Since you all sort of shocked me in my poll, I thought it was high time I actually finished my music recs post, hackthis did this a few weeks ago and I loved the idea. Of course she recced ten musicians, but I'm too lazy to research any more than I already did. So here you go:

The Eight Greatest Groups/Singers Y'all Have (obviously) Never Heard of

1.
Group/Singer: Atmosphere
When & Where: Minneapolis, MN. Sean's been rapping since way back, his first full length album was in 1997, but he's been doing 7" and shit for longer.
Why should I care? This guy started the hip hop scene in Minneapolis. His style is all over the place, from smooth and mellow to harder hip hop, but his lyrics are amazing throughout. And he's got an ego the size of texas, while still being the most self-mocking person ever. Take with a grain of salt and enjoy the irony.
If you like: Aesop Rock, Murs, Living Legends try them

2.
Group/Singer: Athlete
When & Where: British band from South London, formed in early 2000 by some kids who had known each other for years.
Why should I care? Their sound is hard to define, they're pretty mellow, but fun, and sometimes up beat, they've got good lyrics. Plus their website has cool computer background pictures.
If you like: Incubus, Gomez, Better than Ezra try them.

3.
Group/Singer: Joe Firstman
When & Where: Joe was raised in North Carolina but hopped a one-way Greyhound to L.A. in 2000 and threw himself into the club and bar scene down there, playing wherever he got a chance.
Why should I care? This kid is amazing, he can go from bluegrass to rock to piano like it ain't no thang.
If you like: John Mayer, Jack Johnson try him.

4.
Group/Singer: The Coup
When & Where: Oakland, CA, Boots Riley (the rapper) and Pam the Funkstress (the DJ) got together back in the early 90's.
Why should I care? These guys have been active in the Oakland activist scene for years working their asses off to fight for inner city youth and trying to get the cops to stop killing people. Their music is politically charged and intelligent, and they back it up well.
If you like: Dead Prez, Public Enemy try them.

5.
Group/Singer: Dilated Peoples
When & Where: Out of LA back in 1992. DJ Babu (ex. Beat Junkies) found rappers Evidence and Iriscience in 1997 and they started making records.
Why should I care? Their beats are wild, they've collaborated with some great guys, including ?uestlove and Alchemist (Nas' sometimes DJ), the song "Worst Comes to Worst" is amazing, and the Expansion Team LJ is one of the few records out now that is best when listened to all in a row. In short, they make albums, not singles, which is pretty fucking cool in my book.
If you like: Tribe Called Quest, The Roots try them.

6.
Group/Singer: Manu Chao
When & Where: OK, all the websites with info are in spanish or somefuck, so I have no clue about Manu Chao's background.
Why should I care? Ok, essentially Manu Chao makes really cool spanish/english/french reggae latin music, and it's cool and kick ass, but hard to explain, so just open kazaa and give it a chance.
If you like: er, I don't know of any other groups like him.

7.
Group/Singer: MC Frontalot
When & Where: According to his website MC Frontalot is the world's 579th-greatest rapper. He's from the San Francisco Bay Area, and he invented Nercore Hiphop, the ultimate in geeky musical genre.
Why should I care? Nercore hiphop man, how could you hate on a guy with songs like "Front the Most" and "Indier Than Thou"? Plus, dude, his songs are all FREE and up on his website, it's unbeatable.
If you like: he is a genre on his own, although MC Hawking and MC Chris and MC Paul Barman are all in there too, but if you've not hear Frontalot you probably won't know them either.

8.
Group/Singer: Aesop Rock
When & Where: Aesop Rock's from New York City, he's been part of the Indie hiphop scene there for a few years, and he's probably one of the most successful indie rappers out there, with some of the highest record sales (in underground standards) but and he's definitely earned that status.
Why should I care? His lyrics are intense, if you read them you can't imagine that they actually rhyme, but he's a complete genius with that shit, his words just trip over each other and all combine with this, I dunno, I could wax poetic about his rhymes all night. Really I could.
If you like: underground hiphop try him.


Five Popular Songs of 2003 that I Really Fucking Hate
1. 'Miss Independent' by Kelly Clarkson Yeah, it was just...bad. I know she got some of Christina's rejected songs, and it's painfully obvious here, they don't have the same voice. The songs just don't work for her.

2. 'Baby Boy' by Beyonce and Sean Paul It had no depth to it, hell it didn't even have anything more than a chorus. Repetitive and catchy, and it annoyed the hell out of me.

3. 'Air Force Ones' by Nelly and P. Diddy The man has made the same damn song 632 times now, can someone please turn him off?

4. 'I'm With You' by Avril Lavigne Her faux edgy songs and fake-deep lyrics drive me nuts. If she was any more pre-packaged for your extra convenience I might actually throw up.

5. 'It's My Life' by No Doubt I don't think I've liked anything by No Doubt since 'Don't Speak', when it became Gwen and those other guys who occasionally play instruments... unless they're using fucking electronic beats and shit.

Five Popular Songs of 2003 that I Actually Really Fucking Love

1. 'Clocks' by Coldplay Coldplay, man, they're just really fucking talented aren't they? But I totally resisted at first, cause dude, everyone from Justin Timberlake to, well, everyone else on earth was reccing them, so for some reason I decided that they must suck. Then ukcalico gave me a bunch of mp3s and I fell in love.

2. 'Landslide' by the Dixie Chicks I used to hate all country. Now I hate almost all country. The song is great, and yes, I know it's a remake, I love the Stevie Nicks version too.

3. 'Beautiful' by Christina Aguilera Christina is my favorite pop singer, she's got the talent man, and she's not afraid to actually be real, or as real as you can appear to be with all the hype. The video for this song is what got me though, so beautiful.

4. 'Cry Me a River' by Justin Timberlake Again, it's the video that got me. My only response to this song and that video is just, fuck, dude, go Justin!

5. 'Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous' by Good Charlotte Yes, they're cheesy and totally not punk. But they sort of know that, and they certainly aren't taking themselves that seriously. Plus Chris (from nsync) was in the video :D