NEW MEMBERS

Photo by Jonathan Manion

With her smash debut single "Any Other Night," Sharissa burst unto the music scene full force with her no-nonsense attitude towards relationships. The Bronx-reared R&B/ hip hop/soul writer and performer is sure to leave a lasting impression with her debut album No Half Steppin', a feisty tale of romance and heartbreak. Don't be mistaken, Sharissa isn't crying victim on her latest Motown release, but letting brothers know what she expects in her relationships: honesty, trust and sincerity. Sharissa co-writes on the album, which features tracks by ex-Groove Theory's Bryce Wilson, Trackmasters and Blackground recording artist Tank. As no stranger to the industry, having collaborated in the past with Carl Thomas, Beanie Siegel, Henchmen and Memphis Bleek, Sharissa is paving her own way to stardom. With her edgy, in-your-face lyrics, laced with powerhouse vocals, Sharissa is following in the footsteps of her idols Gladys Knight and Stephanie Mills and simply has no limits.

–Damien M. West

After winning the Debut Album of the Year Award at the Boston Music Awards in 2001 for his debut CD, On Your Way, singer/songwriter/guitarist and former Cliffs of Dooneen founder Flynn was, well, on his way. And without having to actually step onto a tour bus, some of his music is already on a world tour. This year he landed three of his songs in the touring production of Spider-Man Live, a Broadway-style live action theater show, which is currently visiting 40 venues in American cities (including New York's Radio City Music Hall) before going overseas next year. Not a small accomplishment for someone who was almost paralyzed in a fall from a ladder in 1999 and who had to spend months rehabilitating his body. But Flynn, born Martin Crotty just south of Dublin, Ireland, had come too far already to give up his musical dreams. In the late '80s, he emigrated to the United States and entered the Boston music scene to pursue his musical ambitions. In a few short years, his band the Cliffs of Dooneen hit the MTV airwaves and Billboard's Modern Rock Top Ten with their first single "Through an Open Window."

Texan Chalee Tennison's voice is as big as her home state. It's also as pure country and as tough too. And if her new single, "Lonesome Road" (DreamWorks) is any indication, her career will be as hot too. With influences ranging from Tammy Wynette to Elvis, Ronnie Milsap to ZZ Top, Tennison's tastes make for some interesting flavors in her own music. After a decade of fronting her own band and creating her own dramatic and distinctive sound, she was signed to Asylum Records and released two acclaimed albums that put her on the map. Chalee shows a commanding vocal presence and emotional depth that puts her in the league of some country's greatest singers singing some of country's greatest songs. As a mother of three children and a woman who has been through three marriages, Chalee has been through many trials and triumphs in her more than 30 years of life. And it all comes out in her music. "I have to really believe a song personally before I can sing it," she says. "If it touches me, I know I can touch other people with it as well." Watch for her DreamWorks Records debut in 2003.

Dallas-based Christian rock band MercyMe had been building a sizable grassroots following for years, releasing six independent projects and amassing total sales of 100,000 units. They had everything it took to make it in the music business � faith in their music and a higher power, not to mention plenty of talent. Then, after being signed to INO/Word, they recorded and released, Almost There, in 2001. Ironically, career-wise, that album's title could no longer apply to the band. Their single, "I Could Only Imagine," written by lead singer/ songwriter Bart Millard after losing his father to cancer, shot to Number One on the Christian charts. Their album also became the best-selling Christian album of 2001. Suddently, they were there. This year brought the group even greater acclaim. At Christian music's prestigious Dove Music Awards, first-year nominees, MercyMe took home Song of the Year, Songwriter of the Year and Contemporary/Pop song of the Year.

John Butler started out busking in the streets of Fremantle, Australia in 1999. A free-spirited, strong-willed environmental idealist, Butler had recently loosed the chains of academia, preferring to wage his war against old growth logging and nuclear waste dumps in his native Australia through his music. As a songwriter, Butler gravitates toward a contemporary style of hard-edged jam band rock with extended drum, bass and guitar solos (the shortest cut on his 2001 independent release, Three, is 4:00 minutes; the longest clocks in at an epic 'In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida'ish 14:47). As a vocalist, Butler is more akin to the Seattle grunge sound than most typical jammy pop-rockers, evoking the singing styles of Eddie Vedder, Anthony Keidis, and Chris Cornell. His popularity has been growing steadily in Australia where he has been touring with the likes of Killing Heidi, Silverchair and Green Day. In 2001, the JBT took their act international with appearances at the Edinburgh Festival in Scotland and the Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland.

Tweet's debut album, Southern Hummingbird, announces an exciting R&B newcomer with a refreshing sound. The first single, "Oops (Oh My)," became a huge success on urban radio and set the tempo for the songstress' career. Tweet's success comes after years of hardship, frustration and disappointment. After being involved in a production deal that kept her somewhat stagnant for several years, Tweet sank into a deep depression. It wasn't until she was given the opportunity to sing background vocals on Missy's Miss E...So Addictive album that Tweet started to see a light at the end of the tunnel. On Southern Hummingbird, under the guidance of the Virginia Beach duo Missy Elliott, whom Tweet considers her "guardian angel," and Timbaland, the acoustic-guitar-playing soul singer was allowed to flourish as a natural talent, writing or co-writing every song on the album. As a result, Tweet's lyrics explore in the most intimate way some of life's most troubled moments. "I think all experiences, even the unpleasant ones, have made me stronger," says Tweet. "I know there's a time and place for everything in this life." Judging from the success of the album, Tweet's time and place is right now.

- Damien M. West

Photo by Ruven Alandor

Photo by John Chasson

Even before the Grammy Award-winning soundtrack to O Brother, Where Art Thou caught the world's attention, the young San Diego trio known as Nickel Creek was already making bluegrass cool for a new generation of music fans. Guitarist Sean Watkins with his sister and fiddler Sara Watkins and mandolinist Chris Thile are currently one of the hottest bluegrass groups around. Their debut self-titled Sugar Hill album produced by Alison Krauss has gone gold (for sales in excess of 500,000) and was nominated for two Grammy Awards; their music has been played on such hipster-approved shows as Buffy the Vampire Slayer; and their music videos have received heavy rotation on Country Music Television. But, perhaps their biggest achievement might be turning pop, punk and even metal fans on to bluegrass music. They do have a few tricks up their sleeve, such as throwing in a hip hop version of Dylan's “"Subterranean Homesick Blues" or a Bach musical piece into the middle of a traditional tune. Hey, whatever works. They recently released their follow-up album, This Side, with Krauss producing again.