The Pussycat Dolls

Kimberly Denise Jones began rapping while expelled from home in her teens, at first freestyling with her friends before writing her own full length raps soon afterwards. It was while she was living on the streets and on her friends couches that she struck up a friendship with an up and coming rapper called Christopher Wallace, whose stage name was The Notorious B.I.G. In 1994, when he was still becoming the legend we know him to be today, he drafted the 19 year old Kim and two of their childhood friends into a hip-hop group called Junior M.A.F.I.A, who released “Conspiracy”, their debut album, the following year. The album, largely thanks to Biggie's involvement and promotion, was a Gold-certified success that made a star out of the 20 year old Kim, who capitalised on the exposure by guesting on a number of hit R&B albums and releasing her debut solo album “Hard Core” in November 1996.

While the Junior M.A.F.I.A album was a success, “Hard Core” was a revelation, and Lil' Kim was suddenly one of the biggest names in hip-hop. One top ten single on the Billboard Hot 100 later in the form of “Crush On You”, and Kim was suddenly a pop star to boot. Of course, being the mid-to-late 90's, being a hip-hop star came with its fare share of controversy, but whatever rise Kim would get out of people, sometimes people within the upper echelons of her own record label, it would never derail her sales or her radio play. After forming her label Queen Bee Entertainment in 1999, her dominance was certified by the release of her second solo album “The Notorious K.I.M”, an album that was certified Platinum four weeks after its release.

Like the vast majority of artists that hit the big time in such a spectacular manner, Kim was unable to stay at that level of commercial success. However, unlike many artists on a commercial downturn, she was still able to release Gold-certified albums while garnering the best reviews of her career for albums like 2005's “The Naked Truth”, and her 2008 mixtape “Ms. G.O.A.T”. Her live shows also remain some of the most acclaimed in all hip-hop, so any self-respecting rap fan would be mad to miss out. For all of that, Lil' Kim comes highly recommended.

Mya Marie Harrison was born 10 October 1979 in Washington D.C., U.S. Though she was born in the nation’s capitol city she grew up in a suburb just outside it. Before her interest in music took complete hold, Mya was an invested dance student, taking lessons at a very young age. She briefly fell out with the art, but picked it back up in her preteens. Fueled by the acute finesse of dancers like Gene Kelly, Fred Astaire, and Sammy Davis Jr., she became a member of T.W.A. (Tappers With Attitude) and eventually progressed to New York’s Dance Theatre of Harlem. Professional choreographer Savion Glover took her under his wing and helped prep her for a solo performance at the prestigious performing arts venue, Kennedy Center.

Dancing had always been placed at the forefront in regards to Mya’s aspirations, but she also harbored an intense passion for music. This also surfaced during her childhood and was nurtured in a variety of ways including participation in violin and voice lessons. Her father, Sherman Harrison (who was a musician himself) was thrilled to discover his daughter’s talent and interest in singing and staunchly advocated the upstart of Mya’s music career. He encouraged his daughter to record material and helped her pitch demo tapes to various label’s. Interscope records recognized her potential and went on to sign a recording contract with her.

Mya’s self-titled studio debut was recorded between 1996 -1998 in Atlanta Georgia’s Silent Sound Studios and Los Angeles’ “The Record Plant” and was released on 21 April 1998 to critical and commercial acclaim. The album endowed Harrison with two Soul Train Music Award nominations as well as one from NAACP Image Award. This record also produced three singles to enter the top five R&B Singles chart (“Movin On’”, “It’s All About Me”, “My First Night With You”) and featured contributions from hip/hop artists like Silk the Shocker, Wyclef Jean, Missy Elliott, and Babyface. The album spent 53 consecutive weeks on the Billboard Albums chart and has since gone platinum. In addition to releasing her self-titled album she also embarked on 3 highly publicized tours in 1998. She joined an expansive line up of hip-hop artists on the Smokin’ Groove Tour and Lilith Fair tour and opened for Boyz II Men in support of their album “Evolution”.

Mya’s sophomore effort “Fear of Flying” (a reference to the Erica Jong novel) was released in 2000, but initially failed to gain traction. However one of the album’s singles (the aggressive dance track “Case of the Ex”) did exceptionally well, steadily climbing the US Singles chart and eventually topping the charts in Australia. This track was also partly responsible for inciting Interscope to re-release the album. The re-issued version featured a different tracklist, which included the new song “Again & Again” and the soundtrack exclusive “Free” which was recorded specifically for the the Jamie Foxx film “Bait”. Following this album Mya made a few recordings for blockbuster films such as Disney’s “Atlantis: The Lost Empire” and Baz Luhrmann’s “Moulin Rouge”.

Mya took a break from music to pursue acting but returned in 2003 with her 3rd studio album, “Moodring”. This release proved to be her most diverse to date and emphasized genres such as quiet storm, techno, hip-hop, and as to be expected soul and R&B. This album also produced Mya’s biggest single yet, “My Love Is Like...Wo”, on which Missy Elliott oversaw production. Its heavy syncopated chops and sleazy synth lines propelled it to no. 13 on the Billboard Hot 100 and became somewhat of a feminist anthem.

Mya took an even longer break between the release of her next album “Liberation”. It hit the shelves on 22 October 2007 and featured rap artists such as Snoop Dogg, Lil’ Wayne, and Charlie Baltimore.

“Sugar & Spice” followed a year later and was issued through Mya’s own label imprint, Planet 9. Her 6th studio album “K.I.S.S. (Keep It Sexy & Simple)” was also released through Planet 9 and became a relative hit in Japan, debuting at no. 61 on the Japan Album charts. In fact Mya geared this album specifically for a Japanese audience and heavily experimented with the J pop genre throughout.