The child of NFL player Phillippi Sparks (formerly of the New York Giants and the Dallas Cowboys), the baby-faced belter grew up singing and doing children's theater. She got a string of gigs singing the national anthem at professional sporting events in her home state of Arizona, toured with CCM star Michael W. Smith and recorded an EP (2003's For Now) at age 13. Despite all her experience, Sparks did not initially make the cut when she auditioned for Idol in Los Angeles. She did, however, win the local Arizona Idol contest, which earned her the right to audition again in Seattle and, eventually, to become the youngest ever American Idol. Following her win, she toured with the other Idols and began work on her debut album. - Rachel Devitt]]> http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.13715349&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Alternative Christian Contemporary Wed, 21 Oct 2009 11:04:39 -0700 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.13715349 art.13715349 Britt Nicole art.13715349 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.13715349&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.13715349&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Say It, before she turned 21. Hit songs "You" and "Believe" followed before her track "Sunshine Girl" was featured on MTV's teen reality show Newport Harbor: The Real Orange County. In summer 2009, Britt released her sophomore disc, The Lost Get Found, filled with high-energy pop rooted in her faith.]]> http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.7330911&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Pop Fri, 11 Dec 2009 11:41:02 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.7330911 art.7330911 Katy Perry art.7330911 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.7330911&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.7330911&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss be gay, but she's certainly made her young career with coy, playful references to sexuality -- her own and her paramours'. The young Californian singer-songwriter first generated a heaping helping of online buzz in 2007 with "Ur So Gay," in which she accuses a disappointing boyfriend who "doesn't even like boys" of being, well, take a guess. Then, in 2008, she shot up the charts with the Sapphic sweet-talker "I Kissed a Girl." Kind of a surprising turn of events for the daughter of two pastors who wasn't allowed to listen to secular music as a kid and got her start in Christian music, releasing a 2001 album under then name Katy Hudson. Or maybe not -- if you believe the old saw about preacher's daughters and once you learn that Perry says her life changed when she discovered Queen as a teenager. By 2004, she'd worked with Glen Ballard (Alanis Morissette) and the Matrix (Avril Lavigne), been signed to Columbia and been hailed by the likes of Blender as the Next Big Thing! But nothing really clicked until she released her debut, One of the Boys, on Capitol in 2008 and got her gay on. - Rachel Devitt]]> http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.7375005&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Contemporary R&B Fri, 11 Dec 2009 11:41:02 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.7375005 art.7375005 Rihanna art.7375005 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.7375005&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.7375005&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Music of the Sun dropping a month later. But her big break came in 2006 with the release of the single "S.O.S." and the subsequent album A Girl Like Me. The single, which sampled Soft Cell's "Tainted Love," was one of the most critically acclaimed and commercially popular songs of that year. Though Rihanna had basically moved away from dancehall, she was moving toward a new aesthetic that married R&B, synth-pop and hip-hop. She continued in this direction with 2007's Good Girl Gone Bad, which featured the infectious singles "Umbrella" and "Shut Up and Drive." In early 2009, she was assaulted by then-boyfriend Chris Brown en route to a pre-Grammys party; that November, she released Rated R, a highly personal album with an unmistakable darkness. - Sam Chennault]]> http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.39830&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Motown Fri, 11 Dec 2009 11:41:04 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.39830 art.39830 The Jackson 5 art.39830 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.39830&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.39830&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.1835&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Latin Pop Fri, 11 Dec 2009 11:41:04 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.1835 art.1835 Shakira art.1835 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.1835&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.1835&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Pies Descalzados (1995), an album which showcased her bold, flexible voice and yielded a string of huge hits. Her mixture of rock ballads and Dance Pop (with an occasional tropical touch) is filtered through her image as a talented, beautiful and headstrong young woman. Departing from the traditional image of Latin American women, Shakira's music and persona aroused controversy when her multiplatinum records put her in the spotlight. Following in the footsteps of Selena, she represents a bold new Latina who will be neither obsequious nor silent. As Shakira has matured, so has her music, as demonstrated in songs such as the Arabic-inflected "Ojos Asi" as well as in her live performances. - Robert Leaver]]> http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.44122&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss '60s Oldies Fri, 11 Dec 2009 11:41:05 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.44122 art.44122 The Beach Boys art.44122 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.44122&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.44122&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Pet Sounds in May of 1966. In the liner notes of this orchestrated pop masterpiece, Wilson admits that his aim was to write a "teenage symphony to God." Generally hailed as the greatest rock 'n' roll album ever, Pet Sounds struggled to attain the commercial success of the band's earlier suburban hymns. Although the Beach Boys (as well as Brian Wilson) went on to make many more successful albums, they never came close to approximating the innovative genius and transcendent, childlike innocence that was Pet Sounds. - Eric Shea]]> http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.789&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Contemporary R&B Fri, 11 Dec 2009 11:41:04 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.789 art.789 Whitney Houston art.789 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.789&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.789&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss
As a child, Houston sang in her family's church choir. At 15 she began performing in her mother's nightclub act. While attending a Catholic high school, the lithe beauty signed with a modeling agency and posed for magazines including Glamour and Vogue. After graduating, she continued to model and sing, backing up Lou Rawls and Chaka Khan, then at 19 was spotted by Arista president Clive Davis &Number 8212; who had previously steered the careers of Warwick and Houston family friend Aretha Franklin &Number 8212; while giving a showcase in Manhattan. Davis signed Houston, and started choosing songs for her debut album, which featured duets with established stars Teddy Pendergrass (her first hit, "Hold Me") and Jermaine Jackson, and cost Arista an extraordinarily hefty sum of $250,000.

