Nearly 25 years after German rock band Scorpions rocked us like a hurricane, teen glam rockers Tokio Hotel are making America scream.

Founded in 2001 by then 11-year-old twin brothers Tom (guitars) and Bill Kauiltz (vocals) and rounded out by Gustav Schäfer (drums) and Georg Listing (bass), the band has been dubbed "the greatest German bubblegum-neo-glam-goth-emo boy band. Ever."

The group released two successful albums in Germany, Schrei (Scream) and Zimmer 483 (Room 483), before putting out the English-language debut Scream earlier this year. The collection of songs successfully translates some of their biggest hits – the 2005 hit single, Durch Den Monsun is now Monsoon – while filling in some gaps. As Bill's look has become more femme, his voice has gotten deeper, making their latest effort their most adult-sounding yet.

The rocking Ready, Set, Go! has made the band's popularity stateside explode, prompting the band to lament: "We're trying to live our dreams and not to give up, expressing ourselves no matter what people may say."

See: myspace.com/tokiohotel

Three albums deep, Texas rapper Big Geminii is showing off his softer side.

On his latest, History in the Making, the Texas native drops streetwise raps about grindin' like Time to Stack a Million and Hate or Love Me but he easily slips into ballads like My Shawty and Amazing. With a raspy, juicy voice and a flow that oozes Dallas, Big Geminii is finally fessing up to being a ladies man: "I used to sing on some of the background tracks for my songs but I would tell people it was my partner from Austin, Texas."

It's working. His saucy slow jam, Hypnotize, featuring a sticky-icky chorus by MC Magic, cracked the Billboard Pop 100 earlier this year and is slowly taking over urban radio.

See: myspace.com/therealgem

After a tough break-up, Katie White and Jules De Martino decided to stay together.

The U.K. natives were once two-thirds of the dance pop band Dear Eskiimo. But after being signed to a major label, the trio only lasted "about a year" before "it all went wrong," according to De Martino. After Dear Eskiimo, singer-guitarist White and drummer De Martino renamed themselves The Ting Tings, a name that comes from a Mandarin term for "band stand" and, well, whatever White wants it to, from "the sound of an open mind" to "the 'ting' you hear when you get an idea."

Regardless of what it means, we've all been hearing alot of it lately thanks to the iPod commercial which made their song Shut Up And Let Me Go an overnight sensation. The group first picked up momentum with two indie singles, That Is Not My Name and Great DJ and signed with Sony Records late last year. Their debut, We Started Nothing, is so chock full of catchy dance punk that Rolling Stone likens it to the best of Gwen Stefani or Kylie Minogue.

As their star rises, White and De Martino say they won't make the same mistake twice: "We had this thing in our last band where we constantly took advice from people... [s]o in this band we sort of made the unconscious decision to just not listen to any advice anybody gave us."

See: myspace.com/thetingtings

Singer songwriter Ferras says he's always felt like an outsider but it hasn't stopped him from working his way into the limelight.

Ferras Alqaisi grew up in the mostly white town of Gillespie, Illinois, where he says he "stood out like a sore thumb." But when his parents divorced, Ferras, then five years old, was kidnapped by his father and taken to Jordan, his dad's homeland. While in the Middle East, Ferras recalls he picked up a Casio keyboard and wrote a song about missing his mother. Though he soon returned to Gillespie, the experience left an indelible mark.

As a teenager, Ferras, who cites British pop legend Elton John as a major influence, figured small-town Illinois wasn't the best place to score a record deal, so he and his mom left their winter coats behind and moved to sunny Los Angeles. The move paid off last year when the TV juggernaut "American Idol" picked his track, Hollywood’s not America as the show's exit song. The piano ballad, which questions America’s fascination with celebrity, quickly spread to pop radio.

Ferras' debut, Aliens and Rainbows, has already earned him comparisons to his idol, Elton John. Now 26 years old, the self-described "alien" is glad he doesn't quite fit in: "[I]n my songs, there’s definitely a uniqueness to them in comparison to what’s happening on the radio right now."

