John Mayer

When John Mayer emerged from the underground in 2001 with his debut album, Room for Squares, he was a little-known 22-year-old with an acoustic guitar and boundless energy. His ascent was rapid, powered by nonstop touring and intensive word of mouth, which reached critical mass just as radio and the video channels were discovering the young artist. Two years later, Room for Squares is now triple-platinum (the album remains in the Top 100 after more than 80 consecutive weeks on the Billboard Top 200 chart), spawning three hit singles, one of which, "Your Body Is a Wonderland," earned him a Grammy earlier this year for best pop vocal performance.