Released in 1985, Whitney Houston proved a worthwhile investment, shooting to Number One and generating the smash singles "You Give Good Love" (Number Three pop, Number One R&B, 1985), "Saving All My Love for You" (Number One pop, Number One R&B, 1985), "How Will I Know" (Number One pop, Number One R&B, 1985), and "Greatest Love of All" (Number One pop, Number Three R&B, 1986). Whitney solidified Houston's success, reaching Number One and spawning "I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me)" (Number One pop, Number Two R&B, 1987), "Didn't We Almost Have It All" (Number One pop, Number Two R&B, 1987), "So Emotional" (Number One pop, Number Five R&B, 1987), "Where Do Broken Hearts Go" (Number One pop, Number Two R&B, 1988), and "Love Will Save the Day" (Number Nine pop, Number Five R&B, 1988). Also in 1988, Houston recorded "One Moment in Time," NBC-TV's theme song for the Summer Olympics (Number Five pop). In 1989 she teamed up with Aretha Franklin on the Number Five R&B hit "It Isn't, It Wasn't, It Ain't Never Gonna Be."

In 1990 I'm Your Baby Tonight's title track topped the pop and R&B charts, as did "All the Man That I Need." There were more hits in 1991 — "Miracle" (Number Nine pop, Number Two R&B), "My Name Is Not Susan" (Number 20 pop, Number Eight R&B), and "I Belong to You" (Number 10 R&B) — but, peaking at Number Three, Baby proved disappointing after its predecessors. Houston bounced back in a big way, though, with the 1992 film The Bodyguard, in which she made her acting debut (as a singing star, opposite Kevin Costner), to mixed reviews and huge box office success. The movie's soundtrack — with six tracks sung by Houston — proved even more successful, hitting Number One and producing a monster single, Houston's cover of Dolly Parton's "I Will Always Love You" (1992), which remained at the top of the chart for an unprecedented 14 weeks, as well as a cover of Chaka Khan's 1978 hit "I'm Every Woman" (Number Four pop, Number Five R&B, 1993) and "I Have Nothing" (Number Four pop, Number Four R&B, 1993). In 1992 Houston married singer Bobby Brown; their first child, Bobbi Kristina, was born the next year.

Houston's next career move was to attempt to duplicate the success of the movie/soundtrack combination of The Bodyguard with 1995's black-female friendship film Waiting to Exhale, in which the singer costarred alongside Angela Bassett. The movie was popular with audiences, and resulted in a few more hit singles for Houston, most notably "Exhale (Shoop Shoop)" (Number One pop and R&B) and a duet with CeCe Winans, "Count on Me" (Number Eight pop, Number Seven R&B, 1996). In 1996 Houston starred with Denzel Washington and Courtney B. Vance in The Preacher's Wife, a box-office disappointment whose soundtrack nevertheless gave her another charting ballad, "I Believe in You and Me" (Number Four pop, Number Four R&B).

She tried the small screen in 1997, producing and playing the Fairy Godmother to Brandy's Cinderella in a Wonderful World of Disney remake of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella. In 1998 Houston released her first studio album since 1990, the uncharacteristic My Love Is Your Love (Number 13 pop, Number Seven R&B). Aside from a handful of ballads, including her Oscar-winning duet with fellow diva Mariah Carey, "When You Believe" (Number 15 pop, Number 33 R&B, 1998–99), from The Prince of Egypt, and the Diane Warren–penned torch song "I Learned From the Best" (Number 13 R&B, 1999), the album showcased a new, savvy street credibility that had previously come through only in Houston's later interviews and her private life with Brown. Hip-hop personalities and producers such as Wyclef Jean, Lauryn Hill, Rodney Jerkins, Missy Elliott, and Faith Evans collaborated with the vocalist on various tracks. The public still loved the new Whitney, giving her hits with the sultry "Heartbreak Hotel" (Number Two pop, Number One R&B), the kick-him-out anthem "It's Not Right But It's Okay" (Number Four pop, Number Seven R&B, 1999), and the reggae-inflected title track (Number Four pop, Number Two R&B, 1999).

While Houston was back in the spotlight, reports of her already notorious prima donna behavior became more prevalent in 1999 and 2000: She was often hours late for interviews, photo shoots, and rehearsals; canceled concerts and talk-show appearances; and in what would be the start of a string of tabloid stories questioning her state of mind, dodged arrest for marijuana possession at a Hawaii airport in January 2000 (charges were later dismissed). In the months that followed that incident, Houston was a surprising no-show at her mentor Clive Davis' induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and was allegedly booted out of Academy Awards rehearsals for an all-star tribute to Burt Bacharach. Rumors about her tumultuous marriage to Brown resurfaced, particularly when he was briefly imprisoned in mid-2000 for a parole violation. Yet Houston attempted to have the last laugh with a powerful performance at an Arista Records anniversary party that also served as a tribute to Davis, plus the release of a two-disc greatest-hits collection that equally highlighted her ballads and dance-club remixes and featured four new songs, three of which were duets with Deborah Cox, Enrique Iglesias, and George Michael

