Randy Newman is known for his distinctive voice, mordant and often satirical pop songs, and for his varied film scores. His film scores include Ragtime, Awakenings, The
Natural, Leatherheads, James and the Giant Peach, Cats Don‘t Dance, Meet the Parents, Cold Turkey, Seabiscuit, and The Princess and the Frog. He has scored seven Disney-Pixar
films: Toy Story, A Bug‘s Life, Toy Story 2, Monsters, Inc., Cars, Toy Story 3, and recently, Monsters University. Amongst others, Newman has been nominated for 20 Academy
Awards, winning twice. He has also won three Emmys, six Grammy Awards and was inducted to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in April 2013.
Allen Toussaint is an American musician, songwriter/composer, record producer, and influential figure in New Orleans R&B. The Southern Knight has led a surge of music that spans five decades. Collaborations with Songs covered by Elvis Costello, The Rolling Stones, Patti Labelle, The Who, The Band, Paul McCartney, Aaron Neville, Dr. John, Jerry Garcia, Phish and scores of others.
Rebecca Furguson´s music blends soul, pop, blues and R&B genres, with lyrics describing heartbreak and relationships. Her debut album was compared to Aretha Franklin and Macy Gray. On describing her own sound she said, „quite soulful, I don’t know what you compare it to. I’m just me.“
German jazz vocalist Roger Cicero interpreted the sound and spirit of the swing era for contemporary audiences, upholding the family traditions established by his father, renowned jazz pianist Eugene Cicero.
Faithless is a British electronica band consisting of Maxi Jazz, Sister Bliss and Rollo. The group is best known for their dance songs („Salva Mea“, „Insomnia“, „God Is a DJ“ and „We Come 1“). Faithless recorded six studio albums, with total sales exceeding 15 million records worldwide. The band announced it would split up after their “Passing The Baton” dates at Brixton Academy in April 2011. However, in February 2015 they reunited to celebrate the 20-year milestone of the band and released the album “Faithless 2.0” in September 2015.
Toto is an American rock band formed in 1977 in Van Nuys in Greater Los Angeles, California and is known for a musical style that combines elements of pop, rock, soul, funk, progressive rock, hard rock, R&B, blues, and jazz. They are best known for the Top 5 hits „Hold the Line“, „Rosanna“, and „Africa“. The band has released a total of 17 albums, and have sold over 35 million albums to date.The group was honored with several Grammy Awards and was inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum in 2009.
The new album Toto XIV was released in spring 2015.
Paolo Giovanni Nutini is a Scottish singer, songwriter and musician from Paisley. Nutini‘s debut album, These Streets, peaked at number three on the UK Albums Chart. Its follow-up, Sunny Side Up, debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart. Both albums have been certified quintuple platinum by the British Phonographic Industry. Nutini sang at the London 2012 Olympic Games Opening Ceremony Concert in London‘s Hyde Park, along with Duran Duran, Snow Patrol and Stereophonics. In April 2014, Nutini released his third studio album, Caustic Love. The album received extremely positive reviews from music critics. Caustic Love debuted at number one on the UK Album Charts and was certified platinum by the BPI in June 2014. In late July 2014, he was referred to by the BBC as „arguably Scotland‘s biggest musician” right now.
Tina Dico is a Danish singersongwriter. She founded her own record label and releases her music independently, enjoying large success with her albums in her home country as well as critical acclaim across Europe. She is inspired by artists such as Tracy Chapman, Bob Dylan and Leonard Cohen.
Sarah Connor is a German singer, songwriter, and television personality. Connor debuted in 2001 became the first solo act to ever have four consecutive chart-topping hits on the German Singles Chart. Following success in mainland Europe with her single “From Sarah with Love” and her debut album ^”Green Eyed Soul”, a series of hit records established her position as the most successful German pop female vocalists to emerge in the 2000s with sales in excess of over 15 million copies worldwide. Her first German album “Muttersprache” released on May 22, 2015 debuted on the top of the German and Swiss Albums Chart.
James Arthur is a British singer and songwriter who won the ninth series of the X factor show in Great Britain. His debut single, „Impossible“, was released after the final and debuted at number one on the UK Singles Chart in its first week of release. It has since gone on to sell over 1.27 million copies in the UKand 2.5 million copies worldwide.