See: myspace.com/ferrasmusic

In two years, Victor "Lunatiko" and Johnny "El Duke" Lopez went from rags to riches. Almost. "We came from El Salvador and the situation was so bad there, we got to the projects, and to us it was Beverly Hills," says Victor, half-joking.

The Lopez brothers had already lived in East Los Angeles, but problems with gangs led to a two-year stint at a military academy in their native El Salvador. Scared straight, Victor and Johnny vowed to move out of gangs and into hip hop. In the '90s, the duo dubbed itself Crooked Stilo (a play on "Crooked Style") and released two albums of Cypress Hill-influenced bilingual rap, Crooked For Life and So What You Want.

In 2004, a year after acts like Akwid and Kinto Sol made their debut, Crooked Stilo released Puro Escándalo on the mostly Mexican Fonovisa Records. Featuring Spanish lyrics and cumbia samples, the album helped usher in a movement some dubbed "regional urbano." Crooked Stilo counter that many of their most popular tracks, Ya Lo Saben, Mis Colegialas and Chicas de Reventón, are "just hip hop." The Lopez brothers have since dropped another two albums, 2005's Retrasalo (Back It Up) and last summer's Malhablados (Vulgar). The Lopez brothers set their partying ways aside, for at least a few songs, including "No Te Vayas," a touching song about a young soldier sent out to war.

Crooked Stilo's newest record, Cumbia Urbana: The Album, is scheduled for release at the end of the month.

See: myspace.com/crookedstilo

New York rapper Felipe Coronel – aka Immortal Technique – relishes a battle.

Like Eminem before him, the Peruvian-born MC made a name for himself in underground hip hop by defeating established rappers in freestyle battles. In 2001, he dropped his debut, Revolutionary Vol. 1. An aggressive political album in the vein of Dead Prez and Public Enemy, the album's most popular track, Dance With The Devil, is a seven-minute lament on the tragic, violent fall of a criminal. His sophomore release, Revolutionary Vol. 2, became an underground sensation in 2003, spawning hits like The Point of No Return and Industrial Revolution.

One year later, the gravel-voiced Immortal Technique teamed up with the ubiquitous DJ Green Lantern (Eminem, 50 Cent) to release Bin Laden featuring Mos Def and Eminem. The controversial track samples a line from Jadakiss' Why to claim "Bush knocked down the towers." This summer, Immortal Technique and Green Lantern are back with a new album, The 3rd World, on indie Viper Records (Coronel is the label's Executive VP). With guest appearances by Psycho Realm, Ras Kass and Chino XL, the record should hold over fans eagerly awaiting Immortal Technique's forthcoming albums, The Middle Passage and Revolutionary, Vol. 3.

In the meantime, they can catch Coronel on the multi-city Rock the Bells Festival tour with hip hop legends A Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul and Rakim.

See: myspace.com/immortaltechnique

M.J. couldn't stay behind the music for long.

A sound engineer and producer, 23-year-old José A. Matos Negrón, aka M.J., left the console behind and picked up a microphone after he was discovered by DJ Negro at The Noise – the Puerto Rican club nights promoted by the DJ collective of the same name. Backed by romantic reggaetonero Zion, M.J. earned a spot on Los Benjamins: La Continuación by Luny Tunes. Dile, a romantikeo jam with sizzling synths and acoustic guitar, became a minor hit in Puerto Rico – no small feat when you're on an album with the likes of Daddy Yankee, Don Omar and Wisin y Yandel.

Earlier this month, M.J. released his debut album, Mi Sentimiento. Produced by Eliel, Memo and Mambo Kingz, the album includes his latest hit, He Venido, a syrupy reggaetón-flavored pop track. There's also the techno-ish She Makes Me Feel with Sean Kingston, and Se Fue featuring Zion, which sounds a lot like reggaetón's answer to Apologize by Timbaland and OneRepublic. As his star rises, M.J. remains humble: "Everything has happened so quickly that I sometimes find it hard to believe that I've received so many blessings in my career."