It turned out Houston had been struggling with a drug problem. After renewing her Arista contract with the biggest record deal in history ($100 million for a promise of six new albums), she performed on Michael Jackson's Thirtieth Anniversary television special looking thin and frail. The following year, Houston spoke frankly about her drug problems in a special edition of ABC's Primetime with Diane Sawyer that coincided with the release of her comeback album, Just Whitney (Number Three R&B/Hip-Hop, Number Nine pop, 2002). The album — which included production work by her husband, Missy Elliott and Babyface — was Houston's first work without the involvement of Davis. Just Whitney was not well received: critics bashed it, the singles failed to reach the Top Forty and sales of the album were lower than any of her previous works. She followed up with a holiday disc, One Wish: The Holiday Album (Number 14 R&B/Hip-Hop, Number 49 pop, 2002), which sold even fewer copies. In spring of 2004 Houston entered rehab for the first time; later that year, she toured as part of the Soul Divas along with her cousin Dionne Warwick and Natalie Cole. That September, Houston received a standing ovation when she sang a tribute to Davis at the World Music Awards. She and Davis subsequently announced they would be working together on a new album, although as of 2008 their plans had not yet materialized. Houston returned to rehab in 2005 and the following year filed for divorce from Brown (after some of the couple's trails and travails were aired on the MTV reality show "Being Bobby Brown" in 2005). In 2007 Davis reiterated that the two were working on a new album and had lined up a string of hip producers including John Legend and will.i.am. That April Houston's divorce from Brown was finalized with her winning sole custody of the couple's daughter. In December 2007 an apparently sober Houston performed an entire show before a crowd of 10,000 at the Live and Loud Festival in Malaysia. ]]> http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.9275895&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Teen Beat Fri, 27 Nov 2009 10:25:08 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.9275895 art.9275895 Jonas Brothers art.9275895 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.9275895&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.9275895&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss this brother trio is here to rock. And they don't do three-part harmony. New Jersey brothers Kevin, Joseph and Nicholas Jonas were 17, 16 and 13, respectively, when they released their debut album in 2006. They got their start when littlest bro Nicholas, in possession of a soulful prepubescent voice, finagled a solo record deal with Daylight/Columbia. When Columbia got wind that there were two other Jonas brothers who were just as cute and musically inclined, Nick's solo act quickly became a trio, with Kevin on guitar and Joe and Nick switching off on vocals, keyboards and percussion. Their first album was a collection of hyper, hook-driven pop-punk that got the attention of tweens across America. And that got the attention of Disney, which stuck them on a bazillion soundtracks and then released their sophomore effort in 2007, all before Nick was a sophomore. OK, sorry about that one. And sorry about the Hanson crack, too -- the brothers Jonas don't mind, anyway. They're so cool, they even made a joke comparing themselves to Hanson on their second album. - Rachel Devitt]]> http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.332&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Pop Fri, 11 Dec 2009 11:41:02 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.332 art.332 ABBA art.332 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.332&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.332&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.9557741&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Teen Beat Thu, 10 Dec 2009 10:52:48 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.9557741 art.9557741 Ashley Tisdale art.9557741 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.9557741&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.9557741&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss The Suite Life of Zach and Cody, where she plays the boys' babysitter. But Tisdale also has a recurring role on Kim Possible, is set to voice a lead character on the forthcoming Phineas and Ferb, and starred in Disney's made-for-TV-movie High School Musical, which garnered the network the highest ratings in its history.

Having conquered the small screen, Tisdale is now working towards an additional career in music--Disney-style, of course. She sings on two tracks from the triple-platinum High School Musical soundtrack and recorded a new version of The Little Mermaid's "Kiss the Girl." Finally, in 2007, she released Headstrong, her not-so-Disney debut solo album, followed in 2009 by Guilty Pleasure. - Rachel Devitt]]> http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.44063&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Funk Thu, 10 Dec 2009 10:52:26 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.44063 art.44063 Prince art.44063 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.44063&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.44063&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Purple Rain-crazed '80s, but that seems due more to bad publicity surrounding his tabloid lifestyle than his musical output. He can't hide the fact that he is an odd, fuzzy little man, but genius doesn't come in perfect packages. While legions of Prince's contemporaries crash and burn, he sits in his Minneapolis tower and continues to expand the boundaries of popular music. - Nick Dedina]]> http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.1244&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Contemporary R&B Fri, 11 Dec 2009 11:40:18 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.1244 art.1244 Usher art.1244 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.1244&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.1244&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Confessions, netted him three Grammys and sold 11 million copies worldwide. In the four years that followed Confessions' release, Usher found himself embroiled in a series of minor though widely publicized controversies surrounding his mother, who was also his manager until Usher "resigned her." This effectively kept the singer in the spotlight, and his 2008 single "Love in the Club," which promoted public sex, was a ubiquitous summer jam. The following album, Hear I Stand, didn't reflect much artistic growth, banking instead on the themes and sounds that have made Usher one of the world's biggest pop stars. - Kali Holloway]]> http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.6487951&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Pop Thu, 10 Dec 2009 10:52:49 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.6487951 art.6487951 Pussycat Dolls art.6487951 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.6487951&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.6487951&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss PCD, produced by industry heavyweights Timbaland and will.i.am. After Scherzinger flirted with a solo career that never quite took off, the Dolls regrouped for 2008's Doll Domination. - Philip Sherburne]]> http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.1969&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Adult Alternative Fri, 11 Dec 2009 11:40:13 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.1969 art.1969 Sting art.1969 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.1969&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.1969&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.48841&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Neo-Soul Thu, 10 Dec 2009 10:52:22 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.48841 art.48841 Alicia Keys art.48841 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.48841&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.48841&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Songs in a Minor, and subsequent singles have proven she's no one-hit wonder. She took home five Grammy Awards in 2002 (including Best New Artist and Song of the Year), and returned triumphantly with The Diary of Alicia Keys the following year, racking up more hit singles ("You Don't Know My Name," "If I Ain't Got You"), and winning four more Grammys. 2007's As I Am spawned the unstoppable "No One" and the Prince-infused "Like You'll Never See Me Again." One of the most talented and likeable R&B superstars in the game today, Keys shows no sign of slowing down anytime soon.]]> http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.27338258&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Dance Pop Wed, 25 Nov 2009 11:50:13 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.27338258 art.27338258 Kristinia DeBarge art.27338258 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.27338258&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.27338258&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.15525946&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Dancehall Tue, 8 Dec 2009 09:16:47 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.15525946 art.15525946 Sean Kingston art.15525946 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.15525946&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.15525946&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.2729&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Contemporary R&B Thu, 10 Dec 2009 10:52:49 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.2729 art.2729 Janet Jackson art.2729 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.2729&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.2729&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss
As a young child, Jackson was a tomboy who aspired to be a jockey. When she was seven, though, her father, Joseph, encouraged her to join her brothers — by then famous as the Jackson 5 — in their music and variety act. (Sister La Toya joined them for several shows in 1974; the following year, La Toya, eldest sister Rebbie, and brother Randy were all in on the act, while brother Jermaine bowed out.) Shows in Las Vegas resulted in a summer-replacement TV show in 1976 (on CBS), which led Janet to roles on the popular sitcoms Good Times and Diff'rent Strokes.

