Ted Egan is an Australian folk singer/songwriter who grew up and lived most of his life in the northern parts of Australia. His songs are many, and tell stories about people and times in Australian history, sometimes serious, sometimes quite funny. Currently, Ted is the Administrator of the Northern Territory of Australia, appointed in 2003. Official site has more:
http://www.tedegan.com.au/bio.htm As does the NT government page:
Ryan Adams (born David Ryan Adams on November 5, 1974) is an alt-country and rock and roll singer-songwriter from Jacksonville, North Carolina. Adams dropped out of high school at age 16 to work in a shoe shop and make music. He formed a band named Whiskeytown in 1994; they disbanded in 1999 having released two full albums, Faithless Street and Strangers Almanac. Adams went on to put out his first solo record, Heartbreaker, in 2000. After a long delay, in 2001 Whiskeytown's third album Pneumonia was finally issued.
Jesca Ada Hoop is a American singer-songwriter and guitarist from Northern California, who performs music that covers differing genres. Her musical mentor has been Tom Waits. One of five children in a fifth generation Mormon couple, Hoop was steeped in a musical environment created by her family. She began performing as a child and starred in her high school choir. Hoop broke away from the strictures of Mormonism just as her parents were separating.