 | | Before she could utilize her talents for her own solo endeavors, R&B singer, vocal arranger, and songwriter Keri Hilson wrote a slew of songs, many of them chart-toppers, for several popular artists in the mid-2000s as part of the five-person production/songwriting team known as the Clutch. |
 | | Cuban-American Christina Milian was born in New Jersey but raised in Maryland, making her debut as an actress at a very young age while playing a role in a children-oriented musical, working as junior journalist for The Walt Disney Company, and making guest appearances on Sister Sister and Clueless, among other popular TV shows. |
 | | Dubbed "the First Lady of Crunk & B" by the producer who should know, Lil Jon, singer Ciara burst onto the scene with the never-gonna-get-it single "Goodies," the breathy "answer song" to Petey Pablo's "Freek-a-Leek. |
 | | R&B 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. |
 | | Destiny's Child rose to become one of the most popular female R&B groups of the late '90s, eventually rivaling even TLC in terms of blockbuster commercial success. |
 | | One of the most recognizable characters in modern-day R&B, Beyoncé first rose to fame as the siren-voiced centerpiece of Destiny's Child before embarking on a multi-platinum solo career in 2001. |
 | | Kelly Rowland rose to fame with the success of Destiny's Child during the late '90s. During that time, Destiny's Child catapulted into the new millennium as one of the best-selling female musical groups in history. |
 | | The best-selling female performer of the 1990s, Mariah Carey rose to superstardom on the strength of her stunning five-octave voice. |
 | | Barbadian pop singer Shontelle (born Shontelle Layne) gained notice as the songwriter behind Alison Hinds' "Roll It Gal," a hit in her native country. |
 | | b. William Ray Norwood Jnr., 17 January 1981, McComb, Mississippi, USA. The younger brother of R&B vocalist Brandy, Ray J broke into the world of entertainment at an early age. |
 | | Rihanna established her dance-pop credentials in summer 2005 with her debut smash hit, "Pon de Replay," and continued to demonstrate hit potential in subsequent years (e. |
 | | Founded by choreographer Robin Antin in 1995, the Pussycat Dolls began as a burlesque dance revue based in Los Angeles, spawned a second revue in Las Vegas, grew into an A-list phenomena with a revolving cast of guest celebrities, and eventually became a recording act with a number one dance hit. |
 | | Ne-Yo was one of the most successful songwriters and artists of the 2000s. His breakthrough didn't come until late 2004, as the co-songwriter of Mario's "Let Me Love You," a number one Hot 100 hit that Billboard later determined to be the eighth most successful single of the decade. |
 | | Eve was one of a new breed of tough, talented, commercially viable female MCs to hit the rap scene during the late '90s. |
 | | By mixing R&B with a sultry dose of neo-soul, Alicia Keys became an international star in 2001 with the release of her debut album. |
 | | Harlem-bred vocalist Kelis left her parents' home at 16 and landed a deal with Virgin four years later. |
 | | Identical twins Natalie and Nicole Albino came up with the name Nina Sky by combining the first two letters of their first names for "Nina" and tacked "Sky" on the end to represent their shared aspirations. |
 | | Justin Timberlake may be the quintessential pop star of the new millennium, a star who jumped from platform to platform on his way to establishing himself as something bigger than a star: he was a self-sustained empire. |
 | | Whether she was singing pop-friendly urban soul or acting in her own family-oriented sitcom, Brandy's winningly wholesome persona helped catapult her to stardom during her teenage years. |
 | | No female rap artist paralleled the success of Missy Elliott, neither during her reign nor before, and none was more deserving. |
 | | Growing up on the outskirts of Boston, MA, JoJo listened and learned as her mother practiced hymns. She started singing by imitating her mother, but quickly put her own spin on everything from nursery rhymes to pop tunes. |
 | | Born and raised in Baltimore, MD, R&B vocalist Mario started to develop his natural talent while singing along with his mom using a karaoke machine at home. |
 | | After Usher Raymond was spotted by a LaFace record executive at a talent show in his hometown of Atlanta, it took no time for his career to take off. |
 | | Actress/singer Jennifer Lopez was born in the Bronx, New York, on July 24, 1969; after starting out in musical theater as a child, she made her film debut at age 16 in the little-seen My Little Girl, but her career then stalled until she was tapped to become one of the dancing "Fly Girls" on the television sketch comedy series In Living Color. |
 | | In November 2005, Chris Brown’s Scott Storch-produced “Run It!” -- a rewrite of Usher’s “Yeah!” -- topped the Billboard Hot 100, making the 16-year-old singer the first male artist in over a decade to top the chart with a debut single. |
