Carly Rae Jepsen's infectious summer hit, "Call Me Maybe" spawned thousands of YouTube imitators while launching her single to the top of the charts.
Colin Kaepernick
The number #2 QB of the San Francisco 49ers made news in 2012 when filling in for main man, Alex Smith. The number #1 question in everyone's minds was whether or not "Kaep" will take over the #1 spot, permanently.
Ellie Goulding
Singer/songwriter Ellie Goulding scored two chart hits in 2012 with "Lights" and "Anything Can Happen" that took over the dance floor and radio waves all over the world.
Olympians: "Fierce 5"
The Fierce Five (also known as the Fab Five) is the artistic gymnastics team that won the second ever gold medal for the United States in the women's team competition at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. The five members of the team are Gabby Douglas, McKayla Maroney, Aly Raisman, Kyla Ross, and Jordyn Wieber.
Frank Ocean
Singer/Songwriter, Frank Ocean penned hits by Brandy, Justin Bieber, and John Legend. Ocean became well-known when he came out of the closet about his sexuality and garnered support by major artists for his openness and his talent.
Gotye
Wouter "Wally" De Backer, better known by Gotye is a Belgian-Australian multi-instrumental musician and singer-songwriter. The name "Gotye" is derived from "Gauthier", the French equivalent of "Walter" or "Wouter". His voice has been compared to those of Peter Gabriel and Sting. Gotye's single "Somebody That I Used to Know" reached Number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, making him the fifth Australian based artist to do so.
Jennifer Lawrence
Jennifer Lawrence first jumped on the scene when she was nominated for an Academy Award, Golden Globe Award, Satellite Award, and the Screen Actors Guild Award for her performance in the two independent films, "The Burning Plain" and "Winter's Bone." At age 20, she became the second youngest actress ever to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress. In 2012, she achieved wider recognition starring as the heroine Katniss Everdeen in The Hunger Games, an adaptation of Suzanne Collins' best-selling novel of the same name. In October 2012, Lawrence was announced as the new face of Dior. In November 2012, Lawrence played a recovering sex addict in David O. Russell's Silver Linings Playbook, an adaptation of the novel of the same name, by Matthew Quick, opposite Bradley Cooper and Robert De Niro. Lawrence began working on the film adaptation of the second novel in the The Hunger Games trilogy, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, which is scheduled to be released on November 22, 2013.
Jeremy Lin
In February 2012, Jeremy Lin unexpectedly led a winning streak with the New York Knicks while being promoted to the starting lineup, which generated a global following known as "Linsanity." In the summer of 2012, Lin signed a three-year contract with the Rockets. Lin attended Palo Alto High School and went on to Harvard University there after. Lin is now with the Houston Rockets and is one of the few Asian Americans in NBA history, and the first American of Chinese or Taiwanese descent to play in the league.
fun.
This New York Indie Pop trio of Nate Ruess (vocals), Andrew Dost (keyboard, bass) and Jack Antonoff (guitar, trumpet), hit number #1 on Billboard's Hot 100 with "We Are Young" featuring Janelle Monae. fun. is up for several Grammys including Album of the Year for "Some Nights" and Record of the Year for "We Are Young."
Kate Upton
This American model and actress, known for her appearances in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue first in 2011, when she was named Rookie of the Year, and again in 2012, when she was announced as the cover model. Her acting debut was in the Ben Stiller movie "Tower Heist" and again in "The Three Stooges."
Kendall and Kylie Jenner
Both sisters of the Kardashian/Jenner clan are American reality television stars, television personalities, models, and brand ambassadors for Seventeen Magazine. They are best known for appearing on the E! reality TV show Keeping Up with the Kardashians.
Lana Del Ray
Del Rey's music has been noted for its cinematic sound and its references to various aspects of pop culture, particularly that of the 1950s and '60s Americana. The singer has described herself as a "self-styled gangsta Nancy Sinatra."
Lena Dunham
Lena Dunham is an American filmmaker and actress who wrote and directed the independent film Tiny Furniture (2010), and is the creator and star of the HBO hit series "Girls." In 2012, she was nominated for 4 Emmy Awards for "Girls."
One Direction
Members of the British-Irish boy group One Direction consist of members Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Liam Payne, Harry Styles, and Louis Tomlinson were formed in 2010 by Simon Cowell after finishing third in the British version of "The X-Factor" and propelled the boy-band to worldwide super-stardom.
Phillip Phillips
Phillip Phillips is an American singer-songwriter from Leesburg, Georgia who won the 11th season of Fox's "American Idol" on May 23, 2012. In November 2012, Phillips released his debut album "The World From The Side of the Moon."
PSY
Korean rapper, PSY became a pop culture icon in 2012 when the video to his song "Gangnam Style" went viral on YouTube with over 1 billion views. Making PSY the current record holder of most viewed video on YouTube. PSY appeared everywhere and even had people like Britney Spears, Ellen Degeneres and the San Francisco Giants dancing "Gangnam Style."
Rebel Wilson
Australian actress/comedienne Rebel Wilson was named as one of the "Top Comics To Watch For" by Variety Magazine. In 2012, Wilson appeared in the hit film, "Pitch Perfect."
San Francisco Giants: Hunter Pence, Marco Scutero & Angel Pagan
The San Francisco Giants defeated the Detroit Tigers 4-3 in the tenth inning to win the 2012 World Series in 4 straight games. Here, Marco Scutaro #19 of the San Francisco Giants celebrates with Angel Pagan #16 and Hunter Pence #8 in the locker room after defeating the Detroit Tigers to win Game Four of the Major League Baseball World Series at Comerica Park on October 28, 2012 in Detroit, Michigan.
Stephen Amell
Canadian actor, Stephen Amell can be seen the masked archer on The CW's new hit action series "Arrow" a re-imagining of DC Comics' "Green Arrow."