Next, Jackson secured a contract with A&M Records, and in 1982, while still managed and creatively guided by her father, she released a forgettable debut album, Janet Jackson. The album did yield a Number Six R&B single, "Young Love." Another TV role, on the series Fame, followed, as did another unremarkable album, 1984's Dream Street, and another R&B hit, "Don't Stand Another Chance" (Number Nine). Also in 1984, at the age of 18, Jackson defied her family by marrying singer James DeBarge, whose fledgling R&B sibling act DeBarge was being hyped as a successor to the Jacksons. The marriage was annulled after less than a year; but the seeds of Jackson's independence from the family dynasty, and her father in particular, were firmly planted.

Then John McClain, an A&M executive and family friend, suggested that Jackson work with Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis of the Time. Collaborating with these musician/writer/producers, Jackson recorded her breakthrough album, 1986's Control, which topped the pop and R&B album charts and spawned numerous hits: "What Have You Done for Me Lately" (Number Four pop, Number One R&B), "Nasty" (Number Three pop, Number One R&B), "When I Think of You" (Number One pop, Number three R&B), and, in 1987, "Control" (Number Five pop, Number one R&B), "Let's Wait Awhile" (Number Two pop, Number 1 R&B), and "The Pleasure Principle" (Number 14 pop, Number One R&B). Helping fuel these singles were Jackson's highly energized, elaborately staged videos, most of which featured movie-musical-inspired choreography by Paula Abdul, who was discovered by Jackie Jackson, Abdul's boyfriend during her L.A. Lakers cheerleading days.

Having asserted her adulthood and self-reliance with Control, by 1987 Jackson had dismissed her father as manager (as other siblings had done before her) before recording Rhythm Nation 1814. Control's successor dealt with larger social issues, like the need for tolerance, and found Jam and Lewis assuming more of the songwriting duties. (Years later, Jackson would also credit her boyfriend, Rene Elizondo Jr., for contributing ideas to many of her songs beginning with this album; it was known that he helped choreograph, and eventually directed, some of her videos.) Rhythm Nation hit Number One in the pop and R&B categories in 1989, and generated the smash singles "Miss You Much" (Number One pop and R&B) and, in 1990, "Rhythm Nation" (Number Two pop, Number One R&B), "Escapade" (Number One pop, Number One R&B), "Alright" (Number Four pop, Number Two R&B), "Come Back to Me" (Number Two pop, Number Two R&B), "Black Cat" (Number One pop, Number Ten R&B), and "Love Will Never Do (Without You)" (Number One pop, Number Three R&B). To promote the album, Jackson embarked on her first major tour, which matched the energy and spectacle of her videos.

In 1991 Virgin Records owner Richard Branson lured Jackson away from A&M with a contract worth more than $30 million. Her last original hit with A&M was a 1992 duet with Luther Vandross, "The Best Things in Life Are Free" (Number Ten pop, Number One R&B), recorded for the soundtrack to the film Mo' Money. In 1993 Jackson made her own movie debut as the heroine (opposite rapper Tupac Shakur) of director/screenwriter John Singleton's Poetic Justice, for which she received lukewarm reviews but an Oscar nomination for the song "Again."

That same year, Jackson's Virgin album janet. shot to the top of the pop and R&B charts, as did the single "That's the Way Love Goes." More Top 10 singles followed, including "If" (Number Four pop, Number Three R&B, 1993) and "Again" (Number one pop, Number Seven R&B, 1994). Her new material was just as confrontational, and more aggressively sexual, than her previous work had been; ditto for the accompanying tour, which featured Jackson in midriff-baring costumes, interacting suggestively with male dancers — indeed, more reminiscent of Madonna than Michael. While Janet's once squeaky-clean image wasn't shattered by scandal as her brother's was, it was clear by the early 1990s that the littlest Jackson was nobody's baby, and very much her own woman.

Jackson's status as a hitmaker led her to help her brother Michael regain some credibility by collaborating with him on the duet and elaborate video for "Scream" (Number Five pop, Number Two R&B) in 1995. The same year, she also had a solo hit with "Runaway" (Number Three pop, Number six R&B). She'd continue to please her fans with her next album, The Velvet Rope (Number One pop, Number Two R&B), in 1997. At times still sensual in nature — including a cover of Rod Stewart's seduction song "Tonight's the Night," without a change in the gender of the woman being sung to — much of the album had a melancholy feel and self-doubting lyrics. While doing interviews to promote the album and its tour, Jackson admitted to dealing with depression and long-standing self-esteem issues while working on the album. It did produce its share of hits, including "Got 'Til It's Gone" (Number Three R&B, 1997), based around a sample of Joni Mitchell's "Big Yellow Taxi" and featuring the rapper Q-Tip, "Together Again" (Number One pop, Number Eight R&B, 1997), and "I Get Lonely" (Number Three pop, Number 1 R&B, 1998), featuring the group BLACKstreet. In 1999 she enjoyed a hit with Busta Rhymes, "What's It Gonna Be?!," which hit the top of the R&B singles chart.

