SouthFlorida.com | City Link Magazine

The South Florida music scene is a wasteland. We love saying that, don't we? It kind of goes hand in hand with "Radio sucks!" But the truth is that it's a stereotype we've been holding on to a little too proudly for a little too long. This is why we've compiled the following list of the Top 10 South Florida acts that have had a national impact in recent years. Have they all deserved the notoriety? You be the judge as we take a look at how far they've come, where they stand at this point and where they may be headed as we gaze into the crystal ball. Will New Found Glory die with emo? Will Uncle Luke ever release that all-star album? Is Nonpoint really going to start playing show tunes? Is Jacki-O too sexy for the masses? Is Sam Beam, the man hiding behind the Civil War beard, going to be the next big thing for the Starbucks crowd? How good of a cook is Trick Daddy? Will Dashboard Confessional ever top "Screaming Infidelities"? Is Marilyn Manson's own hell going to be to retire to Florida, where he'll spend his days playing golf and his nights getting tied up by Dita von Teese?

God, we hope so.

DASHBOARD CONFESSIONAL

ID: A former music teacher in Boca Raton, Chris Carrabba fronted South Florida bands Further Seems Forever and the Vacant Andys before creating a solo world of his own as Dashboard Confessional. With a James Dean look and achingly personal lyrics, he continues to mesmerize fans who sit transfixed at live shows, singing every word to every song. He insists he has more in common with songwriters such as Bruce Springsteen and Tom Petty than current emo bands.

Peak: In 2002, on the strength of his album on the indie Vagrant label, The Places You Have Come To Fear the Most, MTV made Dashboard Confessional the first nonplatinum act to be featured in its Unplugged series. He subsequently appeared on the cover of Spin magazine's "Next Big Things" issue.

Sales*: Dashboard's MTV Unplugged CD has been certified platinum, but his 2003 release, A Mark, a Mission, a Brand, a Scar, has sold only 795,000 units. That's a respectable number, but not quite what you'd expect from a Next Big Thing.

Notable achievement: The hit "Screaming Infidelities" boasts one of the simplest, stake-to-the-heart lines ever in "Your hair, it's everywhere." The sitting-cross-legged, sing-along Dashboard audience Carrabba cultivated in South Florida is an anomaly musicologists will be studying for centuries.

Current status: "Vindicated," Dashboard's hit off the Spider-Man 2 soundtrack, kept Carrabba on the airwaves last summer, but he has scrapped the piano-driven album he talked up last year. "I wrote a record and I didn't like it so much," he told MTV. He is currently working with famed producer Daniel Lanois on an album tentatively scheduled to be released in the fall.

Crystal ball: Lanois will mastermind a sparse, heartfelt Dashboard Confessional album that 45-year-old rock critics will love but its target audience will find revoltingly Petty-esque.

MARILYN MANSON

ID: Manson took his journalistic background and natural instinct for self-promotion to create a hyped-up shock band that reached cult status. Backing from Trent Reznor brought Manson a national audience. He set out to scare America but ended up mostly doing demonic covers of songs such as "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)" and coming up with clever titles for his own tunes such as "I Don't Like the Drugs (but the Drugs Like Me)."

Peak: His Antichrist image exploded in the mid-'90s. Cities canceled concerts, goth ruled, suicides ensued, and goats were sacrificed. Manson sang, "I'm a black rainbow," but found himself in the middle of a political shit storm.

Sales: Antichrist Superstar went platinum in 1996. In 1998, Mechanical Animals debuted at No. 1. In 2003, Manson proved he still had enough satanic staying power when The Golden Age of Grotesque debuted at No. 1. His recent best-of collection, Lest We Forget, has sold 494,000 copies.

Notable achievement: Manson's dead-on, state-of-the-nation analysis in Michael Moore's Bowling for Columbine made him our new favorite intellectual. His remarks on the perpetual "campaign of fear and consumption" in America are brilliant.

Current status: He's an international icon but musically irrelevant. Manson has remained newsworthy for a lawsuit over his placing his scrotum atop a security guard's head during a concert and planning his wedding to fetish star Dita von Teese. Last year's cover of Depeche Mode's "Personal Jesus" was seen by many critics as an invitation to Manson's retirement party.

Crystal ball: Unlike many artists with roots in South Florida, Manson has never looked back. Expect great things from him, just not great music. He may have to settle for golfing with Alice Cooper and having sociopolitical conversations with Bill Maher. Plus, Dita von Teese will probably be a good time filler.

JACKI-O

ID: In and out of juvenile delinquent facilities and prison, Jacki-O has been arrested for everything from aggravated assault to cocaine trafficking. But as she boasts in the song "Gangsta Bitch," "I post bail and never broke a nail." Arguably the sexiest rapper walking the earth, she also claims, "That same energy, that same aggressiveness I had in the streets, I now apply to my music."

Peak: In 2003, the single "Nookie (Real Good)" -- which features the lyrics, "That pussy it's so purdy/She so sweet, she so good/Wet and deep" -- put Jacki-O's name on the tongue of every record executive in the business.

