RB singer Cassie got her first taste of the music industry at 16 when she had the opportunity to speak with the producer Rockwilder a meeting that inspired her to take formal voice lessons This decision paid off nicely later on when after shed gradua…

Atlanta rap foursome Dem Franchize Boyz are purveyors of their own self-described style of "laid back crunk"--or "snap music" as it's often known--a woozier, less hyperactive version of the popular southern rap genre. Just how laid back the club get…

Fergie fits in between a diminishing trance scene and the radical advent of UK garage with an uncomplicated take on hard house ethics Beginning his DJ career at the age of 14 and taken through the clubland ranks with the help of Tony De Vit Fergie ma…

Pop-oriented RB vocalist Chris Brown debuted with the Scott Storch-produced Run It and became the first male solo artist to release a single that went straight to the top of the Billboard singles chart Only 16 at the time Brown came from a small town…

Songwriter arranger and vocalist Ne-Yo -- born Shaffer Smith -- was born in Arkansas and raised in Las Vegas NV His start in the music industry came as a songwriter Prior to exiting his teenage years he penned material for Youngstown and broke throug…

Along with fellow Harlem-based player Camron Jim Jones founded the Diplomat label home to the DiplomatsDipset and many of that crews prolific solo activities Though more of a businessman and behind-the-scenes figure than an MC he was also named a dir…

Atlanta-based Young Jeezy originally planned on having a background role in the music industry -- as a businessman not as a rapper Years before making his first Def Jam album -- Lets Get It Thug Motivation 101 released in July 2005 -- he set up Corpo…

A discovery of pop-punk superstars Fall Out Boy, the Las Vegas emo band Panic! At the Disco (named for a Smiths song), stormed the charts in 2005 while its members were barely old enough to vote. Offering a highly danceable take on the emo formula of…