Coldplay

     Coldplay are an English rock band formed in London in 1997. The group comprises vocalist/pianist/guitarist Chris Martin, lead guitarist Jonny Buckland, bassist Guy Berryman, and drummer/multi-instrumentalist Will Champion. Coldplay have been one of the most commercially successful acts of the new millennium, selling over 30 million albums. The band are also known for their hit singles, such as “Yellow”, “Speed of Sound” and the Grammy Award-winning “Clocks”.
     This British quartet’s casual dream pop melodies and poetic lyrics have brought it international stardom. The band formed in 1997 at the University College London. Coldplay hit the UK charts in 1999 after famed DJ Steve Lamacq started playing “Brothers & Sisters” on BBC Radio 1. “Parachutes” debuted at number one in the UK and then sold five million copies. The band’s second album did even better. Singer Chris Martin is married to actress Gwyneth Paltrow. They have a son named Apple.
     Coldplay achieved worldwide fame with the release of their single “Yellow”, followed by the success of their debut album, Parachutes (2000), which was nominated for the Mercury Prize. Both Parachutes and its follow-up, A Rush of Blood to the Head (2002), were released to commercial success; the latter was named NME’s Album of the Year. X&Y (2005) received a generally positive reception; and since December 2006, the band have been working with producer Brian Eno on their fourth studio album, Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends, which will be released on 17 June 2008.

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Ashanti

     Ashanti Shequoiya Douglas is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, actress, dancer, model, and fashion designer who rose to fame in the early 2000s.
     Ashanti’s breakthrough hit “Always on Time” is featured on Ja Rule’s album Pain Is Love.      Her debut solo single “Foolish” uses the same beat as “One More Chance/Stay With Me” by Biggie and Faith Evans. Ashanti was accepted at Hampton University and Princeton University, turning both down to pursue a singing career. Hitmaker Irv Gotti discovered the chanteuse in 2000 and produced her R&B self-titled debut. Ashanti has also appeared in a variety of films such as “The Muppets’ Wizard of Oz (2004) and John Tucker Must Die (2006).
     Ashanti is most famous for her eponymous Grammy Award-winning debut album Ashanti which featured the hit song “Foolish”, and sold over 503,000 copies in its first week of release in the U.S. in April 2002. In the same week, she became the first female performer to simultaneously hold the top two places on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart with “Foolish”, and “What’s Luv” (with Fat Joe). She broke records again by having three Top Ten songs Foolish, What’s Luv, and Always on Time, with Ja Rule, on the Billboard Hot 100 charts in the same week, being the first female to accomplish this feat and being second only to The Beatles. Ashanti also wrote and sang background on the song “Ain’t It Funny” (Murder Remix) sung by Jennifer Lopez which was also in the top 10 charts at the same time as “Foolish”, “Always on Time” (with Ja Rule), and “What’s Luv” (with Fat Joe). In 2002, she was acclaimed as the “Princess of Hip Hop and R&B” and by 2008, Ashanti had sold more than 7 million albums in the U.S., and more than 15 million records worldwide.

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Christina Aguilera

     Christina María Aguilera (born December 18, 1980) is an American pop singer-songwriter. She was signed to RCA Records after recording “Reflection” for the film Mulan. She came to prominence following her debut album Christina Aguilera (1999), which was a commercial success. A Latin pop album, Mi Reflejo, and several collaborations followed which garnered Aguilera worldwide success, but she was displeased with the lack of input in her music and image.
     Christina Aguilera’s electric dance pop, flashy smile and smooth dance moves have made her a favorite among fans worldwide. At age ten, Aguilera appeared on “Star Search;” at 12, she landed a role on “The New Mickey Mouse Club.” Aguilera’s explosive career was precipitated by her performance of “Reflection” for Disney’s animated film “Mulan.” After shocking the world on Stripped, Aguilera got married, released an album of classy retro tunes and started a family. As a child, Aguilera lived in various locations, including Tokyo and Pittsburgh, because of her dad’s military career.
     After parting from her management, Aguilera took creative control over her second studio album Stripped (2002) which received mixed reviews and produced substantial sales. The overtly sexual image Aguilera displayed during the promotion of the album became the subject of intense criticism and ridicule. The second single, “Beautiful”, was a commercial success and sustained the album’s sales.

