Janet Jackson's "Alright" video features Cab Calloway and Cyd Charisse, stars of musicals she loved as a kid.
Britney Spears was just 16 when her first single "Baby One More Time" was released. She quickly became a top search term on something called The Internet.
You wouldn't know it from the upbeat melody, but "Walkin' On The Sun" by Smash Mouth is about the 1992 Los Angeles Riots.
Eminem sampled a song by Labi Siffre on "My Name Is." Siffre, a gay activist, made Em take out some gay humor in the lyric before allowing it.
Stevie Wonder wrote his own version of "Happy Birthday" in an attempt to get Martin Luther King's birthday declared a national holiday.
Jimi Hendrix opened for The Monkees on their 1967 tour, and it did not go well. The young, mostly female crowd shouted "Davy" when Hendrix sang the word "Lady" in "Foxy Lady" in honor of who they came to see: Monkees lead singer Davy Jones.
The top chant artist in the Western world, Krishna Das talks about how these Hindu mantras compare to Christian worship songs.
Country songs with titles so bizarre they can't possibly be real... or can they?
Phil was a songwriter, producer and voice behind many Philadelphia soul classics. When disco hit, he got an interesting project: The Village People.
A popular contemporary folk singer, Williams still remembers the sticky note that changed her life in college.
His keyboard work helped define the Muscle Shoals sound and make him an integral part of many Neil Young recordings. Spooner is also an accomplished songwriter, whose hits include "I'm Your Puppet" and "Cry Like A Baby."
When he joined Guns N' Roses in 1990, Matt helped them craft an orchestral sound; his mezzo fortes and pianissimos are all over "November Rain."
