Katy Perry

Despite beginning her music career in 2000, Katy Perry struggled to find a clear direction and style for her musical talents. Beginning in gospel, the lack of success her debut album, “Katy Hudson”, attracted found the singer moving over to secular music. Here she began to develop her style and song-writing abilities. Katy was signed and dropped from multiple record deals between 2003 and 2007, with many executives recognizing her talent and potential but failing to provide her with material and collaborators that would allow this talent to shine.

Finally, in 2007 Katy Perry was signed to Capitol Music Group where she began working with producer Dr. Luke, who co-wrote the songs “I Kissed A Girl” and “Hot n Cold”. “I Kissed a Girl” was a massive breakthrough hit for Katy Perry reaching the number one spot in the US, UK, Australian, Austrian, Canadian, German, Irish, Dutch, New Zealand and Swiss music charts. “Hot n Cold” was also a top 5 single in each of these countries, causing Katy Perry’s second album “One Of the Boys” to secure a top 10 placement in the US charts.

After the success of her first pop album, Katy Perry managed to surpass this with her second pop album, “Teenage Dream”. The album won her a Guinness World Record for being the first female artist in the world to achieve five number one hits from the same album on the Billboard Hot 100. In fact, the only other artist to have achieved this feat before her was Michael Jackson with his 1987 album “Bad”.

In addition to this award, Katy Perry has been nominated for an incredible eleven Grammy Awards across her three pop albums, and has won multiple MTV VMA awards and People’s Choice Awards.

Katy Perry cites Queen singer Freddie Mercury as her biggest influence. After hearing the song “Bohemian Rhapsody”, Katy Perry was inspired to make music, and her flamboyant outfits and image suggest that Mercury was an influence both musically and visually.

Katy Perry’s 2014 album “Prism” hit the number one spot in the US and UK album charts and shows a slightly darker edge to her musical ability. The album demonstrates Katy Perry’s musical range and willingness to experiment. Katy Perry’s immense talent and theatrical world tours have won her a legion of loyal fans across the globe. Her hard work is evident in the music she produces and her success speaks for itself.

Calvin Harris began making electronic music in 1999 where he produced his earliest tracks out of his bedroom in Scotland. After moving to London for a brief period, Calvin Harris began to forge a following and found some success with tracks "Brighter Days" and "Da Bongos".

After signing with managers Three Six Zero Group, Calvin Harris released his hugely popular debut album “I Created Disco” in 2007. Singles “Acceptable in the 80s” and “Girls” bolstered the album’s popularity, and showcased both Calvin Harris’s extensive talent and his love of 80s pop.

The king of collaboration, Calvin Harris has worked with multiple artists including Kelis, Rihanna, Alesso, and Dizzee Rascal. The success of his collaborations (“We Found Love” stayed on the American Billboard chart for an impressive 41 weeks) has seen his demand within the music industry increase considerably, as multiple artists all scramble to work with him.

The recipient of multiple MTV awards, a Grammy award and an Ivor Novello award for 2013’s Songwriter of the Year, Calvin Harris has certainly come a long way from his early music-producing days in his childhood bedroom. Now a regular feature on the touring scene, Calvin Harris has played on the same stages as the likes of Rhianna, Deadmau5, Skrillex and Groove Armada, in addition to touring his own work on solo trips around the world.

In 2014, Calvin Harris achieved a first and obtained two consecutive number one hits for the singles “Summer” and “Blame”, which both feature on the album “Motion.” With tracks co-written and performed by the likes of Gwen Stefani, Ellie Goulding, Haim and John Newman, the versatility of Calvin Harris’s style and sound is once again made evident. It is this versatility that has no doubt constituted a large part of his enormous success.