ങ NSYNC, No Strings Attached|I Want U Back|Tearing Up My..|God Must Have Spent..|I Drive Myself Crazy|Music Of My Heart|Bye Bye Bye|It's Gonna Be..|

'N Sync' (often stylized *NSYNC) was an American pop group. The group's launch to fame was financed by the boy band mogul Lou Pearlman. Since 1995, 'N Sync has sold over 56 million records worldwide. Formed in Orlando, Florida in 1995 and launched in Germany in 1996 by BMG Ariola Munich, the group consisted of Justin Timberlake, JC Chasez, Lance Bass, Joey Fatone and Chris Kirkpatrick. The name is derived from the last letter of the members names: Justi-N, Chri-S, Joe-Y, Lanste-N (though originally the 'N' came from an original member named Jason before he was replaced by Lance), J-C.

After heavily publicized legal battles with their former manager Lou Pearlman and former record label Sony BMG, the group's 3rd album No Strings Attached sold 1.1 million copies in one day and 2.4 millon copies in one week, giving it the highest first week album sales ever in US and #5 worldwide. In addition to a host of Grammy nominations, 'N Sync has performed at the Academy Awards, the World Series, the Super Bowl and the Olympics, and sang or recorded duets with the likes of Aerosmith, Mary J Blige, Britney Spears, Nelly, Michael Jackson, The Jackson Five, Stevie Wonder, Celine Dion, and Gloria Estefan. The group also appeared as themselves on The Simpsons, in an episode entitled "New Kids on the Blecch", which aired on February 25, 2001.

After being signed to BMG Ariola Munich, the group was sent to Germany to begin working on their debut album with the help of producers, including Denniz Pop and Max Martin. The album's official lead single, "I Want You Back", was released in Germany on October 7, 1996 and became a top 10 hit in Germany. With a record deal finally secured, the boys began touring first in German speaking countries and later in other European territories. Their self-titled debut album was initially released by BMG Ariola Munich on March 26, 1997 in Germany, peaking at number one in its first week of release, and the group soon became an overnight success throughout much of Europe. The album also charted successfully both in Switzerland and Austria.

The group released their second and third single, "Tearin' Up My Heart" and "Here We Go", both reaching the top ten in Europe. The group captured the attention of Vincent DeGiorgio, an A&R rep for RCA Records. After seeing the group perform in Budapest, they were eventually signed to RCA in 1998. The label had the group record some new tracks to adjust their album for the U.S. market.

'N Sync's 1998 hit, 'Tearin' Up My Heart' was also featured as #30 on VH1's "100 Greatest Songs of The 90's" in 2007, nine years later. On November 10, 1998, the group released a holiday album, Home for Christmas. The album peaked at #7 and sold over 2 million copies. With this, 'N Sync achieved the rare feat of having two albums in the Billboard Top 10 at the same time. The group scored their first top 10 on the Hot 100 with their third single, "God Must Have Spent A Little More Time on You", which peaked at #8 in February 1999. Country group Alabama later re-recorded the song and released it as a single that featured vocals from 'N Sync.

The fourth and final single from the album, "I Drive Myself Crazy", was a modest chart hit, but a mainstay on TRL. In September 1999 the group collaborated with Gloria Estefan on a song for the soundtrack for her movie, Music of the Heart. The track, "Music of My Heart", reached #2 on Billboard's Top-100 single chart and served as a stopgap between album releases.

With their legal woes behind them, 'N Sync refocused and worked on tracks for their second album. In January 2000, the group released "Bye Bye Bye", an upbeat dance track, which shot into the top 5 of the Hot 100 and would spend 5 weeks atop the Hot 100 Airplay chart. The song is often considered the group's signature song. They performed at the Latin Grammy show in 2001 singing the Spanish version of their song, This I Promise You, "Yo Te Voy A Amar."

The accompanying album, No Strings Attached, was released on March 21, 2000. It sold a record 2.4 million in its first week of release. An estimated 1.1 million of those sales were attributed to the first day of release, another record. By the end of 2000, it had sold over 9.9 million copies, a record for most albums ever sold in a single year. No Strings Attached is currently the eighth best selling album of the SoundScan era which received a Diamond Certification from RIAA for sales of over 11,099,000. The album also broke the Amazon sales records. Their second single, "It's Gonna Be Me", became the group's first #1 single in US.

The third and final single, "This I Promise You" reached the Top-5 on Billboard's Top-100 single chart. The group also embarked on a World No Strings Attached Tour that year. The group's third album, Celebrity, released on July 24, 2001, holds the record for the second-highest first full week of sales. The album produced three singles: "Pop" (#19 US), "Gone" (#11 US) and "Girlfriend" (#5 US). While 'N Sync announced a "temporary hiatus" in spring 2002, the band has not recorded new material since. The group's official website shut down in summer of 2006, and in 2007, Lance Bass confirmed that the group has "definitely broken up." [wikipedia]

ങ MURRAY HEAD, Jesus Christ Superstar|Say It Ain't So Joe|One Night In Bangkok|Une Femme Un Homme|

Murray Head (born Murray Seafield Saint-George Head, 5 March 1946, London ) is an English actor and singer, most recognized for his hit song, "One Night in Bangkok". Head was born to Seafield Head, a documentary-maker, and Helen Shingler, an actress. Head was educated at the Lycée Français Charles de Gaulle in South Kensington, London and Hampton School in Hampton, London.