 | | Although Trey Songz loved hip-hop while growing up, the only R&B he could get into was R. Kelly. When his friends heard his perfect tenor voice, however, they pushed him to drop rap and start crooning. |
 | | Dancehall superstar Sean Paul began scoring hit singles in Jamaica in 1996 and steadily attracted international attention thereafter, eventually breaking into the pop mainstream in 2002 with Dutty Rock. |
 | | One of the more genuine urban songstresses to emerge in the 2000s, Keyshia Cole worked her way up the industry ladder diligently yet quickly, making her major-label debut in 2004 at age 21. |
 | | A leader in the parade of Mickey Mouse Club veterans who stormed pop at the turn of the millennium, Christina Aguilera was the sexy, brassy diva of the bunch -- the Rolling Stones to Britney Spears’ Beatles, as it were. |
 | | R&B singer/songwriter and producer Terius Youngdell Nash, better known as the-Dream, was born in Rockingham, North Carolina, but moved to Atlanta, Georgia, with his mother at the age of three. |
 | | Like Martika, Jennifer Love Hewitt, and Rahsaan Patterson, Stacy "Fergie" Ferguson got her first major break as a youngster on the television program Kids Incorporated. |
 | | With hitmaker Irv Gotti at the helm, Ashanti blasted into the urban music scene in 2002, topping the charts with multiple singles at once. |
 | | A star in the R&B world before she was even out of her teens, Aaliyah's promising career was tragically cut short by her death in a plane crash at age 22. |
 | | Timbaland ascended to the top of the pop industry in the late '90s, impressively balancing his in-demand hitmaking abilities with his outlandish production style. |
 | | Able to rap, sing, and write songs that had everyone from John Legend to Roots Manuva singing her praises, Estelle Swaray got her start in London's renowned hip-hop record store Deal Real. |
 | | A self-proclaimed product of his past, rapper Sean Kingston's history helps describe his sound. Born in Miami, FL, then raised in Kingston, Jamaica, from the age of six, he mixed more than a little dancehall and reggae into his hip-hop. |
 | | B2K lead vocalist Omarion (born Omari Ismael Grandberry) went solo in 2005 with O, featuring production help from the Neptunes, Rodney Jerkins, and the Underdogs. |
 | | Singer, songwriter, and producer Miguel (born Miguel Jontel Pimentel) spent a handful of years behind the scenes and flirted with the mainstream before he released his first hit single and became one of pop-R&B's most significant artists. |
 | | With a sound somewhere between 112 and an urban *NSYNC, the vocal group Day26 formed during the fourth season of MTV's Making the Band. |
 | | British R&B singer/songwriter Jay Sean is notable for being one of the first British-Asian crossover stars and also for his international popularity, including five consecutive Top 40 singles in America. |
 | | TLC were one of the biggest-selling female R&B groups of all time, riding a blend of pop, hip-hop, and urban soul to superstardom during the '90s. |
 | | Born and bred on Chicago's South Side, R&B singer Jeremih taught himself how to play several instruments and didn't consider himself a vocalist until a warmly received performance at a talent show. |
 | | R&B vocalist Lloyd topped BET's play list singing a steamy duet with Ashanti, but he got his first spins on the anything-but-steamy Radio Disney. |
 | | Jumping onto the airwaves at 17, Lil Mama cleared a wide path for herself with the major radio hit "Lip Gloss" in early 2007. |
 | | Jordin Sparks may have been the youngest American Idol when she won the title on the reality show's sixth season, but the Glendale, AZ, resident had already packed plenty of accomplishments into 17 years. |
 | | R&B vocalist Jason Derülo launched his career while still in his teens, first as a songwriter for other artists and later as a solo performer. |
 | | The daughter of Will Smith and Jada Pinkett-Smith, Willow Smith -- like older brothers Jaden and Trey -- got her start in the entertainment industry as an actor. |
 | | Influenced by the unpredictable rhymes of Missy Elliot along with the sexually charged attitudes of Lil' Kim and Foxy Brown, Queens native Nicki Minaj was discovered thanks to her MySpace page. |
 | | Smooth rapper Baby Bash can't recall where he got the "Bash" moniker but his alternate name, Baby Beesh, comes from the fact he used to drive around in a Mitsubishi. |
 | | A major star on television (In Living Color, The Jamie Foxx Show), the big screen (Any Given Sunday, Collateral, Ray, Miami Vice, Dreamgirls), and radio (his second album, Unpredictable, featured two Top Ten R&B singles), Jamie Foxx -- born Eric Morlon Bishop, Jr. |
![Damaged [Dance Mixes] Album Cover](http://images.slacker.com/isv1/album/v1/1304603/aol/1/center/5,0/70.jpg "Damaged [Dance Mixes] Album Cover")