But Jackson's life wasn't everything it appeared to be. Fans were surprised when, in 2000, Jackson's longtime creative and romantic partner, Elizondo, filed for divorce from the singer after nine years of marriage. Although Elizondo was seen as a loving, stable presence in Jackson's life, it had not been public knowledge that the couple had ever married. Jackson explained that she'd wanted to protect the union from media scrutiny. Also in 2000 Jackson returned to acting, costarring with Eddie Murphy in Nutty Professor II: The Klumps, which featured Jackson's "Doesn't Really Matter" (Number One, 2000). The following year she released the double-platinum All for You (Number 1, 2001), featuring the Grammy-winning Number One title track, as well as "Someone to Call My Lover" (Number Three, 2001), which included a loop of America's "Ventura Highway," and "Son of a Gun (I Betcha Think This Song Is About You)," a Missy Elliott remix featuring the vocals of Carly Simon from her Seventies hit "You're So Vain."

On February 1, 2004, Jackson returned to the public eye with a halftime performance with Justin Timberlake at Super Bowl XXXVIII. The duet on his song "Rock Your Body" created huge controversy when the bustier Jackson was wearing tore open and exposed her right breast just as Timberlake sang the lyrics, "gonna have you naked by the end of this song." Jackson apologized for the incident, claiming it was a "wardrobe malfunction," and the three producers of the show — CBS, sister network MTV and the National Football League — all denied previous knowledge of the incident and abdicated responsibility for it. The display became the most-searched event in the history of the Internet, according to the Guinness World Records. And its ramifications were far-reaching. When Jackson declined to apologize to the network without claiming the incident was a wardrobe malfunction, she was denied a performance at the 2004 Grammy Awards. Record producer Jermaine Dupri, with whom Jackson had begun a relationship, resigned his position on the Grammy Awards committee. ABC stopped plans for Jackson to star in a made-for-television biopic on the life of Lena Horne when Horne expressed displeasure with the Super Bowl incident.

When Jackson's new album, Damita Jo (Number Two, 2004), arrived three months later, its highly sexual theme revealed what some interpreted to have been an elaborate marketing plan that began with the Super Bowl incident. In a soft-spoken remark at the end of the song "Sexhibition," Jackson says, "Relax, it's just sex." If it was a marketing ploy, though, it was a failure. Damita Jo produced no Top Forty pop singles — although "I Want You" reached Number 18 on the R&B/Hip-Hop chart — and MTV aired none of its video. The album also met with vicious reviews, one critic calling it "the aural equivalent of hardcore pornography."

Two years later, Jackson rebounded slightly with one of the least sexual albums of her career, 20 Y.O. (Number One R&B/Hip-Hop, Number Two pop, 2006). One of its singles, "Call on Me," a duet with rapper Nelly, sold moderately, charting respectably at Number 25 pop and Number One R&B/Hip-Hop, but other singles were less successful. However, when she appeared on the cover of US Weekly that June, the issue was the magazine's biggest seller ever. In late 2007 Jackson appeared alongside Tyler Perry in the film Why Did I Get Married?, which opened at Number One at the box office, grossing $55 million. With her Virgin Records contract fulfilled, Jackson moved to Island Records for 2008's Discipline, which topped both the pop and R&B/Hip-Hop album charts and produced a hit in its first single, "Feedback" (Number 19 R&B/Hip-Hop).]]> http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.56237&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Pop Thu, 10 Dec 2009 10:52:49 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.56237 art.56237 Justin Timberlake art.56237 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.56237&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.56237&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss The Mickey Mouse Club through his coming of age in the hugely popular boy band *NSYNC, Justin Timberlake became one of the 1990s' biggest heartthrobs, and everything from his romance with Britney Spears to his love of fast cars turned into headline fodder. Unlike so many ex-boy band boys before (and after) him, *NSYNC's most popular member managed to parlay his teen-idol status into credible adult stardom. And how: Two phenomenally successful albums and four Grammys into his solo career, Justin Timberlake is arguably the world's most celebrated pop star; his frequent collaborations with super-producers like the Neptunes and Timbaland and his undeniable knack for white-hot blue-eyed soul-pop have earned the respect of the hip-hop community, while his dreamy looks and wounded-puppy falsetto still make the little girls ... and their sisters ... and their mothers swoon. Wardrobe malfunctions? Messy breakups? JT skates past them all, a designer fedora cocked to one side. Not too shabby for a former child star from Millington, Tennessee, who got his start singing country (and losing) on Star Search. - Rachel Devitt]]> http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.8204&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Teen Beat Thu, 10 Dec 2009 10:52:49 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.8204 art.8204 Christina Aguilera art.8204 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.8204&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.8204&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss The New Mickey Mouse Club who hit it big with an innuendo-laden single, then traded in her implicitly not-so-good-girl image for an explicitly not-so-good-girl image. Where have we heard this one before? The child of an Ecuadorian-American father and a Caucasian mother, Christina Aguilera started her career as a professional performer at age ten with a 1990 appearance on Star Search. Her subsequent Mickey Mouse Club stint led to Disney using her "Reflection" on the 1998 Mulan soundtrack, and RCA released her self-titled debut in 1999. Dance-pop smashes like "Genie in a Bottle" and "What a Girl Wants" showcased her big voice, which, along with her Spanish-language version of the album (Mi Reflejo), set her apart from the late-'90s crowd of pop-star ingenues.

