Where to start with Pat Metheny? Jazz guitar pioneer and tireless musical innovator, the Missouri-born Metheny's career stretches back over forty years, during which time his stunning fusion of jazz, pop and world music has won him twenty Grammy Awards, and recently saw him become the youngest member of Downbeat's Hall of Fame (the jazz equivalent of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame).

For many, the unique sound of Macy Gray's husky vocals defined mainstream R&B and neo soul in the early 2000s. Originally hailing from Ohio, the songstress fell into the industry when she agreed to help a fellow muso record a demo tape. When her friend failed to show up, she nonchalantly recorded the track's main vocals, yet her distinctive growl caught the ear of industry movers and shakers, paving the way for a multi-platinum, Grammy-winning career.

The frontman of his self-named band, rock artist and producer Ben Folds continues to work with some of the most eclectic names in music and entertainment (remember his Common People cover that featured William Shatner and Bill Clinton?), as well as pushing the envelope on alt-rock ever further. A self-confessed enigma, he prefers to stay out of the limelight except when touring, but can easily claim credit for some of music's most unlikely trends.

A "unique human-being", Victor Wooten has been touring since the tender age of six, Wooten and his brothers have played alongside legendary soul artist; Curtis Mayfield. From eight years old he was known as "Bass Ace", and before graduating high-school Wooten and his brothers had shared the stage with various artists; Ramsey Lewis, Frankie Beverly, and The Temptations!

There are ukulele players...and then there's Jake Shimabukuro. Declared a "hero" by Rolling Stone, the Hawaiian born musician has taken the humble instrument to new levels, blending bluegrass, flamenco and classical techniques in a lightning-quick flurry of fingerpicking.