Travis: My first exposure to Travis didn’t come until 2001. It was then that I heard the enchanting song “Sing” off their third album The Invisible Band. Ever since, I’ve had a major soft spot for the four-piece band’s unapologetically sentimental and melodramatic melodies. My favorites are the brooding “Why Does It Always Rain on Me?” and the incredibly sweet “Closer.” …It’s always struck me as strange that they don’t have the same level of notoriety as say, Coldplay. Travis frontman Francis Healy trumps Coldplay’s Chris Martin anyday.

Marie Digby: The Japanese-American singer became a Web sensation by posting homemade videos of herself playing acoustic versions of hits by Britney and Rihanna. Within months, they generated more than 22 million views and Digby was signed to a record label. It sounds too good to be true–and it might be. The Wall Street Journal reported she was already signed when she posted her “amateur” videos, and that the label may have planted them as a pseudo-grassroots effort. I don’t give a shit if that’s the case, as her stuff’s better than most of the stuff on YouTube.

Santigold: The outspoken artist often slams music critics for being racist, claiming they labeled her music as hip-hop because she’s black. I say she needs to say off the race card because her collaborations with N.E.R.D. and Spank Rock definitely fall into the genre. I will also say however, that the majority of her eponymous debut album sounds like a hot ’80s mess of dance-pop, new wave, and punk. If Billy Idol, Blondie, and M.I.A. had a threesome, their love child would be Santogold. She even wails like she just popped outta the womb.