 | | Already a popular British actress, Natalia Keery-Fisher launched her music career with the release of 2005's "Don't Play Nice," a hit single that was credited to her stage name, Verbalicious. |
 | | Estonian singer Kerli was born in Elva, a Soviet-occupied town with a population of 5,000, in 1987. As a teen, she dreamed of becoming a pop star and leaving her homeland, and studied singing, dancing, acting, and piano. |
 | | Like her co-star Leighton Meester, Taylor Momsen rose to fame as an actress on the TV series Gossip Girl before launching a separate music career. |
 | | Assembled by former TV-commercial producer Ivan Shapovalov after auditioning hundreds of candidates at Moscow's Mostfilm studios, t. |
 | | Although their blend of emo-pop and slick, anthemic rock & roll eventually made them stars on both sides of the Atlantic, Paramore began humbly enough in Franklin, Tennessee, where Hayley Williams met brothers Josh and Zac Farro after moving to town from Mississippi. |
 | | The Colorado-based electronic rock duo Breathe Carolina formed in 2006 around the talents of Kyle Even and David Schmitt. |
 | | Evanescence filled a niche few knew existed upon their arrival in 2003: the need for operatic goth-pop, soul-baring introspection paired with churning metallic guitars. |
 | | The Belton, Texas-based heavy rock quintet Flyleaf formed in 2000 when frontwoman Lacey Mosley played a string of the dark, hard-edged songs she consistently wrote as a brooding teen for drummer James Culpepper. |
 | | Combining the vocal prowess of Beyoncé, the genre-hopping sounds of Gwen Stefani, and the feisty attitude of P!nk, songwriter Jessie J eventually overcame various career setbacks and health problems to become a star in her own right. |
 | | Originally called Cascade until legal conflicts forced them to change their name, Cascada is the slick, uplifting Euro-dance trio featuring producers DJ Manian and Yanou along with vocalist Natalie Horler, although Horler is sometimes presented as Cascada herself. |
 | | Sonny Moore found club and mainstream stardom beginning in 2008, when he swapped his gig as post-hardcore frontman for From First to Last and created the dancefloor-oriented project Skrillex. |
 | | Hollywood Undead hail (unsurprisingly) from the streets of Hollywood, California, mixing brash hip-hop, rock, and minor metalcore touches with cocky posturing and thug attitudes. |
 | | Siblings Elizabeth and Arejay Hale, the core members of the hard rock band Halestorm, began the group in late 1997 near York, PA, with Arejay on drums and Elizabeth on vocals and keyboard. |
 | | The Helsinki, Finland quartet Apocalyptica were initially comprised of classically trained cellists Eicca Toppinen, Max Lilja, Antero Manninen, and Paavo Lotjonen; formed in 1993, the group made waves internationally in 1996 with Plays Metallica by Four Cellos, which combined their formal background with their love of heavy metal. |
 | | Hard-hitting Canadian post-grunge outfit My Darkest Days formed in the mid-2000s around the talents of singer/songwriter/guitarist Matt Walst, bass player Brendan McMillan, drummer Doug Oliver, and guitarist Sal Costa. |
 | | Hailing from South London, Florence Mary Leontine Welch writes songs that occupy the same confessional territory as gossip-loving, genre-bending contemporaries like Amy Winehouse, Kate Nash, Adele, and Lily Allen and the moody, classic art rock of Kate Bush, blending pop, soul, and baroque arrangements into a sound that earned the young artist considerable buzz in 2007. |
 | | Avril Lavigne first appeared in summer 2002, touting an addictive debut single (the spunky pop/rock gem "Complicated") and a skatepunk image that purposely clashed with the polished glamour of mainstream pop. |
 | | Although formed in sunny California during the early 2000s, Shiny Toy Guns' music flaunts a sleek, '80s-influenced combination of synth-pop and electro-clash. |
 | | Formed in 2006, Black Veil Brides originally came together in Cincinnati, Ohio. Primarily the brainchild of vocalist Andy Six, the band combines cathartic metalcore/screamo with a dark, gothic image to set it apart from its contemporaries. |
 | | Flamboyant, outrageously-attired celebrity makeup artist, model, DJ, fashion designer, dance-pop vocalist and all-around internet phenomenon. |
 | | A brash and driven pop singer/songwriter, Ke$ha (Kesha Rose Sebert) was born in Los Angeles but moved at the age of four to Nashville, where her mother -- a longtime songwriter -- had inked a publishing deal. |
 | | The longtime frontman for metal superstars White Zombie, Rob Zombie was born Robert Cummings on January 12, 1966, in Haverhill, Massachusetts, forming the group soon after moving to New York City circa 1985. |
 | | 3Oh!3 are a duo from Boulder, Colorado (i.e., area code 303), whose style of music includes jokey raps, indie electronica beats, and lots of tomfoolery. |
