Sugar Land is a city in the U.S. state of Texas within the Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown metropolitan area and Fort Bend County. Sugar Land is one of the most affluent and fastest-growing cities in Texas, having grown more than 158 percent in the last decade. In the time period of 2000–2007, Sugar Land also enjoyed a 46.24% job growth.^{[citation needed]} As of the 2010 census, its population was 78,817. In 2011, the U.S. Census Bureau estimated that the city's population was 84,511, with a median family income of $113,261 and a median home price of $369,600.

Founded as a sugar plantation in the early mid-20th century and incorporated in 1959, Sugar Land is the largest city and economic center of Fort Bend County. The city is the third-largest in population and second-largest in economic activities of the Houston area.

Sugar Land is home to the headquarters of Imperial Sugar and the company's main sugar refinery and distribution center was once located in this city. Recognizing this heritage, the Imperial Sugar crown logo can be seen in the city seal and logo.

Joshua Ryan "Jake" Owen (born August 28, 1981) is an American country music artist. Signed to RCA Records Nashville in 2005, he released his debut album Startin' with Me that year. The album produced three singles, all of which reached Top 20 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart: "Yee Haw", "Startin' with Me", and "Something About a Woman". A second album, 2009's Easy Does It, has accounted for three more singles: "Don't Think I Can't Love You", "Eight Second Ride", and "Tell Me". In September 2011, Owen achieved his first number one on the country charts with the title track to his third album, Barefoot Blue Jean Night. He has also toured as an opening act for several country acts, including Kenny Chesney, Brad Paisley, Little Big Town, Sugarland, and Keith Urban.

Joshua "Jake" Owen and his fraternal twin brother Jarrod were born in Vero Beach, Florida on August 28, 1981. The brothers regularly participated in a variety of sports. Jake eventually took up golf, and began pursuing a career as a professional golfer, winning his first tournament at fifteen. After graduating from Vero Beach High School, they attended Florida State University. A wakeboarding accident which resulted in reconstructive surgery left Jake unable to continue playing the sport.

Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta (/ˈstɛfəniː dʒʌrməˈnɑːtə/ STE-fə-nee jurr-mə-NAH-tə; born March 28, 1986), known by her stage name Lady Gaga, is an American singer and songwriter. Born and raised in New York City, she primarily studied at the Convent of the Sacred Heart and briefly attended New York University's Tisch School of the Arts before withdrawing to focus on her musical career. She began performing in the rock music scene of Manhattan's Lower East Side, and was signed with Streamline Records by the end of 2007. During her employment as a songwriter for the record company, her vocal abilities captured the attention of recording artist Akon, who signed her to his label Kon Live Distribution.

Lady Gaga came to prominence as a recording artist following the release of her debut album The Fame (2008), which was a critical and commercial success that topped charts around the world and included the international number-one singles "Just Dance" and "Poker Face". After embarking on the The Fame Ball Tour, she followed the album with The Fame Monster (2009), which spawned the worldwide hit singles "Bad Romance", "Telephone" and "Alejandro". The album's success allowed her to embark on the eighteen-month long Monster Ball Tour, which later became one of the highest-grossing concert tours of all time. Her most recent album Born This Way (2011) topped the charts of most major markets and generated more international chart-topping singles, including "Born This Way", "Judas" and "The Edge of Glory". Besides her musical career, she involves herself with humanitarian causes and LGBT activism.

Matt Nathanson (born March 28, 1973) is an American singer-songwriter whose work is a blend of folk and rock music. In addition to singing, he plays acoustic (sometimes a 12-string) and electric guitar, and has played both solo and with a full band. His work includes the platinum-selling song "Come On Get Higher".

Nathanson was raised in Lexington, Massachusetts. His father is Jewish and his mother is Catholic. Nathanson attended Pitzer College in Claremont, California (majoring in English and world literature).

The members of his band have included Aben Eubanks on guitar, keys and vocals, later replaced by Aaron Tap. John Thomasson has been his bassist since 2004. Jason McKenzie was on drums until Fall 2006; Nick Amoroso on two tours from Fall 2007 through Winter 2008. Konrad Meissner is the drummer. Before 2005, Nathanson was often accompanied by cellist Matt Fish.

His album Some Mad Hope was released on August 14, 2007. The song "All We Are" was featured on the television series NCIS in the fifth season episode "Family," the first season Private Practice episode "In Which Charlotte Goes Down the Rabbit Hole," the One Tree Hill episodes "My Way Home is Through You" and "Forever and Almost Always". He was also featured on Women's Murder Club.

Sara Beth Bareilles ( /bəˈrɛlɪs/ bə-REL-is; born December 7, 1979) is an American singer-songwriter and pianist. She achieved mainstream success in 2007 with the hit single "Love Song", which brought her into the number one spot on the Billboard Pop 100 chart. She has sold over 1 million records in the United States alone and has been nominated for a Grammy Award three times. In the third season of NBC's The Sing-Off, Bareilles was a celebrity judge alongside Ben Folds and Shawn Stockman of Boyz II Men. In February of 2012, VH1 placed Bareilles in the #80 spot of the Top 100 Greatest Women in Music.

Bareilles was born and raised in Eureka, California, the youngest of three daughters of Bonnie Halvorsen (née Capellas), a funeral home worker, and Paul Bareilles, an insurance adjuster. She is of Italian, German, Portuguese, and French descent (she speaks Italian and lived in Italy for a year). Bareilles was raised Catholic and participated in the high school choir, Limited Edition, and local community theater musical productions, including her high school's production of Little Shop of Horrors as Audrey.