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Billy Joe Shaver
Billy Joe Shaver (1939-2020), Texas outlaw country singer-songwriter, wrote nearly all of Waylon Jennings's Honky Tonk Heroes (1973); his songs were covered by Cash, Presley, and Dylan.
Billy Joel
Billy Joel (William Martin Joel, born 1949) is an American singer-songwriter and pianist, also called the Piano Man, with 150 million records sold, five Grammys, the Gershwin Prize, and a Madison Square Garden residency; distinct from any other Joel or Billy namesake.
Billy Mackenzie
Billy Mackenzie (William MacArthur Mackenzie, 1957-1997), Scottish singer of the Associates with Alan Rankine; four-octave voice, Sulk and Party Fears Two, solo Outernational, died in Auchterhouse.
Billy Ocean
Billy Ocean, born Leslie Sebastian Charles in Trinidad in 1950, is a Trinidadian-British singer whose 1980s hits include "Caribbean Queen" and "Get Outta My Dreams, Get Into My Car."
Billy Powell
Billy Powell (1952-2009), American keyboardist of Southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd; former roadie who composed the Free Bird piano intro, survived the 1977 crash, played through the 1987 reunion.
Billy Preston
Billy Preston (William Everett Preston, 1946–2006), American keyboardist and singer; the only musician credited on a Beatles single ("Get Back"); Rolling Stones touring keyboardist; solo hits "Outa-Space" and "Nothing from Nothing"; Rock Hall 2021.
Billy Ray Cyrus
Billy Ray Cyrus, American country singer and actor from Flatwoods, Kentucky; "Achy Breaky Heart" (1992) and 17-week No. 1 debut album Some Gave All; later Hannah Montana and Lil Nas X's "Old Town Road."
Billy Sheehan
Billy Sheehan (born 1953, Buffalo, New York) is an American rock bassist of Talas, the David Lee Roth band, Mr. Big, Niacin, and The Winery Dogs, known for two-handed tapping, three-finger plucking, and the Yamaha Attitude signature bass.
Billy Strayhorn
Billy Strayhorn (William Thomas Strayhorn, 1915-1967), American jazz composer, pianist, and arranger; Duke Ellington's collaborator for nearly 30 years; composer of Take the 'A' Train and Lush Life; papers at Library of Congress.
Billy Strings
Billy Strings (William Apostol, born 1992, Lansing, Michigan) is an American bluegrass guitarist and singer with three Grammy wins for Best Bluegrass Album; albums include Renewal, Highway Prayers, and the 2026 T Bone Burnett-produced So Much for Goodbyes.
Billy Talent
Billy Talent: Canadian punk rock band from Mississauga, Ontario, formed 1993 as Pezz; members Kowalewicz, D'Sa, Gallant, Solowoniuk; triple-platinum 2003 debut, three Junos, German chart success.
Billy Tipton
Billy Tipton (born Dorothy Lucille Tipton) was an American jazz pianist, saxophonist, and bandleader who lived as a man from about 1934 until his death in 1989.
Billy Vera
Billy Vera (William McCord, Jr., born 1944), American soul singer-songwriter of "At This Moment" (No. 1, 1987, via Family Ties), Judy Clay duets, Grammy-winning liner notes, actor and music historian.
Bing Crosby
Bing Crosby (Harry Lillis Crosby, 1903–1977), American singer and actor, pioneer of intimate microphone crooning; best-selling "White Christmas," Oscar for Going My Way, 104 films, radio and tape-recording pioneer.
Bing Worthington
Bing Worthington (Bing Crosby Worthington Jr.), Snoop Dogg's younger brother, was an American music executive, tour manager, and producer who co-founded Dogg Records and died in February 2024 at 44.
Binni Krishnakumar
Binni (Binny) Krishnakumar, born 1974 in Thodupuzha, Kerala, is a Carnatic classical vocalist and playback singer, half of a noted vocal duo with husband K. Krishnakumar, and singer of "Raa Raa" in Chandramukhi (2005).
