Gavin Degraw

Gavin Degraw is a singer-songwriter and musician. He is a man of many talents. Born on February 4, 1977 and grew up in South Fallsburg, New York. He began singing and playing the piano at the age of eight. He also plays the guitar. The music genre Gavin sings is rock and blue eyed soul music. He got his big break in 2003 when his hit single "I Don't Want to Be" was chosen to be the theme song for the show One Tree Hill. From there on Gavin continued to have hits such as "Chariot" and "Follow Through". Gavin's music has been featured in movies such as Tristan and Isolde and television shows such as What I Like About You. He has had three albums come out and has a new album called Sweeter coming out in September.

Gavin Degraw to me is such a compelling songwriter/singer. He takes everyday experiences and makes songs out of them. He expresses emotions that people feel through the good and bad times. He is a singer that to me reaches my soul and sends good messages. A lot of his focus that he sings about is love. He gives such different perspectives, but also expresses the exact feelings one would feel in particular situations. He is my go to happy day and sad day music. He has a soulful voice and touching songs that make me drawn to him. He may not be extremely well known, but definitely someone I would highly recommend to listen to!

http://preorder.gavindegraw.com/

This is a website where fans can preorder music. They can also read his biography, learn about upcoming news, look at photos, and listen to music. This website is where fans can join the fan base and see where all of his tours are going.

http://www.gavindegraw.com

This is the official Gavin Degraw website. Here you can learn all about Gavin and whats going on in his career. You can also view posts from Gavin and ask him questions.

http://www.answers.com/topic/gavin-degraw

This website tells it all. Questions are answered here about Gavin and his career. It is a tell all of his life based off of questions.

Francesca Battistelli

Francesca Battistelli is a Christian musician. She has known from a very early age what she wanted to do. When she was six she saw “The Secret Garden” on Broadway and knew she loved music and theater. Growing up she was in dance classes and musical theater training. Then when she was 15 she was in an all-girl mainstream pop group in Orlando, where they got to travel and perform in places like the Hard Rock Live and House of Blues. After this she moved to Nashville where she wrot

e her first single “I’m Letting Go.” The song reached number 10 on Christian CHR charts and when her album “My Paper Heart” debuted it was number 1 on iTunes.

I feel that Francesca is worth sharing because she has an amazing ability to write songs that can reach many people. Even though she is a Christian artist her songs are meant to be for anyone, Christian or not. I also admire her for going after her dreams. Since she was little she has wanted to be in music and know she has accomplished so much. She has won the Dove Award for “Artist of the Year” and “Female Vocalist of the Year” for both 2010 and 2011. Her music has also been in shows such as The Biggest Loser, Jon & Kate Plus 8, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, So You Think You Can Dance, and more tv show

s and movies.

This is Francesca’s official website. It has photos, videos, music, tour dates, a store, and other information about her.

This is Francesca’s facebook page. On here are updates on her life and what she is up to, a way to connect with her fans.

This is a youtube video of Francesca’s song, Beautiful, Beautiful.

BRUCE HALEY

Bruce Haley

Natural talent is what makes the self-taught photographer’s work stand out. Bruce Haley is a California native that has traveled around the world capturing war, post war, social conflicts and cultures. He is one to aspire to because he is not the photographer that is taking scenic pictures; he is the photographer taking risks to capture conflicts and problems of the world. His photographs are unique because the majority of them are done in Black and White, which gives the photo a realistic and dramatic effect.. Throughout Haley’s portfolios he captures stories of people who have been living in what Haley is photographing. One example is in his portfolio on the civil war in Burma, which he has won the Robert Capa Gold Medal Award for. The photo is of a young man with only a left eye and a bloody knife. On Haley’s website, he talks about how this young man’s parents were murdered in front of him and he got a blow to the head by the Burmese government. Later the young man joined a guerrilla army against the army. Then after he kills people, he was known to go back and eat the body parts. (brucehaleypictures.com) The story of cannibalism is what brings the shock factor to life. Through anger and rage this young man demonstrates what his life hasbecome due to the civil war with the Burmese government.

A story that Haley has captured is one that is documented in his new book, Sunder, about post-communism in numerous countries. Haley shot one photograph of a woman holding a picture of her dead son. In Haley’s intro, he tells how this woman was playing a motherly role and would bring him food while he was staying in a hotel in Nagorno-Karabakh. Haley knew she was poor, he accepted her offering to be polite. When Haley was all done and she took the food away he would slip paper currency between the bowl and plate. She felt like she could not accept it but Haley refused to take it back and he would end up leaving the hotel so she could keep it. He noted after the many weeks of interacting with her, he was finally able to take a picture of only if the picture of her dead son was in the photograph. Haley ended up dedicating this book to her (Haley 27). These stories are powerful because just by looking at the pictures the viewer gets a sense of poverty and hardship through the thousand words unspoken words that are linked to the photographs.