 | | Deadpan vocalist/MC Dev (Devin Tailes), a California native, released her first single, “Booty Bounce,” in August 2010. |
 | | The members of Three Days Grace began bashing punk chords when they were in their teens, carving a derivative yet energetic sound that fueled their live performances. |
 | | The New York City-based punk/industrial/hip-hop group Mindless Self Indulgence consists of singer/songwriter Little Jimmy Urine, guitarist Steve, Righ?, bassist Vanessa, and drummer Kitty. |
 | | As the legend of Cobra Starship would have it, frontman Gabe Saporta fled into the deserts of Arizona one day to find the true meaning of his existence away from his emo-rock band, Midtown. |
 | | A former Christian artist, Katy Perry rebranded herself as a larger-than-life pop star and rose to prominence during the summer of 2008. |
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 | | The Veronicas hail from Brisbane, Australia, where twin sisters Jess and Lisa Origliasso began working in show business at the age of five. |
 | | Love him or hate him, the self-proclaimed "Antichrist Superstar" -- Marilyn Manson -- was indisputably among the most notorious and controversial entertainers of the 1990s. |
 | | The members of metalcore outfit Avenged Sevenfold (or A7X) were still attending high school in Huntington Beach, CA, when they formed their band in 1999. |
 | | Goth metal stars Within Temptation marry the guitar-driven force of hard rock with the sweep and grandeur of symphonic music, and the results have made them one of the most popular bands ever in the Netherlands. |
 | | Although initially viewed as another face in the late-'90s crowd of teen pop acts, Pink (professionally known as P!nk) quickly transcended and outgrew that label with her combination of pop songcraft and powerhouse, rock-influenced vocals. |
 | | Starting out as a punk- and rap-influenced band, the northern Californian group Papa Roach eventually grew into a straight-ahead hard rock ensemble with strong heavy metal leanings. |
 | | Garbage built on the sonic landscapes of My Bloody Valentine, Curve, and Sonic Youth, adding a distinct sense of accessible pop songcraft. |
 | | The members of Panic! at the Disco had barely graduated high school when their full-length debut, A Fever You Can't Sweat Out, transformed the suburban Las Vegas teens into national emo-pop stars. |
 | | Indie rock trio Foster the People make atmospheric, psychedelic, and dance-oriented pop. Formed in Los Angeles in 2009, the band features keyboardist/guitarist/vocalist Mark Foster, bassist Cubbie Fink, and drummer Mark Pontius. |
 | | Singer/songwriter and instrumentalist Emilie Autumn is an eccentric, musical marvel who's been shaping her style since the age of two. |
 | | The members of the Used had to overcome poverty, homelessness, and substance abuse, not to mention the straitlaced attitudes of their hometown of Orem, Utah, to bring their screamo-tinged brand of post-hardcore to life. |
 | | Following in the footsteps of the Gathering and Lacuna Coil (goth-influenced "symphonic" metal bands with female vocalists), Nightwish was formed in Kitee, Finland, in 1997 by keyboardist Tuomas Holopainen. |
 | | New wave revival outfit the Birthday Massacre formed in London, Ontario, in 2000 -- originally dubbed Imagica, the founding lineup was comprised of frontwoman Chibi, guitarists Rainbow and M. |
 | | Korn's cathartic alternative metal sound positioned the group among the most popular and provocative to emerge during the post-grunge era. |
 | | In late 2000, guitarist Aaron Fink and bassist Mark James Klepaski made a surprising and unexpected decision: they left Lifer, an alternative metal band that was signed to Universal and was gaining commercial acceptance. |
 | | Led by powerhouse vocalist Cassadee Pope, Hey Monday debuted their fizzy emo-pop sound with 2008's Hold on Tight. |
 | | Swedish computer nerd Jonas Altberg (aka Basshunter) became an Internet phenomenon in the early 2000s with geek-friendly dance singles like "Boten Anna" (Anna Bot) and "Vi Sitter i Ventrilo och Spelar DotA" (We Sit in Ventrilo and Play DotA). |
 | | Los Angeles-based thrash outfit Five Finger Death Punch formed in 2005 around the talents of former U. |
 | | Glamorously gaudy, a self-made post-modern diva stitched together from elements of Madonna, David Bowie, and Freddie Mercury, Lady Gaga was the first true millennial superstar. |
 | | Heavy metal band Disturbed came together through the matching of a band with a singer. Longtime friends Dan Donegan (guitar), Mike Wengren (drums), and Fuzz (bass) played together in Chicago for some time before hooking up with singer David Draiman around 1997. |
 | | Born of a chance meeting and the innate musical rapport established between vocalist Maria Brink and lead guitarist Chris Howorth, In This Moment quickly grew from local cult favorites performing in Los Angeles clubs to a MySpace phenomenon before landing a deal with Century Media Records. |