Yet Aguilera was still coming in second to Britney. Her appearance on the sexy 2001 remake of "Lady Marmalade" suggested a way into the spotlight. She radically altered her image for 2002's Stripped and became Xtina, widely mocked for her look even as her voice proved soulful and mature. But in 2006 she released the acclaimed Back to Basics, a tribute to the jazz and soul she says inspires her, and cemented her status as a grown-up diva. - Rachel Devitt]]> http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.40279&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Adult Alternative Fri, 11 Dec 2009 11:41:05 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.40279 art.40279 Avril Lavigne art.40279 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.40279&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.40279&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Let Go (Number Two, 2002), released when the Ontario singer was 17 years old, sold more than 6 million copies and earned the singer-songwriter eight Grammy nominations. Alongside "Complicated"(Number Two, 2002), the album included singles "Sk8r Boi"(Number 10, 2002) and "I'm With You"(Number Four, 2003), as well as the Number 64 "Losing Grip"(2003). Lavigne has affixed her on-cue snarl and Valley-girl-inspired vocal to pop culture's center ever since.

Lavigne was raised in Napanee, Ontario, and sang locally as a child and early teen while growing up in a Christian home. She signed with Arista Records at 16, leaving school and moving to New York to begin work on her debut. The hit-making songwriting/production trio the Matrix worked on "Complicated," which led Let Go to multiplatinum status, while the song's video helped turn the singer's tank-top-and-necktie look into a brief craze.

For her follow-up, Under My Skin (Number One, 2004), Lavigne worked with Evanescence member Ben Moody, Butch Walker, singer-songwriter Chantal Kreviazuk and her own touring guitarist Evan Taubenfeld on the songwriting. (One song Lavigne co-wrote, but was later cut from the album was "Breakaway," which became the title track of Kelly Clarkson's multiplatinum album of the same name.) The hits weren't as big, but Lavigne still charted solidly with "Don't Tell Me" (Number 22, 2004), "Nobody's Home" (Number 41, 2004), and relationship rant "My Happy Ending" (Number Nine, 2005). Ironically, Lavigne, who's been known to clash with the paparazzi, did find a happy ending, marrying fellow Canuck rocker Deryck Whibley of Sum 41 in July 2006.

The following year's The Best Damn Thing (Number One, 2007) was a return to the peppier Let Go style after the more somber Skin, yielding the chanty hit "Girlfriend" (Number One, 2007), which stayed in the Top 10 for about half a year and prompted a lawsuit from James Gangwer and Tommy Dunbar of power poppers the Rubinoos, who heard a more-than-superficial resemblance to their own 1979 song "I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend”; the suit was settled in January 2008. Other singles from the album — which featured production by Whibley, Walker, Levine, Rob Cavallo and Dr. Luke — included "Keep Holding On"(Number 17, 2007), "When You're Gone" (Number 24, 2007), and "Hot" (Number 95, 2007). ]]> http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.20554979&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Neo-Soul Sun, 6 Dec 2009 09:55:40 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.20554979 art.20554979 Adele art.20554979 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.20554979&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.20554979&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss 19. Inspired by great soul dames like Etta James and Billie Holiday and other singers such as Bjork, Jeff Buckley, Dusty Springfield and Jill Scott, Adele's sense of staggering, heartbreaking honesty and artistry are evidence of her superwoman resilience and everywoman experiences. - Angela Bruno]]> http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.7357835&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Adult Alternative Wed, 18 Nov 2009 13:05:22 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.7357835 art.7357835 Sara Bareilles art.7357835 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.7357835&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.7357835&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Little Voice, produced by Eric Rosse (best known for his long association with Tori Amos). The album enjoyed wide distribution, in part because it was as a song-of-the-day selection for Starbucks, a Seattle-based coffee franchise. - Nate Cavalieri]]> http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.17441732&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Neo-Soul Wed, 9 Dec 2009 10:53:42 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.17441732 art.17441732 Leona Lewis art.17441732 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.17441732&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.17441732&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss The X Factor and became a huge international pop star nearly overnight. Lewis began writing songs at 12 and winning local talent contests around London a few years later. Her big pipes earned her an instant following in the UK (here toothsome good looks probably didn't hurt either) before she even released her first single, "A Moment Like This," in December of 2006. That single set records by being downloaded over 50,000 times in 30 minutes and was followed the next year by her debut LP, Spirit, which had its songs and producers selected jointly by record moguls Simon Cowell and Clive Davis. - Nate Cavalieri]]> http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.4266&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Country Pop/Cosmopolitan Fri, 11 Dec 2009 11:41:03 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.4266 art.4266 Faith Hill art.4266 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.4266&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.4266&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.40203&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Adult Contemporary Fri, 27 Nov 2009 10:24:59 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.40203 art.40203 Lionel Richie art.40203 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.40203&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.40203&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Time, and again with Renaissance in '01, though neither album ignited much interest from the public. - Linda Ryan]]> http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.2310&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss AOR Sun, 6 Dec 2009 09:55:43 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.2310 art.2310 John Mellencamp art.2310 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.2310&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.2310&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Uh-huh, building with Scarecrow and then becoming fully realized with 1987's The Lonesome Jubilee, Mellencamp told stories of those on the fringes. While perhaps not as subtle as others, Mellencamp's message that all was not well in Regan's America powered him to the top of the charts and into political consciousness. In 1985, along with Willie Nelson and Neil Young, Mellencamp helped found the Farm Aid concert series that provides financial assistance to struggling farmers.]]> http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.20758801&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Teen Beat Thu, 10 Dec 2009 10:52:47 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.20758801 art.20758801 Selena Gomez art.20758801 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.20758801&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.20758801&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Barney and Friends before getting discovered by Disney and making the rounds on the Channel. After guest shots on several shows and TV movies (including Princess Protection Program with her BFF), she eventually got a starring gig on Wizards of Waverly Place. Like everyone in the Disney stable, however, Gomez is a double threat who also sings: She's recorded tracks for several of her acting projects and signed a deal with Disney's Hollywood Records in 2008. - Rachel Devitt]]> http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.6626436&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Electronica/Dance Tue, 8 Dec 2009 09:16:47 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.6626436 art.6626436 M.I.A. art.6626436 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.6626436&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.6626436&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Arular, was released in 2005. - Sarah Bardeen]]> http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.3785&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Adult Contemporary Fri, 11 Dec 2009 11:39:30 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.3785 art.3785 Bryan Adams art.3785 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.3785&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.3785&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.7093482&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Dance Pop Fri, 27 Nov 2009 10:25:04 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.7093482 art.7093482 Natasha Bedingfield art.7093482 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.7093482&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.7093482&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Unwritten embraced a diverse number of genres and is held together by Bedingfield's evident interest in pop songwriting (and much vaunted studies of psychology). 2008's Pocketful of Sunshine features a radio-friendly duet with the lovable Sean Kingston, and is Bedingfield's reentry back onto the American pop music radar. - Jamie Dolling]]> http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.35794&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Pop Thu, 10 Dec 2009 10:52:48 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.35794 art.35794 Nelly Furtado art.35794 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.35794&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.35794&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Whoa, Nelly!. Three years later, she issued the more reflective album, Folklore. Three years after that (and after giving birth to her daughter), Furtado took off in a completely different direction with Loose, a collection of sleek, sexy, hip-hop-infused dance pop (much of it, including the huge hit "Promiscuous," produced by Timbaland) aimed at conquering the top 40 -- which she certainly did. Another three years went by and it was time for -- you guessed it -- another new direction, this time with Mi Plan, a collection of Spanish-language pop. - Linda Ryan]]> http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.2498&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Blue-Eyed Soul Sun, 6 Dec 2009 09:55:35 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.2498 art.2498 George Michael art.2498 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.2498&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.2498&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Faith. Whereas in Wham! Michael used his cherubic good looks and uncanny knack for a melodic hook to create ingratiating but disposable pop, his solo work reveals an earnest effort to achieve deeper musical and emotional resonance. His radiant ballads, insidious dance tracks, and blue-eyed soul singing established him as a top international artist.

