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John Williams
John Towner Williams (born 1932) is the American composer of Jaws, Star Wars, E.T., Indiana Jones, Jurassic Park, and Harry Potter scores, a five-Oscar winner with 50-plus nominations, Boston Pops laureate conductor, and Steven Spielberg's collaborator on about 30 films.
John Williams (guitarist)
John Williams (guitarist) (born 1941, Melbourne) is an Australian classical guitarist, Segovia pupil, Grammy-winning duet partner of Julian Bream, and crossover artist; distinct from the film composer John Williams (born 1932).
John Zorn
John Zorn (born 1953, New York City) is an American avant-garde composer and alto saxophonist of the downtown scene; creator of Naked City, Masada, Cobra, the Tzadik label, and The Stone, and a 2006 MacArthur Fellow.
Johnnie Ray
Johnnie Ray (John Alvin Ray, 1927–1990), Oregon-born American singer and pianist, early-1950s pop superstar behind "Cry" and "The Little White Cloud That Cried"; emotionally explosive performances and partial deafness made him a precursor of rock and roll who influenced Elvis Presley.
Johnny "J"
Johnny "J" (Johnny Lee Jackson Jr., 1969–2008), Mexican-American hip hop producer from South Central Los Angeles; produced Candyman's "Knockin' Boots" and eleven songs on 2Pac's All Eyez on Me, including "How Do U Want It"; died in LA County custody in 2008.
Johnny Ace
Johnny Ace (John Marshall Alexander Jr., 1929–1954) was a Memphis R&B singer and pianist on Duke Records whose ballads "My Song" and "The Clock" hit #1 R&B; he died playing Russian roulette on Christmas Day 1954, and "Pledging My Love" became a posthumous 1955 crossover hit.
Johnny Borrell
Johnny Borrell (Jonathan Edward Borrell), English singer-songwriter and frontman of Razorlight, formed in London in 2002; known for the 5x platinum 2006 album Razorlight, the No. 1 single "America", and later solo albums Borrell 1 and The Atlantic Culture with Zazou.
Johnny Bush
Johnny Bush (John Bush Shinn III, 1935-2020), Texas honky-tonk country singer, songwriter, and drummer who wrote and first recorded "Whiskey River," Willie Nelson's theme song; lost his voice to spasmodic dysphonia at his 1972 peak, later recovered it with Botox.
Johnny Cash
Johnny Cash (born J.R. Cash, 1932-2003), the Man in Black, was an American country singer-songwriter from Kingsland, Arkansas, known for Sun Records rockabilly hits, the live prison albums At Folsom Prison and At San Quentin, The Johnny Cash Show, the Highwaymen, the Rick Rubin American Recordings series, 13 Grammys, and a 2024 U.S. Capitol statue.
Johnny Christ
Johnny Christ, stage name of Jonathan Seward, is the American bassist of Avenged Sevenfold since 2002, first recording on Waking the Fallen (2003), known for his Schecter signature bass and Drinks With Johnny podcast.
Johnny Clegg
Johnny Clegg (Jonathan Paul Clegg, 1953-2019), the White Zulu, was a South African singer-songwriter, dancer, and anthropologist whose multiracial bands Juluka and Savuka blended Zulu music with Western pop under apartheid; Order of Ikhamanga recipient.
Johnny Franck
Johnny Franck, Ohio-born guitarist and clean vocalist, co-founded metalcore band Attack Attack! (2005-2010) and since 2016 leads the genre-blending solo project Bilmuri, signed to Columbia Records with the 2024 album American Motor Sports and 2026's KINDA HARD.
Johnny Gill
Johnny Gill Jr. (born 1966, Washington, D.C.) is an American R&B singer, New Edition's sixth member, LSG founder, and solo star behind the 2x Platinum 1990 album Johnny Gill with R&B No. 1 hits "Rub You the Right Way" and "My, My, My."
Johnny Griffin
Johnny Griffin (John Arnold Griffin III, 1928–2008), the "Little Giant", was a Chicago-born jazz tenor saxophonist famed for speed, who played with Hampton, Blakey, Monk, and Lockjaw Davis, then expatriated to Paris in 1963 and lived in France until his death.
