As a child she took piano lessons with her brother and sister, by age four she was singing in Portuguese and English. At eight years of age she received her first tape recorder, which she appropriately used to record herself singing. At age nine she took up the ukelele and the trombone. At 11 she received a keyboard. She played the trombone in a jazz band, concert band and a marching band. It wasn't until she was in her late teens that she took up the guitar. She now enjoys singing in English, Portuguese and Hindi as well as playing the guitar, trombone and ukelele.

Nelly apparently didn't always have aspirations to become an musical artist. She made her first demo with the help of Gerald Easton and Brian West of the Philosopher Kings who came upon her at a talent show at Lee's Palace in Toronto. After the recording Nelly returned to Victoria. It took some prodding by Gerald and Brian, but eventually Nelly returned to Toronto to take another stab at making some demos. And she was quite glad that she did.

Nelly's debut CD Whoa, Nelly! was released in October of 2000. It's single I'm Like a Bird was a smash hit and helped her to win four Juno awards at the 30th Juno Awards. Whoa, Nelly! has been described as

a mix of pop, rock, hip-hop, urban trip-hop and R&B combined with folk and Latin rhythms
- CNN World Beat

When Céline was 12 she decided that singing was the only career for her. With the help of her mother, and one of her brothers, a demo song for Céline was written and sent to Rene Angelil. To this day Rene is still her manager, as well as being her husband (married Dec. 17, 1994).

The single Ce n'etait qu'un reve was released in 1981. Céline continued to release French albums throughout the 80s. At twenty she began English lessons and released her first English recording Unison in 1990. She continues to sing in both English and in French.

Céline's big international break came when she sung the title track to the Disney film Beauty and the Beast with Peabo Brysen. This song not only won a Grammy Award, but also an Academy Award!

Her second last release Falling Into You (1996) has sold more than 25 million copies worldwide. Most recently Céline sings the love theme to the recently released film Titanic called "My Heart Will Go On" which is featured on her November '97 release Let's Talk About Love. This release also features her duet with Barbra Streisand titled "Tell Him".

If you can catch them live, do so!! They're live shows are exciting and always different. The usual small venues makes it even better, although each time they come to my town, the venues are getting bigger and bigger. I will never miss a show! Contributed by Karen Buchanan

Her first CD, Time For Mercy, achieved gold in Canada & earned Jann 2 Junos. One for Most Promising Solo Performer, and one for Best Video.

Calgary, Alberta-born Jann Arden's, Living Under June went triple platinum in Canada(more than 300,000 copies sold), and the single Insensitive hit Top 10 charts around the world, including #1 in Australia.

Her latest album is called Happy.

Her self-title debut was release in 1995 which was followed by her release called One Wish featuring the single Nobody's Supposed To Be Here. In 1999 she was the first Canadian to win a Soul Train award (Best R&B/Soul Single by a Female). She currently has a Roots endorsment.

In 1995 they released their second CD "Up". It was a great success, it included the songs "MariMac" and "Run Runaway", and it made platinum in Canada. Following the release of "UP" Great Big Sea went on tour for nearly 18 months. Their third CD is titled Play.

Great Big Sea has been nominated for two Juno Awards and have won the Entertainer of the Year award for four consecutive years at The East Coast Music Awards.

I saw them play in Ottawa a few St. Patty's days ago, and they were fabulous. I'd have a hard time categorizing their music, but I believe Bob Hallett (the bands' multi-instrumentalist) said it best when he desribed their music as "a really aggressive folk band that marries traditional Celtic music with modern rhythms."

Their latest release is simply titled Turn .

Sarah was born in Halifax, Nova Scotia in 1968. She was discovered there in 1985 fronting the New Wave band October Game by Nettwerk Records. At age 19 they signed her to a recording contract. She then moved to Vancouver, B.C. where she continues to live with her now husband (and drummer) Ashwin Sood.

Sarah was the creative force behind the summer tour Lilith Fair. The tour's website describes Lilith Fair as "a celebration of women in music as envisioned by Sarah McLachlan."

The two most notable band members were Burton Cummings (who continues to do solo work), and Randy Bachman, who went on to form Bachman Turner Overdrive (BTO).**

Even though The Guess Who and Burton Cummings were at their biggest in the 1970s you can still feel their presence. The Guess Who song "American Woman" was re-recorded by Lenny Kravitz for "Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me" and there is a plethora of sites on the web featuring Burton and the band.

• The Guess Who and Burton Cummings Page
• Official Burton Cummings Site
• Burton Cummings Biography @ CanEHdian.com

The Hip have enjoyed stunning success at home in Canada, and while their international presence is not as strong as their Canadian persona, they have formed large pockets of loyal fans in various places throughout the United States, Australia and Europe. In the mid-90s, they caught the attention of the Rolling Stones and had the honour of playing a European tour with the legendary group of rockers. They also participated in a U.S. tour with Jimmy Page and Robert Plant of Led Zeppelin fame. In addition, they put on a spectacular show at Woodstock '99 as one of the mainstage acts, and were musical guests in 1995 on "Saturday Night Live" (hosted by their friend and fellow Canadian, Dan Aykroyd).