Sales: Her debut album on TVT, Poe Little Rich Girl, has sold a mere 59,000 copies since its November 2004 release.

Notable achievement: Her fight with veteran rapper Foxy Brown at the famed Circle House Studios in Miami was a perfect PR move. "I went to work, and I did not know I would be winning an ass-kicking contest," Jacki-O told MTV. "You don't come to somebody's session acting like a clown. Something is seriously wrong with [Brown]. She's washed-up. She needs to sit back and relax and retire. It ain't happening for her no more."

Current status: Even though Jacki-O's album sales have been meager, BET nominated her female hip-hop artist of the year.

Crystal ball: Trina's going down next.

IRON AND WINE

ID: With a Civil War-era beard and a musical style that has been described as "whisper folk," former Florida State University student Sam Beam has become a quiet sensation. Going by the moniker Iron and Wine, which he took from a homeopathic Southern remedy, Beam recorded his 2002 Sub Pop breakthrough, The Creek Drank the Cradle, on a handful of computers at his Miami Shores home.

Peak: It's happening now. Iron and Wine's profile is surging, thanks to appearances on both The OC and Garden State soundtracks. A new EP, Woman King, continues to increase in sales and exposure, and Beam will play in front of his largest audience this Saturday at the Bonnaroo festival in Tennessee.

Sales: Iron and Wine's second album, 2004's Our Endless Numbered Days, made its way onto Billboard's Top 10 independent albums and Heatseekers charts, and has sold about 110,000 copies. Woman King, which was released in February, has sold about 50,000 copies.

Current status: See "Peak."

Notable achievement: Considering South Florida's contributions to musical culture, Iron and Wine is our one claim to true artistry and sophisticated songwriting. Uncle Luke had all the obscenity in the world at his disposal, but Beam uses it more wisely, singing in one song, "We were born to fuck each other."

Crystal ball: With lyrics such as, "There are things that drift away like our endless numbered days/Autumn blew the quilt right off the perfect bed she made," Beam should quietly be able to keep us captivated for, oh, the next 20 years or so.

NEW FOUND GLORY

ID: A nasal singer; a gifted guitarist; a crazy, overweight bass player; and cartoonish tattoos: Combine all these with a relentless work ethic and a knack for making friends with everyone who comes to their shows, and you have the list of ingredients behind the success of the Coral Springs-bred New Found Glory.

Peak: In 2001, the infectious single "Hit or Miss" received heavy airplay in every radio market in the nation. Blink-182 invited the band over for waffles. All their parents got NFG tattoos. Two years later, the group co-headlined the Honda Civic Tour with Good Charlotte. The Office Depot Center show sold out.

Sales: The band's debut CD almost went gold, and 2002's Sticks and Stones is now approaching platinum status. Last year's Catalyst debuted in Billboard's Top 10 but has since leveled off, selling 600,000 copies to date.

Notable achievement: The band's members have not forgotten their roots. They wore "We're From Coral Springs" T-shirts and highlighted the town in their videos. They also set the gold standard for building a fan base without the backing of a major label.

Current status: At a crossroads. Emo is dying. Even the elder statesmen in Blink-182 are taking what could become a permanent hiatus. But with extremely loyal fans, NFG could tour forever if it chooses to do so. Plus, guitarist Chad Gilbert and bassist Ian Grushka have started their own music label, Broken Sounds.

Crystal ball: Grushka will open a bagel emporium in Coral Springs. Singer Jordan Pundik will start his own line of comic books. Gilbert will turn semi-pro wrestler. Lyricist and guitarist Steve Klein will become the coolest history teacher at FAU. Drummer Cyrus Bolooki will go to med school.

PITBULL

ID: A Little Havana street poet with his daddy's "hustler blood" pumping through his veins, Pitbull built his reputation selling mix tapes out of his car and honing his skills with Uncle Luke.

Peak: After contributing the song "Oye" to the 2 Fast 2 Furious soundtrack, Pitbull turned 2004 into his coming-out party, going national with the bombastic anthem "Culo" and appearing on Lil Jon and the East Side Boyz's double-platinum album Kings of Crunk. CNN, The Washington Post and The New York Times all profiled him.

Sales: His TVT debut M.I.A.M.I. (Money Is a Major Issue) has gone gold, and Pit hopes it doesn't go much further. "It blows up any bigger than that, those people don't know you, won't stick with you," he says.

Notable achievement: Last month, three students at Miami Springs High School were suspended after school officials accused them of flashing gang signals in a yearbook photo. The students claimed they were just Pitbull fans and were flashing the "305" sign. Pitbull came forward to back them up and set the record straight.

Current status: A compilation of vintage Pitbull material titled Welcome to the 305 has just been released. He is teaming with P. Diddy to launch the Bad Boy Latino label. Never without a 305 hat or Cuban-flag patch, Pitbull literally wears his roots on his sleeve and has a leave-no-brother-or-sister-behind mentality, so Bad Boy could be a big boost for Florida's other Hispanic hip-hop acts.

