8) Rihanna

Short Bio

Petite, cute as a button and enormously talented, this singer has been topping the charts since 2005. Most known for her annoyingly catchy No. 1 hit “Umbrella,” Rihanna (Robyn Rihanna Fenty at birth) has five other chart-topping singles and a robust 11 million albums sold worldwide, including Music of the Sun, A Girl Like Me and Good Girl Gone Bad. Like so many success stories, Rihanna’s big break came almost by accident -- she had recorded a few tracks that somehow fell into the hands of Jay-Z, who soon signed her to Def Jam. And the rest is, as they say, history.

Why She's No.8?

Rihanna has this engaging quality about her that makes her seem very down-to-earth -- you'll hear her giggle in a song, or see her coy smile in a video, and it's almost like she's flirting directly with you. This is one of the main reasons she’s made it so big. And now this Caribbean queen is working with Gucci, so look for her in the world of fashion in the coming months. Of course, she’s about more than cranking out hits and selling purses -- Rihanna works with UNICEF and runs a charitable foundation that benefits terminally ill children. She’s almost too good to be true.