"I know what you're doing I see it all too clear"

There’s nothing that says hit song like an angst-filled ballad about your girlfriend cheating on you, and that’s how Duncan Sheik struck gold. In 1996, Duncan Sheik released a song of his debut self-titled album called “Barely Breathing”. The song’s relatable lyrics drove it to the top of the charts.

The road for “Barely Breathing” was a surprisingly successful one. Sheik originally didn’t like the song; he just put it on the album to complete it. He didn’t realize that “Barely Breathing” would be the song that solidified him as a star. It peaked at number 16 on the US Billboard charts. It stayed on the chart for 55 weeks—a record; it was the fourth longest running song on the chart. Sheik was nominated for a Grammy for Best Pop Vocal Performance in 1998 and was certified gold. Vh1 considered “Barely Breathing” to be number 88 on the 100 Greatest Songs of the 90s and number 8 on the 40 Greatest One-Hit Wonders of the 90s.

Since then he’s traded in the Grammy for a Tony with Spring Awakening, the Broadway musical Sheik created. The musical received two Tony’s and one Grammy. He’s currently working on the soundtrack to a musical adaptation of American Psycho. While he has new projects, “Barely Breathing” is still in popular culture of today. The song was featured on this week’s episode of Glee. It’s hard to fathom that the hit came out sixteen years ago.

Photo and information courtesy of: Wikipedia "Duncan Sheik"
Information courtesy of: Wikipedia "Barely Breathing" 

All right stop, Collaborate and Listen

Rapper Vanilla Ice, also known as Rob Van Winkle, might not be the first to come to mind when talking about people who changed the hip-hop industry, but the 1990 hit “Ice Ice Baby” helped diversify hip-hop. Vanilla Ice and DJ Earthquake wrote the song about growing up in Florida and Ice’s rap style. The hit samples Queen and David Bowie’s “Under Pressure” for the bassline. 

Many people found Vanilla Ice comical, and didn’t take his other music seriously. At the peak of Ice's career, he made an appearance on Saturday Night Live, made an appearance on Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze, and even had his own doll. “Ice Ice baby” was the first hip-hop song to hit number 1 on the Billboard 200; however since the initial success, popularity has majorly declined. Bender declared “Ice Ice Baby” number 5 on its list of “50 Worst Songs Ever;” however, VH1 ranked it number 29 on the “100 Greatest Songs of the 90s.”

Even though he hasn’t had a hit since “Ice Ice Baby,” Vanilla Ice is still making music. His last record was released in August on 2011 but never got mainstream attention or radio play. His songs have more of a rock sound than a hip-hop sound. He starred on the UK show Dancing on Ice. He hosts a show on the DIY Network called The Vanilla Ice Project.

Picture and information courtesy of Wikipedia: Ice Ice Baby 
Information courtesy of Wikipedia: Vanilla Ice