Surabaya (pronounced [surəˈbaja]) (formerly Soerabaja, Soerabaia or Surabaja) is Indonesia's second-largest city with a population of over 2.7 million (5.6 million in the metropolitan area), and the capital of the province of East Java. It is located on the northern shore of eastern Java at the mouth of the Mas River and along the edge of the Madura Strait.

To Indonesians, it is known as "the city of heroes" due to the importance of the Battle of Surabaya in galvanizing Indonesian and international support for Indonesian independence during the Indonesian National Revolution.

Surabaya is locally believed to derive its name from the words sura or suro (shark) and baya or boyo (crocodile), two creatures which, in a local myth, fought each other in order to gain the title of "the strongest and most powerful animal" in the area according to a Jayabaya prophecy. This prophecy tells of a fight between a giant white shark and a giant white crocodile, which sometimes interpreted as a conflict between Mongol forces and Raden Wijaya's Majapahit forces. Now the two animals are used as the city's logo, the two facing each other while circling, as depicted in a statue appropriately located near the entrance to the city zoo. This folk etymology, though embraced enthusiastically by city leaders, is unverifiable.

Dhani Ahmad Prasetyo (born May 26, 1972 in Surabaya), better known as Ahmad Dhani or Dhani Manaf, is an Indonesian rock musician, songwriter, arranger, and producer. Described as a "rock star", Dhani is the frontman of Dewa 19 and Ahmad Band, and also a member of inter-continental band The Rock. He is also the owner and chairman of Republic Cinta Management.

Throughout his career, Dhani has scored many hits and also has been a talent promoter for the careers of other artist including Maia Ahmad, Agnes Monica, Alexa Key and Mulan Jameela, and has written songs for these artists and others. He has won numerous awards including the IMA best musical arrangement and best producer and many other awards as the member of Dewa 19. His influence in the industry made him one of the most influential musician in Southeast Asia.

Ahmad Dhani was the first child of three children of the marriage between Eddy Abdul Manaf, an Indonesian Diplomat with Joyce Theresia Pamela Kohler, an Indonesian of Jewish descent. His grandfather, Jan Pieter Friederich Kohler was a German and born in Indonesia 1883. Dhani stepbrother, Dadang S. Manaf is an acknowledged Indonesian musician and is a big influence on Dhani musical interest since his childhood. Dhani's father bought him a keyboard when he was young and paid for musical lessons, highly persuading him and hoping Dhani would excel in classical music.

Inul Daratista (born Ainur Rokhimah, 21 January 1979) is a dangdut singer and performance artist from Pasuruan, East Java, Indonesia. She became nationally famous in 2003, and is known for her suggestive style of dancing that has caused major controversy in Indonesia. Inul is a corrupted version of Ainur, and the singer's childhood pet name. As she began her musical career singing in a 'rock' band, she adopted the stage name Daratista.

Inul Daratista rose to national fame after a televised January 2003 concert in Jakarta. Her dance moves, which she calls Goyang Inul or Ngebor (lit. 'drilling'), quickly became the source of controversy due to her gyrating hip motions. Some conservative Muslim organizations such as the Indonesian Muslim Council (MUI) called for a ban on her concerts. She was cited as a reason to pass a national anti-pornography bill that was drafted during the height of the controversy in mid-2003, but as of 2005 has not passed. Inul's dance style was also criticised by other dangdut singers, most vocally Rhoma Irama, for "corrupting" the genre, though these criticisms did little to dent her popularity.

Céline Marie Claudette Dion, CC OQ, (French pronunciation: [selin djɔ̃] ( listen); born March 30, 1968), is a Canadian singer. Born to a large family from Charlemagne, Quebec, Dion emerged as a teen star in the French-speaking world after her manager and future husband René Angélil mortgaged his home to finance her first record. In 1990, she released the English-language album Unison, establishing herself as a viable pop artist in North America and other English-speaking areas of the world.

Dion had first gained international recognition in the 1980s by winning both the 1982 Yamaha World Popular Song Festival and the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest. Following a series of French albums in the early 1980s, she signed on to CBS Records Canada in 1986. During the 1990s, with the help of Angélil, she achieved worldwide fame after signing with Epic Records and releasing several English albums along with additional French albums, becoming one of the most successful artists in pop music history. However, in 1999 at the height of her success, Dion announced a hiatus from entertainment in order to start a family and spend time with her husband, who had been diagnosed with cancer. She returned to the top of pop music in 2002 and signed a three-year (later extended to almost five years) contract to perform nightly in a five-star theatrical show at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace, Paradise, Nevada.