Posts Tagged ‘Artist Of The Day’

Slipknot

Saturday, January 3, 2009 14:11 No Comments

Slipknot’s mix of grinding, post-Korn alternative metal, Marilyn Manson-esque neo-shock rock, and rap-metal helped make them one of the most popular bands in the so-called nu-metal explosion of the late ’90s. But even more helpful was their theatrical, attention-grabbing image: the band always performed in identical industrial jump suits and homemade Halloween masks, and added [...]

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Elvis Presley

Friday, January 2, 2009 14:08 No Comments

Elvis Presley may be the single most important figure in American 20th century popular music. Not necessarily the best, and certainly not the most consistent. But no one could argue with the fact that he was the musician most responsible for popularizing rock & roll on an international level. Viewed in cold sales figures, his [...]

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The Spice Girls

Thursday, January 1, 2009 13:57 No Comments

Spice Girls were the first major British pop music phenomenon of the mid-’90s to not have a debt to independent pop/rock. Instead, the all-female quintet derived from the dance-pop tradition that made Take That the most popular British group of the early ’90s, but there was one crucial difference. Spice Girls use dance-pop as a [...]

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Michael Jackson

Wednesday, December 31, 2008 13:53 No Comments

Michael Jackson was unquestionably the biggest pop star of the ’80s, and certainly one of the most popular recording artists of all time. In his prime, Jackson was an unstoppable juggernaut, possessed of all the tools to dominate the charts seemingly at will: an instantly identifiable voice, eye-popping dance moves, stunning musical versatility, and loads [...]

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Van Halen

Tuesday, December 30, 2008 14:01 No Comments

With their 1978 eponymous debut, Van Halen simultaneously rewrote the rules of rock guitar and hard rock in general. Guitarist Eddie Van Halen redefined what electric guitar could do, developing a blindingly fast technique with a variety of self-taught two-handed tapping, hammer-ons, pull-offs, and effects that mimicked the sounds of machines and animals. It was [...]

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Wynonna Judd

Monday, December 29, 2008 14:05 No Comments

As one half of the Judds, Wynonna Judd became one of the most popular and respected female country stars of her time. On her own since the early ’90s, Judd demonstrated an eclecticism that increasingly confounded hardcore country fans and radio programmers but also helped her retain a core of admiring followers. Her solo records [...]

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Bush

Sunday, December 28, 2008 13:54 No Comments

Led by guitarist/vocalist Gavin Rossdale, Bush became the first post-Nirvana British band to hit it big in America. Of course, they became a hit by playing by the grunge rules — they had loud guitars, guttural vocals, stop-start rhythms, and extreme dynamics. Formed in late 1992 by Rossdale, Bush landed an American record deal before [...]

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DMX

Saturday, December 27, 2008 14:02 No Comments

Following the deaths of Tupac Shakur and the Notorious B.I.G., DMX took over as the reigning, undisputed king of hardcore rap. He was that rare commodity: a commercial powerhouse with artistic and street credibility to spare. His rapid ascent to stardom was actually almost a decade in the making, which gave him a chance to [...]

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A Tribe Called Quest

Friday, December 26, 2008 13:51 No Comments

Without question the most intelligent, artistic rap group during the 1990s, A Tribe Called Quest jump-started and perfected the hip-hop alternative to hardcore and gangsta rap. In essence, they abandoned the macho posturing rap music had been constructed upon, and focused instead on abstract philosophy and message tracks. The “sucka MC” theme had never been [...]

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Jagged Edge

Thursday, December 25, 2008 13:37 No Comments

Rough-but-smooth male vocal quartet Jagged Edge formed in Atlanta, consisting of identical twin brothers Brandon “Case Dinero” Casey and Brian “Brasco” Casey, who had moved from their native Hartford, CT; Kyle Norman (aka “Quick”), whom they’d met through church activities; and Richard Wingo (aka “Wingo Dollar”), a late addition to the group suggested by Xscape’s [...]

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Kurtis Blow

Wednesday, December 24, 2008 13:49 No Comments

As the first commercially successful rap artist, Kurtis Blow is a towering figure in hip-hop history. His popularity and charisma helped prove that rap music was something more than a flash-in-the-pan novelty, paving the way for the even greater advances of Grandmaster Flash and Run-D.M.C. Blow was the first rapper to sign with (and release [...]

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Faith Hill

Tuesday, December 23, 2008 13:43 No Comments

One of the biggest female country stars of the ’90s and 2000s, Faith Hill also took advantage of the inroads Shania Twain made into pop territory, becoming an enormous crossover success by the end of the millennium. Of course, Hill’s movie star good looks certainly helped her cause, and her much-celebrated marriage to fellow country [...]

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DJ Kool

Monday, December 22, 2008 13:41 No Comments

A fusion of feel-good go-go music with hip-hop’s original block-party aesthetic led DJ Kool to the fore in rap’s return to the old school during the late ’90s. A veteran of D.C.’s go-go circuit who worked as a warm-up DJ for Rare Essence during the early- to mid-’80s, Kool began recording in 1988 and early [...]

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Twista

Sunday, December 21, 2008 13:39 No Comments

Chicago rapper Twista made his recording debut on “Po Pimp,” a platinum single by his fellow Windy City rappers Do or Die. Following “Po Pimp,” Twista signed with Big Beat/Atlantic and released his debut, Adrenaline Rush, in the summer of 1997. Mobstability followed a year later, and in 1999 Twista returned with Legit Ballin’. In [...]

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D’Angelo

Saturday, December 20, 2008 13:32 No Comments

D’Angelo was one of the founding fathers and leading lights of the neo-soul movement of the mid- to late ’90s, which aimed to bring the organic flavor of classic R&B back to the hip-hop age. Modeling himself on the likes of Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, Prince, Curtis Mayfield, and Al Green, D’Angelo’s influences didn’t just [...]

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