Ryan Cabrera

He's young and he's is on his way to unseating Dave Matthews as the king of emoti-rock. Texas native Ryan Cabrera was a small-time punk in Dallas when he first heard Matthews. His world turned over, as they say, and within weeks he had abandoned punk rock for the life of a singer-songwriter. After a stint with the band Rubix Groove, Cabrera decided if he was going to make it, he needed to make it on his own. His indie debut album Elm Street was a huge local success and it caught the ear of Jessica Simpson's dad, who became Cabrera's manager in 2001. 2004 saw the release of Cabrera's first major label effort, Take It All Away. Cabrera headed into straight pop territory with 2005's You Stand Watching, showing off his vocal dexterity and hopeful lyricism with songs like "Shine On."