O.A.R., Gavin DeGraw, und Lisa Loeb

The band was formed in 1996 with Marc Roberge and Chris Culos, they would then go on to recruit members Richard On and Benj Gershman. During this period they recorded their debut album "The Wanderer" this has received the ratings of 3 stars by AllMusic.

After graduating from high school the band members moved to study at he Ohio State University, while there they met Jerry DePizzo and soon he joined the band. With Jerry now in the band they would go on to record their second album "Soul's Aflame"

After the release of their albums the band played at many shows, relying purely on word of mouth they slowly built themselves up an audience that were interested with them after playing at various events and for sororities. This buzz about the band made sure that their third album was a success as it went straight to number 11 on the Billboard Top Internet Sales.

It was all uphill from here as the fifth album "Stories of A Stranger" received a 3 out of 5 stars rating from Allmusic and managed to peak at number 40 on the Billboard 200.

In 2008 the bands song "Love Is worth the Fall" could be heard on the deluxe edition soundtrack for the film Twilight.

Born 4 February 1977 in South Fallsburg, New York, US, Gavin began his music endeavors at the age of 8 singing and playing the piano. Though his parents were not involved in music (his father was a prison guard and his mother was a detox specialist) he did receive musical inspiration form his older brother Joey, who is also a musician in addition to a venue owner and founder of a record label.

Gavin’s older brother gave him the push to pursue music and with him he formed several cover bands. Later on Gavin moved to Massachusetts to attend Berklee School of Music. By the late 90s Degraw rigorously began writing his own material and started to gain a following through his frequent live performances. It was not long until he was recognized by labels. Degraw eventually ended up signing a contract with Clive Davis and put out his 2003 debut album “Chariot” through J Records. The album was an instant critical and commercial success and became even more popular once the hit single “I Don’t Want to Be” was used as the theme song for the 2005 television show “One Tree Hill”. With the resurgence of that single, “Chariot” reached platinum status and charted No. 1 on the US Billboard Top Heatseekers.

Degraw’s next album did not come out until 5 years later. Despite the wait, his self-titled sophomore release debuted at No.1 on the digital sales chart and No.7 on Billboard’s Top 200 album chart. Degraw wasted no time at all putting out his third full length album. He recorded the entire album at the studio of his producer, Camus Celli, in less than two weeks and released it on 6 May 2009 (making it less than a year between the release of his last album). “Free” was not as commercially successful as his last two albums; however, it still managed to do commercially well, peaking at No. 19 on the US Billboard 200 charts.

Degraw switched record labels with the release of his fourth album and contrary to “Free” he recorded the album in multiple studios around the world, recruiting the help of producers Ryan Tedder, Butch Walker, Eric Rosse and Ron Aniello. The album contained the widely acclaimed single “Not Over You”, which became his first song to reach the top spot on the Adult Pop Songs chart.

In 2012 DeGraw collaborated with pop star Colbie Cailat for “Baby It’s Cold Outside” on her “Christmas in the Sand” album and did another joint effort with her for the Grammy nominated song “We Both Know”; which was featured in the “Safe Haven” soundtrack.

Degraw released his second album for RCA, “Make a Move” on 15 October 2013. Like his previous releases it did well on the charts reaching No. 79 in the UK and climbing all the way to No.10 on the US Billboard 200. The success of this album was followed by a US tour in support of Train. In 2014 Degraw released his greatest hits album “Finest Hour: The Best of Gavin DeGraw”. This compilation featured a well distributed mix of material including newer songs such as “You Got Me”, which was originally written for the “Dolphin Tale 2” movie.

Raised in the heart of Dallas, Texas, with her three musically-orientated siblings, Lisa Loeb’s first excursion to the creative was playing the piano and guitar as a child. After subsequently hosting on the St. Marks School FM Station 88.5 KRSM, Loeb studied comparative literature at Brown University, where she formed the band Liz and Lisa alongside Elizabeth Mitchell. The duo released a pair of independent albums “Liz and Lisa” (1989) and “Days Were Different” (1990), before going separate ways after college. In 1990 the singer-songwriter formed the band Nine Stories and produced the cassette tape “Purple Tape” in 1992 featuring the tracks “Do You Sleep?”, “Snow Day”, and Loeb’s own “Stay (I Missed You)”.

Through her friendship with actor Ethan Hawke, Loeb’s single “Stay (I Missed You)” became the accompaniment to the credits of the Ben Stiller film “Reality Bites” in 1994. Subsequently, the single topped the Billboard 200, making Loeb the first unsigned artist to reached the No. 1 spot. With the success of the single Loeb released her full-length debut “Tails” in September 1995. Featuring the singles “Stay”, “Do You Sleep?”, and “Taffy”, the album earned positive reviews from critics, and was produced by Loeb’s partner Juan Patiño.

The singer-songwriter’s sophomore release “Firecrackers” appeared in 1997, which despite earning less favourable reviews from the musical press, earned a Grammy-nomination for Best Engineered Non-Classical Album. Following the release Loeb toured alongside The Wallflowers, Chris Isaak, and Lilith Fair. “Cake and Pie”, the singer’s third, however her debut on A&M/Interscope, featured collaborations with Glen Ballard, however proved a commercial failure due to lack of promotion. Loeb subsequently contributed “Goodbye to Romance” to the Ozzy Osbourne tribute album, “Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves” to the Cher tribute album, and “Don’t Be Stupid” to the Shania Twain tribute album.

Loeb released her fourth full-length “Catch the Moon” in 2003, and following a move to the independent Zoë/Rounder Records, released “The Way It Really Is” in 2004. The latter album, despite disappointing sales, showcased a more developed singer with a more mature approach to songwriting. In 2008 Loeb took a greater diversion into children themed music with the album “Camp Lisa”, which is a 19-track album of camp songs including the memorable “Peanut Butter & Jelly”.