Charlie Puth

Charlie Puth (/puːθ/) (born December 2, 1991) is an American singer, songwriter, arranger, and record producer. Puth gained popularity virally by posting his work to YouTube. Puth released two extended plays, The Otto Tunes (2010) and Ego (2013), as an independent artist. In 2015 he signed with Atlantic Records and released his debut single "Marvin Gaye", which features guest vocals from Meghan Trainor. The single has been certified 2× Platinum in Australia, topped the charts in New Zealand, Ireland, and the United Kingdom, and peaked at number 21 on the US Billboard Hot 100. Puth wrote, co-produced, and was featured on a song with Wiz Khalifa, "See You Again", included in the Furious 7 soundtrack. On May 1, 2015, Puth released an EP, Some Type of Love. The pre-order for Puth's debut studio album Nine Track Mind started on August 20, 2015 along with the second single One Call Away, and the album was released on January 29, 2016.

Early life

Puth was born December 2, 1991, in Rumson, New Jersey, the son of Debra and Charles Puth, his father of German descent and his mother Jewish. At 2, his right eyebrow was damaged in a near fatal dog bite incident. Puth participated in a summer youth jazz ensemble in Red Bank, New Jersey at 12. He graduated from Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High School in 2010. During his 7th grade to senior years, he attended Manhattan School of Music Pre-College as a jazz piano major and a classical minor. On a full scholarship, he graduated in 2013 from the Berklee College of Music, where he majored in music production and engineering.

Dude Perfect

Dude Perfect is a sports entertainment group who got their start on YouTube. Most known for their trick shots, they are also involved in comedy with their "Stereotypes" series, in which they poke fun at common stereotypes, mostly in the sports world. The group consists of the twins Coby and Cory Cotton, Garrett Hilbert, Cody Jones, and Tyler Toney who are all former high school basketball players and college roommates at Texas A&M University.

The group commented that their shots typically relied more on American football skills than basketball.

History

The group was betting on sandwiches via basketball shots in their backyard, which were eventually recorded on camera, and a video of trick shots at Toney's ranch was eventually released on YouTube. Within a week, the video received 100,000 views. When asked about the name, Toney stated,

Afterwards, a trick shot video from the Christian summer camp Sky Ranch was released, which, as of June 2015, has over 13.9 million views. For every 100,000 views the video received, Dude Perfect pledged to sponsor a child from Compassion International. Afterwards, ESPN's E:60 contacted the group for a segment, and on the third floor of Texas A&M's Kyle Field, Toney converted a shot, which traveled 3.9 seconds, which was a world record at the time. The shot prompted television appearances on ESPN's First Take, Pardon the Interruption, Around the Horn and SportsNation. Eventually, Dude Perfect introduced the Panda mascot, who "developed a cult following at A&M basketball games" when taunting players of the opposing team.

Amy Winehouse

Amy Jade Winehouse (14 September 1983 – 23 July 2011) was an English singer and songwriter known for her deep expressive contralto vocals and her eclectic mix of musical genres, including soul (sometimes labelled as blue-eyed soul and neo soul),rhythm and blues, and jazz. Winehouse's 2003 debut album, Frank, was a critical success in the UK and was nominated for the Mercury Prize. Her 2006 follow-up album, Back to Black, led to five 2008 Grammy Awards, tying the then record for the most wins by a female artist in a single night, and made her the first British female to win five Grammys, including three of the general field "Big Four" awards: Best New Artist, Record of the Year and Song of the Year.

Winehouse won three Ivor Novello Awards: in 2004, Best Contemporary Song for "Stronger Than Me"; in 2007, Best Contemporary Song again, this time for "Rehab"; and in 2008, Best Song Musically and Lyrically for "Love Is a Losing Game." She won the 2007 Brit Award for Best British Female Artist, having also been nominated for Best British Album, with Back to Black.

Ed Sheeran

Edward Christopher "Ed" Sheeran (born 17 February 1991) is an English singer-songwriter and musician. He was born in Hebden Bridge, West Yorkshire and raised in Framlingham, Suffolk. After dropping out of school at 16, he moved to London the following year, in 2008, to pursue a career in music. In early 2011, Sheeran independently released the extended play, No. 5 Collaborations Project, which caught the attention of Elton John and Jamie Foxx. After signing with Asylum Records, his debut album, + (read as "plus"), was released on 9 September 2011 and has since been certified six-times platinum in the UK. The album contains the single "The A Team", which earned him the Ivor Novello Award for Best Song Musically and Lyrically. In 2012, Sheeran won the Brit Awards for Best British Male Solo Artist and British Breakthrough Act.

Sheeran's popularity abroad began in 2012. In the US, he made a guest appearance on Taylor Swift's fourth studio album, Red. "The A Team" was nominated for Song of the Year at the 2013 Grammy Awards, where he performed the song with Elton John. He spent much of 2013 opening for Swift's The Red Tour in North America dates. In late 2013, he performed three sold-out shows at New York's Madison Square Garden as a headline act. He was nominated for Best New Artist at the 2014 Grammy Awards.

Bruno Mars

Peter Gene Hernandez (born October 8, 1985), professionally known by his stage name Bruno Mars, is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and choreographer. Born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii, by a family of musicians, Mars began making music at a young age and performed in various musical venues in his hometown throughout his childhood. He graduated from high school and moved to Los Angeles to pursue a musical career. Mars produced songs for other artists, co-founding the production team The Smeezingtons.

Mars had an unsuccessful stint with Motown Records, but then signed with Atlantic in 2009. He became recognized as a solo artist after lending his vocals to the songs "Nothin' on You" by B.o.B, and "Billionaire" by Travie McCoy, which were international successes, and for which he co-wrote the hooks. His debut studio album, Doo-Wops & Hooligans (2010), was anchored by the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart-topping singles "Just the Way You Are" and "Grenade", as well as the number-five single "The Lazy Song". His second album, Unorthodox Jukebox, released in 2012, peaked at number one in the United States. The album spawned the international singles "Locked Out of Heaven", "When I Was Your Man" and "Treasure".