Johnny Hallyday
Johnny Hallyday (Jean-Philippe Smet, 1943–2017), French rock singer and actor who introduced rock and roll to France, sold over 110 million records, and received a 2017 national funeral on the Champs-Élysées.
Johnny Horton
Johnny Horton (John LaGale/John Gale Horton, 1925-1960), American country and rockabilly singer of the Louisiana Hayride, famous for saga songs like The Battle of New Orleans, a 1959 Grammy winner, killed in a 1960 Texas car crash.
Johnny Lee (singer)
Johnny Lee, born John Lee Ham, is an American country music singer from Texas whose 1980 hit "Lookin' for Love" came from the film Urban Cowboy.
Johnny Logan (singer)
Johnny Logan (Seán Patrick Michael Sherrard, born 1954) is an Irish singer, the first performer to win Eurovision twice (1980 "What's Another Year", 1987 "Hold Me Now") and a third time as composer of "Why Me?" (1992).
Johnny Maestro
Johnny Maestro (John Mastrangelo, 1939–2010), American doo-wop tenor, lead singer of the Crests ('16 Candles') and the Brooklyn Bridge ('Worst That Could Happen', #3, 1969).
Johnny Mandel
Johnny Mandel (John Alfred Mandel, 1925-2020), American composer and arranger, NEA Jazz Master, wrote the Oscar-winning "The Shadow of Your Smile," the M*A*S*H theme "Suicide Is Painless," and the all-jazz score for I Want to Live!.
Johnny Marr
Johnny Marr (born 1963) is the Manchester guitarist and co-songwriter of the Smiths (1982–1987), later of Electronic, the The, Modest Mouse, and the Cribs, with a solo career since 2013 and a signature Fender Jaguar.
Johnny Mathis
Johnny Mathis (born 1935), American traditional pop singer and Columbia Records' longest-running artist; known for "Chances Are," "Misty," and the 490-week chart run of Johnny's Greatest Hits.
Johnny McDaid
Johnny McDaid (born 1976, Derry) is a Northern Irish songwriter, producer, and Snow Patrol guitarist-keyboardist, formerly of Vega4. He co-wrote Ed Sheeran's "Shape of You", "Photograph", "Shivers", and "Bad Habits", winning two Ivor Novello Awards and the 2026 BMI President's Award.
Johnny Mercer
Johnny Mercer (John Herndon Mercer, 1909–1976), Savannah-born American lyricist, singer, and Capitol Records co-founder; wrote over 1,400 songs, won four Best Song Oscars including Moon River, and founded the Songwriters Hall of Fame.
Johnny Orlando
Johnny Orlando (John Vincent Orlando, born 2003, Mississauga, Ontario) is a Canadian pop singer and actor who rose via YouTube covers, released EPs VXIIXI, Teenage Fever, and It's Never Really Over, hit the Canadian Hot 100 with "Everybody Wants You", and made the albums All the Things That Could Go Wrong (2022) and Songs for Young Lovers (2026).
Johnny Otis
Johnny Otis (John Alexander Veliotes, 1921-2012), Greek-American "Godfather of R&B" bandleader, drummer, producer, and talent scout; ten R&B Top Ten singles in 1950, "Willie and the Hand Jive" (1958), produced Big Mama Thornton's "Hound Dog," Rock Hall 1994.
Johnny Paycheck
Johnny Paycheck (Donald Eugene Lytle, 1938–2003), American outlaw country singer from Greenfield, Ohio, whose 1977 David Allan Coe-penned “Take This Job and Shove It” topped the country chart for two weeks.
Johnny Ramone
Johnny Ramone (John Cummings, 1951-2004), Ramones guitarist; all-downstroke picking at 180+ bpm, full barre chords, bridge-pickup rig, and 22 years of band discipline.
Johnny Rodriguez
Johnny Rodriguez (Juan Raul Davis Rodriguez, 1951-2025), Mexican American country singer from Sabinal, Texas; first major Hispanic country star with six No. 1 hits including "Ridin' My Thumb to Mexico" and "That's the Way Love Goes."
Johnny Ruffo
Johnny Ruffo (John Patrick Ruffo, 1988–2023) was an Australian pop singer and actor: third on X Factor Australia 2011, winner of Dancing With The Stars 2012, Chris Harrington on Home and Away, died of brain cancer at 35.