Bruce Haley has also photographed places all over the world; he opens the world’s eyes to world hunger over in Somalia. He has also hascreated portfolios ofpeople’s lives over in Afghanistan and Thailand. Haley has gone places that most people would not go on vacation to, to capture what most Americans do not see or know about.

Photo of Bruce Haley's new book Sunder

Photo credit:

brucehaleypictures.com

Photo of young man from Burma. Photo credit: brucehaleypictures.com

Photo from Somalia.

Photo Credit: brucehaleypictures.com

http://jmcolberg.com/weblog/extended/archives/a_conversation_with_bruce_haley/

This site is an interview with Joerg Colberg about Bruce Haley’s work and how it shows problems around the world to the rest of the world.

http://vimeo.com/20203050

Video on Haley’s new book, Sunder, and he narrates about his portfolio and how it was made into a book.

http://lenscratch.blogspot.com/2011/06/success-stories-bruce-haley.html

Interview on Haley’s work and his new book Sunder. It also talks about how he analyzes his own work.

http://www.brucehaleypictures.com/#/WCI%20interview%20-%20SUNDER/

Interview with WCI about his new book Sunder. Haley mentions how he was a self-taught photographer and how he got interested in the medium.

Haley, Bruce. Sunder. New York: Charta Books Ltd., 2010. 27-29. Print.

Haley, Bruce. "Executions-A note from Bruce Haley." Bruce Haley Pictures. N.p., n.d. Web. 1 Aug 2011.

All photos are from brucehaleypictures.com

Do-Ho Suh

Do-Ho Suh is an artist originally born in Seoul, Korea in 1962. He earned his oriental painting degree at the Seoul National University, and later earned a Bachelor's of Fine Arts in painting from the Rhode Island School of Design and a Master's of Fine arts in sculpture from Yale University.

Do-Ho Suh's work is typically larger sculptures that engage the audience to look closer - at the art and at life. For instance, his work "Who am we?" is a wall exhibit that is made up of many, tiny portraits. When someone views the exhibit as they would a normal wall they see only dots. Only once they get closer to the wall do they see the dots are really miniscule portraits. Another of his pieces, "Floor," is a thick sheet of glass laid out on the floor. The only thing separating the glass from the floor is many plastic figurines who hold up the floor together. If someone was to walk over the glass the figures would be indistinguishable; only when they bend down would they see them as individuals.


Although Do-Ho Suh says he does not create his art with any specific social critiques in mind, his works often seem to be shaped by his Korean heritage. For instance in his sculpture "Some/one," a multitude of dog tags are used to create a traditional Korean military armor. This is indicative of the military: nameless soldiers lose their identity as they become part of the military.

If you are interested in seeing some of Do-Ho Suh's work, Some/one is currently on display at the Seattle Art Museum. Otherwise here's some websites that provide more details about Do-Ho Suh and his art.


Lehmann Maupin has an in depth biography of Do-Ho Suh including his artistic influences and preferences. As well it includes pictures of his sculptures.

Design Boom is an art website that features an interesting interview with Do-Ho Suh. Besides asking about his artwork, they also take time to ask about his life now in New York and about his life growing up in Korea. Furthermore, they include pictures of many of his more popular installations and even a video or two about him.

PBS has an interview with Do-Ho Suh. As well, they have videos about some of his installations and pictures of others.

Justin Timberlake

Justin Timberlake is a world famous American pop singer and actor. Timberlake was born as Justin Randall Timberlake on January 31, 1981 in Memphis, Tennesse, USA to Lynn Harless and Randall Timberlake. His first attempts in singing career were country music songs on Star Search as "Justin Randall," which he achieved early fame and went on to star in the Disney Channel television series The New Mickey Mouse Club. Timberlake became famous in the late 1990s as the lead singer of the boy band N'SYNC, which sold 11 million copies of this debut album, N'SYNC, in US. He made his acting debut in the Disney Channel movie Model Behavior in 1999. In 2002, N'SYNC ended and it performed at the Academy Awards, The Olympics, and the Super Bowl, as well as selling more than 50 million copies worldwide, becoming the third-best selling boy band in history.