Crystal ball: Unstoppable. In his own words: "30 and out. Live off my investments."

NONPOINT

ID: Formed in Miami in 1997, this rap-metal foursome easily fits on a tour bill with acts such as Sevendust and Linkin Park. Singer Elias Soriano describes Nonpoint's live show as "putting yourself in a room with absolutely no doors or windows and repeatedly punching yourself in the face."

Peak: 2000's Statement, the group's MCA debut, which included the hit single "What a Day."

Sales: The aggressive Statement sold more than 250,000 copies, but sales dwindled when the band took a more melodic turn with its follow-up, Development. Soriano said he had grown beyond his Korn and Rage Against the Machine stage and revealed that his roots were in choir and Broadway music.

Current status: Well, how do we put this? Last year, the band released a cover of Phil Collins' "In the Air Tonight."

Notable achievement: The "In the Air Tonight" cover was well-received.

Crystal ball: Next stop: Broadway.

LUTHER "UNCLE LUKE" CAMPBELL

ID: Luke describes himself as The Don of Dons when it comes to South Florida rap, and he's not far off the mark. His DNA is all over the works of Trick Daddy, Pitbull and even Lil Jon. With a career built on controversy from the early 2 Live Crew recordings, he continues to act as an ambassador, whether he's representing at a Russell Simmons summit or calling out local radio for not giving Miami artists airtime.

Peak: In the late 1980s, Campbell became the unlikely poster boy for freedom of speech as 2 Live Crew's recordings and live performances were deemed obscene and the battle went to the courts.

Sales: Controversy sent sales of As Nasty as They Wanna Be into the millions.

Notable achievement: Campbell won a Supreme Court decision that ruled his parody of Roy Orbison's "Oh, Pretty Woman" didn't violate the copyright held by Acuff Rose. He also launched the career of R&B vocalists H-Town, issuing their debut album on Luke Records.

Current status: Musically, Uncle Luke has become the Axl Rose of hip-hop. He is forever working on a monster album with big-name guest stars that never materializes. King magazine has published excerpts from his tell-all book, but the book has yet to show up on bookstore shelves. He advertises a Web site -- www.unclelukesworld.com -- but it doesn't exist. You get the picture.

Crystal ball: Campbell will become the Santana of hip-hop when his all-star album is finally released. He will collect eight Grammys for it.

FURTHER SEEMS FOREVER

ID: When it was formed in Pompano Beach, Further Seems Forever was a hybrid of three other local bands: Strongarm, Shai Hulud and the Vacant Andys. Originally led by vocalist Chris Carrabba, the group recorded a song for an Emo Diaries compilation and released a split EP with Recess Theory before Carrabba took off on his own as Dashboard Confessional. (See above.) Since then, the band has gone through numerous changes but is currently headed by former Sense Field singer Jon Bunch and performing power-pop with Christianity sprinkled on top.

Peak: In March 2001, with former Affinity frontman Jason Gleason at the helm, Further Seems Forever released the critically acclaimed The Moon Is Down on Tooth and Nail.

Sales: The Moon Is Down sold 80,000 copies and Hide Nothing, released this past August, has moved 38,000 units.

Notable achievement: Even with band members moving through its revolving doors, Further Seems Forever appears to have lost few fans over the years.

Current status: The band is touring Europe somewhere between Oslo, Norway, and Hamburg, Germany, at this very moment. It has been nominated for a Gospel Music Award for Music Video of the Year with "Light Up Ahead."

Crystal ball: The band will put out more songs with titles like "Light Up Ahead."

TRICK DADDY

ID: Trick Daddy has gone from throwing down food stamps to get into a dice game in Liberty City to drinking Cristal and sitting courtside at Miami Heat games. His career blew up in Atlanta, which earned him an association with the Dirty South sound, but he gives full credit to the respect he earned in Florida and musically never strays from the inner city. "People can go up or down the ladder out here," he says. "But the street is always the street."

Peak: His 2001 breakout hit, "I'm a Thug," gave him an identity he has embraced on one successful album after another, including Thug Holiday, Thugs Are Us, www.thug.com, Book of Thugs and Thug Matrimony: Married to the Streets.

Sales: Trick's popularity has fluctuated, but he is firmly established with four gold albums. Last year's Thug Matrimony is headed for platinum status with 804,000 units sold.

Notable achievement: Trick Daddy was reportedly tapped by MTV to film a pilot for a show called Cookin' With Trick Daddy. "I cook anything but chitlins," he told www.allhiphop.com, "because chitlins smell like a dirty ass."

Current status: His single "Let's Go," which samples Ozzy Osbourne's "Crazy Train," won't go away. Trick has settled in as a highly respected hip-hop artist and champion player of Madden '05 on PlayStation 2. He also has his own weekly show, Dunk Rider Radio, on XM Satellite Radio's 66 Raw station.

Crystal ball: Sales and prominence may rise and fall, but he will keep evolving as an artist. "I want to continue to show that I can get down on different topics and different aspects of the game," he says. "I'm gonna keep knockin' at society's problems."

* All sales figures provided by SoundScan.