Birdy (singer)
Birdy is the stage name of Jasmine van den Bogaerde (born 1996), English singer-songwriter from Lymington, Hampshire; broke through at 14 covering Bon Iver's Skinny Love, then released five albums including Fire Within, Beautiful Lies, Young Heart, and Portraits.
Birgit Nilsson
Birgit Nilsson (Märta Birgit Nilsson, 1918–2005), Swedish dramatic soprano famed as the era's leading Wagner interpreter (Isolde, Brünnhilde), also Strauss and Puccini; namesake of the $1 million Birgit Nilsson Prize and Svenstad museum.
Birzhan Sal
Birzhan Sal (Біржан сал, Birzhan Kozhagululy) was a nineteenth-century Kazakh singer, composer, and improvising poet, best known for his 1871 poetic contest with Sara Tastanbekkyzy.
Bishnu Prasad Rabha
Bishnu Prasad Rabha, called Kalaguru (teacher of art), was a 20th-century Assamese poet, songwriter, playwright, and actor, remembered as a founder of modern Assamese culture and as a communist legislator.
Bishop Briggs
Bishop Briggs, stage name of Sarah Grace McLaughlin (born 1992), London-born, Los Angeles-based English singer-songwriter named after Bishopbriggs, Scotland; known for "River" (2016), albums Church of Scars and Champion, and winning The Masked Singer season 9 as Medusa.
Bismillah Khan
Ustad Bismillah Khan (21 March 1916 – 21 August 2006), born Qamaruddin Khan in Dumraon, Bihar, was the Indian shehnai virtuoso who took the double-reed folk instrument onto the classical concert stage, played at the 1947 Red Fort independence ceremony, and received the Bharat Ratna in 2001.
BIT20 Ensemble
BIT20 Ensemble, founded 1989 in Bergen from BIT 4 and Gruppe 20, is a leading Nordic contemporary music sinfonietta of 17 musicians, giving 30-40 concerts yearly, commissioning 100+ works, and recording 26 CDs.
BJ the Chicago Kid
BJ the Chicago Kid, born Bryan James Sledge in 1984, is an American R&B/soul singer from Chicago's South Side, known for "Studio" with ScHoolboy Q, the Motown albums In My Mind, 1123, and Gravy, and multiple Grammy nominations.
Björk
Björk Guðmundsdóttir (born 1965, Reykjavík), Icelandic singer-songwriter of the Sugarcubes; solo from Debut (1993) through Medúlla and Biophilia; Cannes best actress for Dancer in the Dark and AIM awards winner.
Björn Again
Björn Again, the Australian ABBA tribute show founded in Melbourne in 1988 by Rod Stephen and John Tyrrell, first performed 6 May 1989 at The Tote Hotel; famous for Swenglish parody, Reading 1992 with Nirvana, and over 5,300 shows worldwide.
Björn Ulvaeus
Björn Ulvaeus is a Swedish songwriter, guitarist, singer, and producer, best known for being a core member of ABBA and co-writing most of the group's songs with Benny Andersson.
Black (singer)
Black (singer) is the stage name of Colin Vearncombe (1962–2016), Liverpool singer-songwriter known for the 1987 international hit Wonderful Life; other names include Sweetest Smile and albums Comedy, Black, Are We Having Fun Yet?, and Blind Faith on his Nero Schwarz label.
Black Arts Movement and creative music
The Black Arts Movement and creative music refers to African American avant-garde jazz collectives of the 1960s and 1970s, including the Black Artists' Group and UGMAA, that applied cultural self-determination to music.
Black Box (band)
Black Box (also Blackbox) is an Italian house trio of Daniele Davoli, Mirko Limoni, and Valerio Semplici, formed 1988, behind "Ride on Time," a six-week UK number 1 sampled from Loleatta Holloway, distinct from Black Box Recorder.