Shakira

Shakira is a singer, songwriter, musician, record producer, dancer, and philanthropist who emerged in the music scene of Colombia and Latin America in the early 1990s. Born and raised in Barranquilla, Colombia, Shakira revealed many of her talents in school as a live performer, demonstrating her vocal ability with rock and roll, Latin and Middle Eastern influences with her own original twist on belly dancing. Shakira is a native Spanish speaker and also speaks fluent English and Portuguese as well as some Italian, French and Arabic.
After commercial flops with local producers on her first two albums, and being little-known outside Colombia, Shakira decided to produce her own brand of music. In 1995 she released Pies Descalzos, which brought her great fame in Latin America and Spain, and her 1998 album ¿Dónde Están los Ladrones? was a critical success selling over 7 million copies worldwide. In 2001, aided by the worldwide success of her first English single "Whenever, Wherever" that became the best selling single of 2002, she broke through into the English-speaking world with the release of Laundry Service, which sold over 13 million copies worldwide. Four years later, Shakira released two album projects called Fijación Oral Vol. 1 and Oral Fixation Vol. 2. Both reinforced her success, particularly with the best selling song of the 2000s, "Hips Don't Lie".
She has won two Grammy Awards, seven Latin Grammy Awards, twelve Billboard Latin Music Awards and has been Golden Globe-nominated.
In the fall of 2009, Shakira released her sixth album She Wolf worldwide. Shakira's "Waka Waka (This Time for Africa)", was chosen as the official song for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The song has received generally positive critical reception, and has become a worldwide smash hit and the biggest selling World Cup song of all time. Her seventh studio album, the bilingual Sale el Sol, was released October 2010 and has shipped over 4 million copies worldwide.

Tags: dance, electronic, pop, pop rock, world

Ana Johnsson

Ana Johnsson born October 4, 1977 in Gothenburg, Sweden is a singer and songwriter. Her first longplay disc titled Cuz I Can was released in April 2004 in Sweden. The international version was retitled The Way I Am and was released some months later. Her second album Little Angel was released in October 2006.
In the issue of the magazine Inspire #31 from Iggesund the Swedish singer gave an interview where she said that she would take her big break moving to United States, take some time off, and start writing songs for a new album.

Tags: alternative rock, Modern rock, pop, pop rock, Rock

Sugarplum Fairy

Sugarplum Fairy is a pop-rock band from Borlänge, Sweden. The members took the name from a version of the Beatles' song "A Day in the Life" where John Lennon counts the song in by saying "sugar-plum-fairy, sugar-plum-fairy". Sugarplum Fairy was founded in 1998 by Victor and Carl Noren and Kristian Gidlund.
The band has released several demos before getting contracted in 2004, releasing the EP Stay Young, that received generally positive reviews. Later they released their first single, "Sweet Jackie", from their first full length album "Young & Armed" that was released later that year(September 29, 2004). The band toured heavily in Sweden, Japan and Germany, and released the debut album in different editions in both Japan and Germany in early 2005. In 2006 they put out their second record "First Round First Minute". They signed onto EMI Records in 2004.
Apart from their music, the band is also famous for the fact that the two singers in the band are brothers of Gustaf Norén, singer in Mando Diao.

Tags: indie, indie rock, pop rock

Boys Like Girls

Boys Like Girls is a rock band originally from Boston, Massachusetts. The band consists of Martin Johnson ( lead singer, rhythm guitar), Paul Digiovanni (lead guitarist), Bryan Donahue (bassist), and John Keefe (drummer). The debuted with their self-titled album, Boys Like Girls, and followed up with their hit album Love Drunk.

Tags: alternative rock, emo pop, pop punk, pop rock

Disco Curtis

Disco Curtis is an American pop rock band from Colleyville , Texas .
Disco Curtis formed during childhood, where a young Tanner Howe and AJ Novak first bonded over respectively playing piano and drums. As the two friends grew older, various band incarnations came and went, but upon bringing Garrett Perales (and later on Brendan Barone) into the band, the initial shape of Disco Curtis formed. They started to record demo tapes, produced by Geoff Rockwell, who has produced several Forever The Sickest Kids albums.
The band was named after a fellow disco legend and drummer named Curtis. The friend of the band, who also resides in the band's native Texas, used to perform with various disco artists throughout the 1970s, wearing a paper bag over his head. Decades later, he has become a mentor and a friend to Disco Curtis.
"We have known him for years," Howe explains. "When it came down to naming our band, Disco Curtis came to our head because we spent a lot of time with him last summer. He has been a big influence on us."
On September 10, 2010, AJ Novak, Garrett Perales, and Brendan Barone left Disco Curtis, leaving Tanner Howe as the only remaining member.

Tags: emo, indie rock, pop, pop rock, Rock

My Favorite Highway

With a sound that can be compared to The All-American Rejects, Third Eye Blind, and OneRepublic, My Favorite Highway’s upbeat and melodically driven pop rock has developed into something that the world of pop music hasn’t seen for a while.

Two cousins from Fairfax, VA, a suburb of Washington, D.C., Dave and Will Cook, formed the band in January of 2005. Members Bobby, Andrew, and Pat joined the band later on, completing the line-up. (Andrew left and created The Friday Night Boys later)

Great bands are defined by great songs; and in this age of constantly changing music industry, great songs are hard to come by. It is this group’s ability to compose great songs that will define their success. My Favorite Highway has set themselves apart from the mass of indie rock and trendy pop punk bands that occupy the modern rock scene. With a roster of excellent songs and a must-see live show under their belt My Favorite Highway shows unrivaled and unlimited potential that will leave listeners asking, “Where will this band be one year from now?”

On November 20th, My Favorite Highway announced they have signed to Virgin Records.

On September 1st, 2010, David Cook announced via Tumblr that My Favorite Highway was “a chapter in their lives that was coming to a close”.

Tags: indie rock, pop rock, powerpop, Rock

The Click Five

The Click Five is an American power pop band from Boston, Massachusetts. The original members, most of them students at Berklee College of Music, started on January 1, 2003 and played in various local venues. They then quickly got the attention of talent scout Wayne Sharp (who had worked with the power pop group 'Candy'). The Click Five made their first recording, a two-song demo session, in early 2004 after successful local touring. They released their debut album Greetings from Imrie House in 2005. After vocalist Eric Dill left the group and was replaced by Kyle Patrick who debuted on their second album Modern Minds and Pastimes in 2007. Their third album is TCV.
The band were initially known for their infectious power pop songs and for their Mod-based public image, involving sharp-looking suits and ties coupled with moptop haircuts, which is deliberately reminiscent of The Beatles. They prefer to classify their music as 'new school power pop'. In total, the band has sold two million albums worldwide and have created eight number one singles in seven different nations.

Tags: alternative rock, pop rock, Power pop, Rock