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Ashlee Simpson

      Ashlee Wentz, professionally known as Ashlee Simpson-Wentz (born Ashlee Nicole Simpson on October 3, 1984) is an American pop rock singer-songwriter, and occasional actress. Simpson-Wentz, who is the younger sister of pop singer Jessica Simpson, rose to prominence in mid-2004 through the success of her number-one debut album Autobiography and the accompanying reality series The Ashlee Simpson Show. Simpson-Wentz received widespread criticism when she used a pre-recorded vocal track on Saturday Night Live in October 2004. Following a North American concert tour and a film appearance, Simpson-Wentz released a second number-one album, I Am Me, in October 2005. Her third album, Bittersweet World, was released in April 2008.
     Ashlee Simpson performs hard-edged pop rock that has the same kind of sharply crafted teen angst as Avril Lavigne’s music. Don’t expect Ashlee to sound like sister Jessica. The younger Simpson works to distinguish herself from the reality TV queen. Ashlee likes fellow musicians: she dated singer/human porcupine Ryan Cabrera and is currently with Fall Out Boy’s Pete Wentz. During a performance on “Saturday Night Live,” Simpson’s vocal track screwed up, making it obvious that she was lip-syncing. For some reason, the naturally beautiful Ashlee Simpson had her chin, nose and lips surgically altered.

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Vanessa Carlton

     Vanessa Lee Carlton (born August 16, 1980) is an American soft rock/Piano pop singer, songwriter, and pianist best known for the Billboard top five, Grammy-nominated single “A Thousand Miles” from her debut album, Be Not Nobody which was released April 30, 2002, and certified platinum in the U.S.
     Alicia Keys’ Prog-ish counterpart, Carlton doesn’t have the name recognition as Keys, but she sure has the talent. Carlton began playing the piano as a toddler, taking lessons from her piano teacher mother. Her best known single is “A Thousand Miles” which came from her 2002 platinum selling debut “Be Not Nobody.” Carlton sang descant for the Counting Crow’s cover of Joni Mitchell’s “Big Yellow Taxi. Carlton’s fans refer to themselves as “nessaholics.”
     Carlton’s second album, Harmonium (released November 9, 2004), debuted at number thirty-three on the U.S. Billboard 200 and had sold 179,000 copies as of February 2006, with the single “White Houses, peaking at eighty-six in the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. She subsequently parted company from her record label A&M, though she still holds a dedicated fanbase.

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Britney Spears

     Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American pop singer and an actress. Spears has sold over 140 million records worldwide, of which are 89 million albums and over 52 million singles. The Recording Industry Association of America ranks her as the eighth best-selling female album artist in the American music history, having sold over 37 million albums in the U.S.
     Former Mouseketeer, Britney Spears has enjoyed a long reign as the undisputed Queen of Teen Beat. Britney began performing at age eight, making a bid for an eventual two-year spot on the Mickey Mouse Club. Britney Spears was born in Kentwood, Lou. On December 2. That makes her a Sagittarius. Spears made an appearance on “Star Search” in 1992, but lost during the second round. Spears married childhood friend Jason Alexander in Las Vegas in 2004. The marriage lasted a mere 55 hours.
     Spears released her debut album …Baby One More Time in 1999, resulting in an international success. It spawned the Billboard magazine-topping single “…Baby One More Time”. She released her second studio album Oops!… I Did It Again in 2000 with continued success. A third album Britney was released in 2001, followed by the release of her fourth album In the Zone in 2003. The album’s breakout single “Toxic” won Spears her first Grammy Award. After the release of a greatest hits collection, EP, and a remix album, she released her fifth album Blackout in 2007.

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