During 2002, he released his first debut solo album, Justified, which sold more than 7 million copies worldwide. The album was a success, by having two popular songs, Cry Me a River and Rock Your Body. During 2004 to 2006 Timberlake put his recording career on hold to act in several films. In 2006, he released his second solo album, FutureSex/LoveSounds, where he was awarded two Grammy Awards. I personally love his songs because I feel they are amusing to listen to and I inspire the lyrics, rhythms, tones, and tempo of most of his songs. I also realize he is very talented and coming up with new songs that are attractive to listen. Over his years of being a pop singer, I find him diligently working on making his music pieces a success.

Overall, Timberlake has won six Grammy Awards and two Emmy Awards, his first two albums made him one of the most commercially successful singers in the world, each selling 7 million copies. He also has an acting career , while his other ventures include record label Tennman Records, fashion label William Rust, and the restaurants Destino and Southern Hospitality. His talents of being a pop singer and actor is known throughout the world and has allowed him to become who he is today.

http://www.justintimberlake.com/
A Justin Timberlake website consists of his achievements of songs and videos on music, personal, or news. It shows general news about his recent activities and photos. There are also videos and a link to Justin Timberlake store. It shows tours and events that happened recently. Each of the topics listed have exclusive, music, tv & movies, sports, and fashion information listed under these topics.

www.imdb.com/name/nm0005493/
This website shows Timberlake's biography, a list of movies on his acting career, general tv episodes and clips, news about his movies and his personal life, and photos of movie scenes and events. There are more links on the bottom of the website to explore more about Justin Timberlake. Beside his biography it also shows his work on soundtrack, actor, and producer.

www.people.com/people/justin_timberlake
This website shows Timberlake's snapshots, five fun facts, biography, and photos. It also shows what times he is on tv, what channels, and the names of the tv shows or movies. There are also recent news about his activities, that are quite different than the other websites.

Willow Smith

Willow Smith, also known as simply 'Willow,' was born October 31, 2000 and today is a very compelling, talented, and particularly, stand-out artist. She is the daughter of the famous Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith. She began her career in acting and then decided to pursue music. Her most notable single was, "Whip My Hair," which was on the Billboard Hot 100, proceeded by "21st Century Girl." She is currently signed under the rapper Jay-Z's recording label 'Roc Nation.' She is also a philanthropist and works with the 'Keep a Child Alive' campaign which helps to provide treatment for those affected by HIV/AIDS.
I personally find Willow Smith extremely compelling. Not only is she the daughter of two very talented Hollywood actors but she took the music scene by storm merely by the age of 10. Her young age and talent combine to make a impenetrable force in the entertainment business. She also has a stand-out style sense, which adds to her overall image. Her fun, upbeat music is catchy and uplifting. I believe her to be an inspiration, that despite her young age, her talents have shown through and allowed her to become who she is today. 

Oprah Interviews Willow

On this link, Oprah presents Willow as apart of her segment about the all-time smartest, most talented kids.  Oprah interviews Willow and asks about her life and amazing career.

Keep a Child Alive Campaign

Willow Smith, along with her brother Jaden Smith, both promote and support the 'Keep a Child Alive' campaign. This foundation was co-founded by the also famous Alicia Keys and Swizz Beatz, with more famous support from Usher, Serena Williams, Kim Kardashian and Jay Sean.

Ryan Seacreast and Willow
This is an interview between Willow Smith and Ryan Seacrest. They discuss the beginnings of her career, her fashion sense and her age. 

                                                                                                                                         

Andrew McMahon

Andrew McMahon is a singer, songwriter and musician in the bands Something Corporate and Jack's Mannequin. He started playing music at the piano when he was nine, shortly after his Uncle died, and he has loved music ever since and now rarely parts from his beloved piano. The punk-rock band Something Corporate helped him get started and noticed when he was still in his teens, but I feel that his involvement predominately in Jack's Mannequin showcases and reflects his more modern and mature side that he lives today.

His passion for music is revealed in his live performances in which he is lively, energetic, and often standing on his piano or slamming his fingers on the keys to get the crowd involved. I personally find his lyrics to be inspiring, poetic and real to the hardships of life.

McMahon was diagnosed with leukemia in 2005 and had to undergo intense changes in which he documents in a video titled Dear Jack. You can watch a clip of the video and/or donate to the Dear Jack Foundation here.

Andrew recovered from the cancer when he received a stem cell transplant from his sister and released his most recent album, The Glass Passenger, in which he confronts some of his issues and feelings with cancer. "Swim" is one of the most powerful songs on the record, which serves to give hope to fans struggling with problems as well as himself.

His blog, tour dates, general news and videos for Jack's Mannequin, which he is primarily involved in, are available here. And more information on his music or personal life is available here.