Michael's popularity never waned in the U.K. — all of his albums have reached either Number One or Number Two on the album charts there — but subsequent efforts have been able to match his early solo successes in the U.S. Michael's first post-Wham! outing was "I Knew You Were Waiting (for Me)," a duet with Aretha Franklin that hit Number One in 1987 and earned Michael a Grammy for Best R&B Performance by a Duo. Shortly afterward, Michael released the funky first single off Faith, "I Want Your Sex," which, bolstered by a sexy video, quickly soared to Number Two. The album would eventually spin off four Number One hits: "Faith" (1987), the shimmering "Father Figure" (1988), the romantic ballad "One More Try" (1988), and "Monkey" (1988). "Kissing a Fool" hit Number Five, further boosting the 14 million–selling Faith. 1988's smash album and Grammy winner for Album of the Year.

In his videos and media appearances, Michael cultivated a sex-symbol image, albeit a more rugged — leather, chin stubble, sneer — and mature one than he had nurtured in Wham! But with the release of his second solo effort, Listen Without Prejudice, Vol. 1, in 1990, Michael surprised fans and industry insiders by shunning the press and saying that he wouldn't make videos. The album peaked at Number Two nonetheless, and there was a chart-topping hit, the somber "Praying for Time" (Number One, 1990). The danceable second single, "Freedom 90" — whose lyrics spelled out Michael's decision to abandon his rock-star persona — went to Number Eight (1990) and was made into a video, albeit without Michael's presence. (Instead, a bevy of supermodels lip-synched his vocals.) In late 1991 Michael was back on the charts with a Number One version of Elton John's "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me," recorded live with John.

A year later, Michael announced that he would take legal action to terminate his contract with Sony Music, the corporation that took over his label, Columbia Records. He charged that Sony, still wishing to package Michael as a sex symbol, lacked respect for his artistic expression and that it only halfheartedly supported his projects benefiting AIDS research and prevention, among them his duet with Elton John and his three-track contribution to a compilation album called Red Hot + Dance. In 1993, Sony grudgingly granted Hollywood Records permission to release Five Live, an EP of two cover songs performed by Michael on his 1991–92 tour and three from his appearance at the Freddie Mercury tribute concert in 1992, during which he sang Queen songs with surviving members of that band. All proceeds from the record went to the Phoenix Trust, an AIDS charity set up in Mercury's memory.

In June 1994 a London court rejected Michael's claim that his contract with Sony amounted to "restraint of trade" and upheld the $12 million contract the singer had signed with the company in 1988. At the time, Michael owed the label six more albums on a contract that could run to 2003. Two months later, Michael filed an appeal of the verdict. As the legal battle continued, Michael was unable to release new product. Under a special arrangement, however, Michael performed his song "Jesus to a Child" on television as part of an annual appeal to raise funds for needy children. After hearing the six-minute song, listeners pledged $32,000 to the charity.

In 1995, though Michael lost the appeal he filed, he signed new contracts with DreamWorks in the U.S. and Virgin in the rest of the world. He released his first album of new material in six years, Older, in 1996 (Number Six), featuring "Jesus to a Child" (Number Seven) and the dance track "Fastlove" (Number Eight), but the release sold just 900,000 copies in the U.S.

Michael's profile was heightened again in 1998, but for a more notorious reason: In April of that year, he was arrested for lewd conduct in the men's room of a public park in Beverly Hills. Michael subsequently outted himself on CNN, and though the court fined him and ordered him to perform community service, he seemed somewhat relieved to reveal the truth to the media and his fans. That fall, he even set the scene for his video for "Outside" (one of two new songs from Ladies & Gentlemen: The Best of George Michael) in a public restroom; it featured dancing men dressed in leather and male actors portraying police officers kissing. Unfortunately, this was no joke to Michael's real-life arresting officer, who filed a lawsuit against him, claiming slander; the judge dismissed the case.