See: myspace.com/mjmusiconline

De La Ghetto is taking his break-up well.

The fresh-faced 27-year-old split up with his partner of three years, Arcángel, before the duo could release its highly-anticipated debut album. Arcángel y De La Ghetto earned a buzz with club-ready singles like Ven y Pégate (Get Close), Sorpresa (Surprise) and Ella Quiere (She Wants To) and appeared alongside Daddy Yankee, Don Omar and Wisin y Yandel on Mas Flow: Los Benjamins by Luny Tunes.

After management and label disputes, tiraera magnet Arcángel went solo, leaving De La Ghetto (Rafael Castillo) with doubts about his own solo career: "I was always worried that [fans] wouldn't support me, because Arcángel had many solo songs and I didn't have any." The Puerto Rican-Dominican began to fill out his resume by teaming up with Zion, Roc-a-fella rapper Memphis Bleek and Jamaican reggae artist Mavado. Sensación del Bloque (The Hit of the Block), De La Ghetto's collaboration with Randy, proved that "De La Geezy" could drop hits without his former partner.

Nicknamed "Mr. Versatility," De La Ghetto is prepping his solo debut, Masacre Musical, for a late September release. The album's first single, Es Difícil (It's Difficult), is an electro-R&B jam about learning to cope with a lost love. The New York-bred De La Ghetto promises hip hop, house, reggae, bachata and salsa on Masacre Musical, but quickly adds: "I'm not gonna forget about the reggaetón."

See: myspace.com/delageezy

Spanish rapper Arianna Puello admits motherhood has changed her – but only a little: "My philosophy about life has changed for the better, but I'm still a non-conformist."

Born Arianna Isabel Puello Pereyra in the Dominican Republic, the breakdancer-turned-MC began her hip hop career 15 years ago in Spain – her home since age eight – under the name ARI. Before Mala Rodríguez made Spanish hip hop famous in the U.S. and México, the petite Puello was the only female lyricist cranking out streetwise raps about life in urban Spain.

No longer the beanie-rocking tough girl of albums like El Tentempié (A Taste), Gancho Perfecto (Perfect Hook) and La Fecha (The Date), Puello strikes a more feminine pose on the cover of her newest release, 13 Razones (13 Reasons). Produced by Echo (Tego Calderón, Don Omar, Daddy Yankee), Puello is comfortable alternating between club-friendly jams like Todo el Mundo Gritando and Juana Kalamidad alongside gritty, rapid-fire tracks like "Duelo de Titanes."

Despite a decade in the game and collaborations with some of the biggest names in Latin hip hop – Orishas, Cartel de Santa and La Mala – Puello says the grind isn't over: "You don't get [success] from one day to the next. You have to work hard and be consistent."

See: myspace.com/ariannapuello

Diamonique throws a mean mug but the California rapper insists she's not trying to be "one of the guys."

The self-proclaimed "Queen of the West Coast" says it's a good time to be a female in Latin hip hop: "I have a pretty good chance right now to represent, I just got to keep grinding." The grind began nearly a decade ago, when the Whittier-born, San Bernardino-bred Diamonique began channeling her love of 2Pac, Lauryn Hill and R&B singer Teena Marie into rapping and singing.

Diamonique now rolls with a "who's who" of Chicano rap – Mr. Capone-E, Down, Frost, Lil Rob – but you'll be hard pressed to find breezy oldies backdrops or chipmunk vocal samples on her 2004 debut, Diamond in the Ruff. Pounding tracks like Boom Bap, "Get it On," and "Nanana" suggest Diamonique leans closer to Missy Elliott than Mz. Krazie.

After touring in Hawaii and Japan in support of her debut, Diamonique is dropping a mix-tape, The Countdown, next month. Produced by Fingazz (Down AKA Kilo, LaLa, Melissa Lujan), the album should whet the appetites of those anticipating her forthcoming sophomore album, Queen of Da West.

See: myspace.com/niquemondia