Lady Gaga
Turning down Juilliard, quitting NYU's Tisch School for the Arts and being dropped by Island Def Jam did not hinder this modern disco diva's meteoric rise. Germanotta, whose stage name was inspired by a Queen song, played piano by 4, composed ballads by 13, honed her outrageous style by dancing in burlesque clubs and singing in dive bars by 19 and released The Fame by 20. Gaga became only the third artist in history to score three No. 1 hits off a debut album thanks to "Just Dance," "Poker Face" and "LoveGame." The Grammys and MTV VMAs started to roll