In late 1999 Michael put the embarrassing events of the previous year behind him with the release of Songs From the Last Century, an album of cover songs co-produced by Phil Ramone that ran the gamut from the Depression-era "Brother Can You Spare a Dime" to the Police's "Roxanne." In 2000 Michael participated in Equality Rocks, a concert in Washington, DC, organized by the Human Rights Campaign that highlighted the issue of gay rights.

Michael's next studio album, Patience (Number 12, 2004), achieved mild chart success overseas, but achieved its greatest notoriety in the U.S. with the inclusion of "Shoot the Dog," a tepid dance track whose video poked fun at Tony Blair and George H.W. Bush. A double-disc best-of, Twenty Five, followed in 2006. That same year, Michael launched an extensive European tour, his first in fifteen years. In September of 2008 Michael was again arrested in a public lavatory in London's Hampstead Heath area for drug possession. In a statement, an embarrassed Michael said: "I want to apologize to my fans for screwing up again, and to promise them I'll sort myself out. And to say sorry to everybody else, just for boring them."]]> http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.10268541&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Hitmakers Fri, 11 Dec 2009 11:41:05 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.10268541 art.10268541 Fergie art.10268541 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.10268541&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.10268541&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Blender and FMH. The runaway success of 2005's "My Humps" -- Fergie's meditation on female anatomy -- led to a solo career. Her 2006 album, The Duchess of York, was her debut. - Sam Chennault]]> http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.10366198&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss New Country Fri, 11 Dec 2009 11:41:03 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.10366198 art.10366198 Kellie Pickler art.10366198 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.10366198&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.10366198&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss American Idol. Pickler was eliminated from the competition early on during the show's fifth season, but she persevered, hitting post-Idol pay dirt with "Red High Heels" (Number 15 Country; Number 64 Pop, 2006) and the autobiographical "I Wonder" (Number 14 Country; Number 75 Pop, 2006).

She was born on June 28th, 1986, in Albemarle, North Carolina, to her then-18-year-old mother Cynthia Morton and father Clyde "Bo" Pickler, Jr. When the singer was two, her mother gave up her custodial rights, and Kellie was raised by her paternal grandparents in the nearby village of Palestine. (Pickler's hit song "I Wonder" ponders what her life would have been like had her mother not abandoned her.) In 2004, she graduated from North Stanly High School and sang LeeAnn Rimes' "On the Side of Angels" at her commencement ceremony. After school, she continued living with her grandfather while working at the Sonic Drive-In. That year, she also won the Miss Stanly County beauty pageant and competed in the Miss North Carolina contest.

In 2005, with the urging of her grandfather, she auditioned for American Idol in Greensboro, and made the cut. Inspired by Dolly Parton, Pickler lasted several rounds into the contest and was a favorite of Idol's curmudgeon judge, Simon Cowell. Although she was eliminated from before reaching the top, her country-bumpkin personality and Jessica Simpson-like ditzy humor charmed the show's fans and judges alike, and she signed a record deal with BNA Records, the label of country superstar Kenny Chesney. A week after her elimination from the contest, her father was released from prison, where he had served three years for aggravated assault.

Pickler's first album, Small Town Girl (Number One Country; Number Nine Pop, 2006), came out in October 2006 and sold 79,000 copies in its first week. Pickler's down-home and unpretentious personality has landed her on an array of TV shows, from prominent spots on The View and The Tonight Show With Jay Leno. In late 2007, she won a songwriter's award at the ASCAP Awards for "Red High Heels" and later, at the Country Music Awards show, received a standing ovation for her tearful performance of "I Wonder." Pickler's second album — which she says will include songs of a very personal nature about her rocky upbringing — is due out in 2008. ]]> http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.24048004&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Neo-Soul Wed, 9 Dec 2009 10:53:47 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.24048004 art.24048004 Anjulie art.24048004 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.24048004&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.24048004&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.1992&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Adult Alternative Thu, 10 Dec 2009 10:52:16 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.1992 art.1992 Seal art.1992 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.1992&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.1992&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Batman Forever hit "Kiss from a Rose") and 2007's System (which featured a duet with wife Heidi Klum). Like Sade, his fellow uni-named Brit, Seal takes long breaks between recordings, letting his hits build over time. - Rachel Devitt]]> http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.66964&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Dance Pop Fri, 11 Dec 2009 11:41:04 -0800 Top Pop Artists on Rhapsody Online art.66964 art.66964 Gwen Stefani art.66964 http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.66964&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss http://mp3.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.66964&variant=data&rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fpop%2Fartist-chart.rss Love Angel Music Baby and debuting a well-received fashion line called L.A.M.B.

The album found Stefani continuing to forge the friendship with hip-hop she began with her cameo on Eve's "Let Me Blow Ya Mind": many of the tracks featured fly hip-hop beats, provided by the likes of Dr. Dre, the Neptunes and Andre 3000. But the album also encompassed some of Stefani's other predilections, including Japanese culture and couture, embodied on both the tour and videos for Love Angel Music Baby by the Harajuku Girls. Stefani referred to the girls as her "imaginary" Japanese back-up dancers and named them (what else?) Love, Angel, Music and Baby, prompting comedienne Margaret Cho, who called the singer's performances a "minstrel show," and other critics to denounce Stefani as a racist.

Stefani's second album has yet to meet with the same explosive ire. The Sweet Escape, released in late 2006, once again pays hit-making, trend-setting tribute to Stefani's myriad passions, including dance pop, hip-hop, J-pop, Broadway musicals and her infant son (with Bush's Gavin Rossdale). - Rachel Devitt]]>