...The Colombian vallenato composer Guillermo Buitrago’s output overshadowed his short career: his music became a staple of the country’s Christmas celebrations. Born in Magdalena, Colombia in 1920, Buitrago’s first instrument was the guitar...
...The French singer-songwriter George Brassens developed a unique style through a turbulent time in his country’s history. Born in 1921 on the French Mediterranean coast, Brassens developed a passion for singing as a youth, influenced by his...
...The bandleader and vocalist Milton Brown helped to develop the popular Western swing genre of the early twentieth century. Born in Texas in 1903, Brown graduated from high school and worked as a cigar salesman until the Great Depression...
...As a prominent interpreter of Guinean folk music, Bembeya Jazz National combined Afropop with its nation’s musical culture to produce one of the continent’s most popular sounds. Following Guinean independence in 1958, bands were encouraged...
...Bob Marley’s group, the Wailers, evolved out of previous projects and became the most important reggae touring act of the 1970s, bringing the Jamaican musical form to audiences around the globe. Originally a doo-wop-tinged ska group known...
...The indie group Belle and Sebastian emerged from relative obscurity in Scotland to become critically acclaimed and a staple of dorm room listening parties on either side of the Atlantic. Stuart Murdoch and Stuart David formed the group...
...The British dubstep producer Benga emerged from the country’s pirate radio scene to become one of the genre’s first innovators. Born in east London in 1986, Benga and his family relocated to the suburb of Croydon, where he would spend...
...With his characteristic “duck walk,” Chuck Berry brought an unabashed performativity to early rock and roll music. Born in 1926 in St. Louis, Berry came from an upper middle-class family. His family allowed him to indulge his interest...
...During their initial run from 1971 through 1975, Big Star developed a contemporary cult following and initiated a style of performance that predicted the rise of alternative rock in the 1980s and 1990s. Big Star was formed in Memphis...
...The avant-garde music and visual presentation of Björk challenged the common understanding of popular music while imbuing it with a unique futurism. Björk was born in 1965 in Iceland; her mother was an activist and her father was a union...
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