Head began acting and writing songs as a child, and by the mid 1960s he had a London based recording contract. He had limited success until asked by Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber to play Judas Iscariot on the original concept album version of Jesus Christ Superstar (singing the hit "Superstar").

Head won a leading role in the Oscar nominated film, Sunday Bloody Sunday (1971), alongside Peter Finch and Glenda Jackson. Despite these successes, he received little public attention in the next ten years (except for his single release, "Say It Ain't So Joe" in 1975).

Head reappeared in the spotlight in 1984, as the American on the concept album for the musical, Chess. The song "One Night in Bangkok", from Chess, featured Head on lead vocal, and became the last significant Broadway/West End number to be a hit on American and German radio up until "No Matter What" by Boyzone in 1996. "One Night in Bangkok" was a major pop hit on both sides of the Atlantic.

After "One Night in Bangkok", Head had little recording success in the UK or The United States. This fact would later be underscored in a radio segment featured on The Kevin and BeanShow on Los Angeles's KROQ FM, in which the hosts would phone Head in the morning to find out "What's up with Murray Head?" But, fluent in French, he has released a number ofalbums in that language and is more popular in France and Canada. Noticeably, the song "Une femme un homme", a duet with Marie Carmen released in 1993 became a radio hit in French-speaking Canada. [wikipedia]

ങ MC HAMMER, Let's Get It Started|Pump It Up|Turn This Mutha Out|They Put Me In The Mix|Have You Seen Her|Pray|2 Legit 2 Quit|

Stanley Kirk Burrell (born March 30, 1962), best known by his stage names MC Hammer, Hammer and Hammertime, is a rapper, entertainer and dancer most popular during the late 1980s until the mid-1990s. Remembered for a rapid rise to fame before losing a majority of his fortune, he is also known for his successful hit records, flamboyant dance techniques and trademark Hammer pants.

As a legendary icon in pop culture, Hammer was considered a forefather and innovator of pop rap, but due to his mainstream appeal since the late 1980s, Hammer would later be considered a sell-out rapper by many due in part to over-exposure and as a result of him changing to a grittier image as the landscape of rap changed. Nonetheless, BET ranked Hammer as the #7 "Best Dancer Of All Time". While his talent may be denied, disputed and debated, "Vibe Presents The Best Rapper Ever Tournament" declared Hammer the 17th most favorite of all-time during the first round.

Prior to his mainstream career and "rags-to-riches-to-rags-and-back saga", Hammer formed a Christian rap music group known as Holy Ghost Boy(s), producing songs called "Word", "B-Boy Chill" and later releasing "This Wall" (it was within the lyrics of this song that Kirk Burrell - or "K.B." - first identified himself as M.C. Hammer) with CCM's Jon Gibson (or "J.G."). This rap hit appeared on Gibson's album Change of Heart, and "Son of the King" showed up on Hammer's debut album Feel My Power (1987), as well as the updated version Let's Get It Started (1988).

Once signed to Capitol Records, Hammer re-issued his first record with additional tracks added. "Pump It Up", "Turn This Mutha Out", "Let's Get It Started" and "They Put Me in the Mix" were the most popular singles from this album which all charted. But not quite satisfied with this first multi-platinum success, Hammer's music underwent a metamorphosis, shifting from the standard rap format in his upcoming album. The fact that the record has reached this level indicates the genre is growing."

Notorious for dissing rappers in his previous recordings, Hammer appropriately titled his third album (and second major-label release) Please Hammer, Don't Hurt 'Em, which was released January 1, 1990. It was produced, recorded, and mixed by Felton Pilate and James Earley on a modified tour bus (while on tour) in 1989. Interestingly, despite heavy airplay and a #27 chart debut, "U Can't Touch This" stopped at #8 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart due to the fact that it was released only as a twelve-inch single. However, the album was a #1 success for 21 weeks, due primarily to this single, the first time ever for a rap recording on the pop charts.

Follow-up successes included "Have You Seen Her" (a cover of the Chi-Lites) and "Pray" (a beat sampled from Prince's "When Doves Cry" and Faith No More's "We Care a Lot"), which was his biggest hit in the US, peaking at #2. "Pray" was also a major UK success, peaking at #8. The album went on to become the first hip-hop album to earn diamond status, selling more than 18 million units to date. During 1990, Hammer toured extensively in Europe which included a sold-out concert at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham. With the sponsorship of PepsiCo, PepsiCo International CEO Christopher A. Sinclair went on tour with him during 1991.

A video for the title song was also produced, featuring many celebrity appearances. "2 Legit 2 Quit" has been ranked as one of the most expensive videos ever made. The song proved to be successful in the U.S., peaking at the Top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100, at #6. The hand motions used within the song and video also became very popular.

Known for his thrilling stage shows, amazing dance talent, catchy pop hits, spectacular choreography performances, flamboyant wardrobe, community outreach commitment and energetic personal style, MC Hammer was not only nominated for his dancing and choreography skills, but is the winner of a multitude of awards including three Grammy Awards, eight American Music Awards, a People's Choice Award, an NAACP Image Awards and the prestigious Billboard Diamond Award. He has sold more than 50 million records, breaking down numerous doors for rap music and demonstrating that hip-hop had the potential for blockbuster success. The International Album of the Year validated Hammer's talent as a world-class entertainer. Additionally, Hammer was also honored with a Soul Train Music Award (Sammy Davis, Jr. Award for Entertainer of the Year) in 1991. [wikipedia]