Actress/vocalist Demi Lovato began making a name for herself after starring alongside the Jonas Brothers in the 2008 Disney Channel movie Camp Rock. Born in 1992 in Dallas, TX, she was raised in a household that included her mother, a former Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader, and her two sisters, the youngest of whom launched her own acting career in 2008.

Born on Staten Island on December 18, 1980, Aguilera spent her early childhood in Pittsburgh, PA. By age six, she began performing regularly in local talent shows, working her way to an appearance on the nationally televised competition Star Search. This was the true beginning of Aguilera’s professional career, leading her to joining Disney Channel’s reboot of The Mickey Mouse Club in 1992.

Brown came from a small Virginia town called Tappahannock. Like a lot of kids born since the early ’80s, he was initially into his parents’ favorite music but eventually fell under the spell of hip-hop. Around the time he reached puberty, he discovered his singing ability and switched his focus away from MC’ing. A move to New York led to being discovered by Tina Davis, a Def Jam A&R executive who became the singer’s manager shortly after losing her position to the Sony-BMG merger.

After a string of behind-the-scene jobs — everything from writing songs for Brandy to impersonating Elvis — singer/songwriter/producer Bruno Mars put his name on top of the charts in 2010 by collaborating with rapper B.o.B. for the single “Nothin’ on You.” Born Peter Hernandez in Waikiki, Hawaii, Mars’ kicked off his career at the age of four fronting his uncle’s band as the Island’s youngest Elvis impersonator. Ten years later, he was impersonating the King of Pop, Michael Jackson, with the Legends in Concert show. After graduation, his uncle convinced him to move to the Mainland and follow of his dream of becoming a singer.

Born in Houston in September 1981, Beyoncé Giselle Knowles began performing at age seven, winning upwards of 30 local competitions for her dancing and vocal abilities. She also joined her cousin Kelly Rowland and classmates LaTavia Roberson and LeToya Luckett in forming an adolescent vocal group. Mathew Knowles, Beyoncé’s father and Rowland’s legal guardian, signed on to be the girls’ manager, eventually quitting his full-time job to focus on their efforts. This situation would ultimately lead to the creation of one of the most popular female R&B groups of all time — Destiny’s Child.

Britney Jean Spears was born December 2, 1981, in the small town of Kentwood, LA, and began performing as a singer and dancer at a young age. With a nationally televised appearance on Star Search already under her belt, Spears auditioned for The Disney Channel’s The New Mickey Mouse Club at age eight. The producers turned her down as too young, but one of them took an interest and introduced her to an agent in New York. Spears spent the next three years studying at the Professional Performing Arts School, and also appeared in several television commercials and off-Broadway plays. At 11, she returned to The New Mickey Mouse Club for a second audition, and this time made the cut. Although her fellow Mouseketeers included an impressive array of future stars — *NSYNC’s Justin Timberlake and JC Chasez, Christina Aguilera, and Felicity actress Keri Russell — the show was canceled after Spears’ second season. She returned to New York at age 15 and set about auditioning for pop bands and recording demo tapes, one of which eventually landed her a deal with Jive Records.