Some of the trademarks that identify the Hip are their phenomenal live stage presence, their strong relationship with their fans, and the scores of "Canadiana" in their work. Hailed as one of this country's greatest live bands, fans have travelled literally thousands of miles just to see them play. The fans are rarely disappointed. The Hip have an amazing energy on stage, and are well-known for their live on-the-spot jams, many of which involve entertaining flights of fancy by Gord Downie. Whether it's at a festival on the scale of Another Roadside Attraction or whether it's in a smaller, 1000-seater club somewhere in the United States, the Hip have a way of drawing in any audience. Their songs are full of subtle Canadian references, as well as more bold Canadian narratives, such as their thoughts on the story of David Milgaard in "Wheat Kings," or their telling of the story Toronto Maple Leaf legend, Bill Barilko in "50 Mission Cap." You don't always have to get the references to enjoy the music, but the Hip have always liked writing about what they know.

The Tragically Hip have contributed music to various movies and TV series, most recently (and perhaps most notably) the 2002 curling movie "Men With Brooms," starring Paul Gross and Leslie Nielson. They contributed two previously unrecorded tracks to the movie's soundtrack, provided music and back-up vocals for Sarah Harmer's "Silver Road" on the same album, and also appeared on the big screen in a small cameo as curlers from Team Kingston.

On the human side, the Hip are long-time supports of Camp Trillium, a camp for kids with cancer and their families, and Warchild Canada. They have been involved in numerous events and fundraisers for these causes, including headlining at a free, outdoor concert for Warchild Canada to an estimated crowd of 80,000 people.

The Hip have been awarded their own star on the "Canadian Walk of Fame". They have been nominated for 30 Juno awards throughout their career and have ended up taking home the following awards:
1990 - Most Promising Group of the Year
1991 & 1993- Canadian Entertainer of the Year
1995 - Entertainer of the Year
1995 & 1997 - Group of the Year
1997 - Album of the Year - for Trouble at the Henhouse
1997 - North Star Rock Album of the Year - for Trouble at the Henhouse
1999 - Best Rock Album - for Phantom Power
2000 - Best Single - for Bobcaygeon from the album Phantom Power
2001 - Best Rock Album (fan voted) - for the album Music @ Work

Their discography consists of the following 10 albums: The Tragically Hip Ep, Up To Here, Road Apples, Fully Completely, Day For Night, Trouble at the Henhouse, Live Between Us (Live Compilation), Phantom Power, Music @ Work and In Violet Light.

Bio provided by Artificial Chaos

She started out singing in Newfoundland while working as a copywriter for an ad agency. After a couple of years, and a lot of encouragement, she headed over to Toronto to give singing a real try. She quickly got signed to EMI after singing a few songs on a piano stool and became the buzz around town.

It took her about 2 years to come up with the songs for BONAVISTA, and she collaborated on the writing with some great people such as Randy Bachman.

Avril has already won Best New Artist in a Video at MTV's Video Music Awards, and is number one on charts across the world. Avril has been described as punk and a skater, but she is quick to point out her skills on a board are no where near at a pro level. Avril was involved in the writing of all of her songs on her release and has already started working on material for her next one.

Alanis was signed with MCA records fo her first serious album called Alanis released in 1991. It was a pop/dance style album. Her next album was released in 1992 and called Now Is The Time. After that album she was signed to Madonna's Maverick label. She then came out with Jagged Little Pill. Alanis went back to her acting roots in Kevin Smith's controversial film Dogma where she played the role of God.

Alanis lived in Ottawa until she was 18 (where she attended Glebe Collegiate), she then moved to Toronto for a year. She currently lives in Brentwood, California.

Shania was born in Windsor (Ontario), the second oldest of five children. As a child she was a bit of a recluse. Her musical talents were discovered by her parents when she was just a youngster, and they pushed her to perform.

By age eight she would be woken up at 1 am (after serving hours) to perform at local bars. Her parents got her performing on television, radio, even at senior centers!

Shania's family was poor, and a lot of hopes were put on Shania and her musical talents by her mother. Unfortunately her mother has not lived to see her success. When Shania was only 21, both her parents were killed in an automobile accident. After this tragic event Shania buckled down to support her younger sibblings. She got a job singing at the Deerhurst Resort in Huntsville, bought a house, and took upon the role as mother/sister.

When her younger siblings grew up and went their own ways a few years later Shania started her try for the big time. She created a demo of all original songs, and luckily got it to the head of the Mercury Nashville label.

Since that lucky break she has released three albums, and received many awards including American Music Awards, Canadian Country Music Awards, a couple of Junos and a Grammy.

TowerRecords.com provides this review of their second release:

This young pop-punk quartet might seem to be following in the steps of such bands as Blink 182, but they bring something of their own to the table on ALL KILLER NO FILLER. Though much of this album is occupied by bratty, post-Green Day melodic punk with the occasional, reverential nod to old-school punk rock ("Nothing on My Back"), Sum 41 seems self-aware enough to effectively spoof itself.