Tracks.
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Toni Braxton is an American R&B singer that was born on October 7, 1967 in Severn, Maryland. Toni Braxton’s first performing experience was singing in her church choir. She then attended Bowie State University to obtain a teaching degree but decided to sing professionally after she was discovered by William E. Pettaway Jr. who heard her singing to herself while pumping gas. On July 13, 1993, LaFace Records released Braxton’s self-titled debut album, Toni Braxton. It spent two non-consecutive weeks atop the Billboard 200 and has sold over eight million copies in the U.S. alone. In 1996, Braxton released her second and most successful album, Secrets. The album was nominated for Best Pop Album at the 1997 Grammy Awards and has sold eight million copies in the U.S. In 1998, Toni Braxton filed for Chapter 7 protection from a reported $3.9 million debt. All of her personal household possessions were tagged and marked for sale to pay off her creditors, including her prestigious awards. Despite this personal setback Toni Braxton would go on to release four more albums, starting with the highly success "The Heat" in 2000. "The Heat" opened at number two on the Billboard 200 selling 199,000 units its first week. To date, the album has been certified double platinum and has sold over two million copies in the U.S. and six million copies worldwide.
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Sean Kingston is the stage name of Kisean Jamal Anderson. He was born on February 3, 1990 in Miami, Florida, though he was predominantly raised in Kingston, Jamaica, after moving there at the age of six. Sean Kingston later moved back to the U.S.A. in Los Angeles, California in his mid-teenage years. Sean Kingston, through a venture between Epic Records and Koch Records, released the single "Beautiful Girls" in May 2007. This song was #86 on MTV Asia’s list of Top 100 Hits of 2007. The song stayed on the Canadian Hot 100 number one spot for over six weeks before getting knocked down to third place by the Plain White T’s. Then in July of that same year he released his self titled debut album. The album entered the U.S. Billboard 200 chart at #6 and fell to #13 the following week. Sean Kingston is currently working on his sophomore album, Tomorrow. It has a tentative release date of August 25, 2009. Over the course of his career, Sean Kingston has been nominated for several awards which include a Teen Choice Award in 2007 for the Track "Beautiful Girls" and a Image Award in 2008 for Outstanding New Artist.
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