YEAR IN REVIEW 2000

A parade of teen-oriented pop stars, led by the Backstreet Boys, Britney Spears, and Ricky Martin, marched into the hearts of American record buyers during 1999. The Backstreet Boys, a harmony-driven quintet, sold 1,130,000 copies of Millennium, their second album, during the first week of its release, breaking a record for first-week sales set previously by Garth Brooks. Spears, a 17-year-old Louisiana native and former cast member of The Mickey Mouse Club, in January released her debut album, . . . Baby One More Time, which later went platinum. Martin, a former member of the Puerto Rican teen group Menudo, raised his mainstream profile in February when he appeared on the Grammy Awards telecast. His steamy, energetic performance attracted new fans and set the stage for the May release of his English-language debut, Ricky Martin, which entered Billboard magazine's album chart at number one. Other Latin artists also scaled the pop charts. Guitarist Carlos Santana released Supernatural, his first studio album in five years. Smooth, a single featuring a Latin rhythm and vocal by Matchbox 20 singer Rob Thomas, held the number one spot on Billboard's pop chart for seven weeks, beginning in October. Martin's Livin' la Vida Loca and Jennifer Lopez's If You Had My Love also held the top spot for more than a month. Successful releases by Marc Anthony, Enrique Iglesias, and Lou Bega suggested that the appeal of Latin music extended beyond the 30 million Hispanic Americans in the U.S. (See Sidebar.) Rap-influenced rock acts, including Limp Bizkit, Korn, and Kid Rock, released best-selling albums, and white rap acts Eminem and Everlast rose to prominence. Limp Bizkit, led by singer Fred Durst, debuted in June at number one on Billboard's album chart with Significant Other; more than 630,000 copies of the album were sold. The group's blend of metal rock and hard-core rap, fueled by the interplay of guitarist Wes Borland and turntable artist D.J. Lethal, appealed to young streetwise listeners. Limp Bizkit, along with Rage Against the Machine and Metallica, performed at the Woodstock '99 concert near Rome, N.Y., which marked the 30th anniversary of the original Woodstock music festival. Hundreds were injured, however, in mosh pit dancing and crowd surfing. Korn, credited with giving Limp Bizkit an early career boost, also appeared at Woodstock '99 and returned to the marketplace with Issues, which bowed at number one on Billboard's album chart. For the first time in more than 10 years, Bruce Springsteen appeared in concert with his E Street Band, playing 36 dates in Europe before moving to the U.S., where he sold out 15 engagements at the Continental Airlines Arena in East Rutherford, N.J. Springsteen was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in March, along with Billy Joel, Curtis Mayfield, Sir Paul McCartney, Del Shannon, Dusty Springfield (see Obituaries), the Staple Singers, Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys, Charles Brown, and Beatles producer George Martin. Dolly Parton, Conway Twitty, and western singer-songwriter Johnny Bond were named to the Country Music Hall of Fame. The Country Music Association presented Shania Twain (see Biographies) with its top honour, Entertainer of the Year. The albums of country artists Tim McGraw, Faith Hill, and the Dixie Chicks debuted at number one on Billboard's album chart. The Dixie Chicks flew with fiddles and a banjo on Fly, their second album. The group's first album, Wide Open Spaces, won a Grammy for best country album. The Fugees' hip-hop artist Lauryn Hill (see Biographies) captured the Grammy for best new artist, and her solo debut, The Mis-education of Lauryn Hill, was named album of the year. Celine Dion's My Heart Will Go On, featured in the motion picture Titanic, was named song of the year, and the soundtrack for the motion picture was chosen record of the year. Changing technology continued to alter the way listeners acquired and experienced music. MP3 audio coding, which compressed audio into manageable computer files, made it practical to share music over the Internet and store it on personal computers. The Beastie Boys, Tom Petty, and Alanis Morissette were among the artists using the technology to preview or promote their recordings. Jay Orr