Breaking: Never Shout Never

Who: Christofer Drew, a 19-year-old Missouri native whose lovelorn tracks, soft, high voice (and Pete Wentz-style skinny jeans) are making underage girls swoon. He was signed by Warner Bros. after being discovered on MySpace and releasing three EPs, and his first disc What Is Love? debuted at Number 24 on the Top 200.

Sounds Like: The tunes on Drew's full-length (which he cut with producer Butch Walker) blend emo and folk into airy, heartbroken acoustic tracks like "Jane Doe" (where he crushes on pretty waitresses) and "Can't Stand It" (where he gushes about girls who are "superduper cute").

Vital Stats:

• Drew's original aspirations weren't musical, but athletic: his dad was grooming him to be a tennis pro, but a shoulder injury made him focus on the Bob Dylan tunes his father taught him on guitar. At 14 he wrote his first song after his best friend ditched him for a girl.

• Another heartbreak — his girlfriend cheated on him — set off a rough patch for Drew. He dropped out of high school, got kicked out of his parents' house and road-tripped across the Midwest playing coffee shops and churches where "There were, like, 20 kids at each show. But I'd make $50 — enough for gas to the next place."

• Drew says he recently got into Taoism after reading The Tao of Pooh, and he strives to live the simple life. "I like to go to Waffle House and read, drink coffee and smoke cigarettes all day," he says. "I'm trying to be artistic."

Get It Now: Click up top to watch Never Shout Never's video for "What Is Love?"

• 
  MUSIC The Top 25 Teen Idol Breakout Moments
• 
  MOVIES & TV 'Game of Thrones': The Show Vs. the Books
• 
  POLITICS Matt Taibbi: Facebook IPO vs. Shareholders
• 
  VIDEOS Exclusive: Garbage Rip Through 'I Think I'm Paranoid'

Song Stories

“Smells Like Teen Spirit”

Nirvana | 1991

"Smells Like Teen Spirit," named after a brand of deodorant marketed to girls, was Kurt Cobain's attempt to "write the ultimate pop song," he said, using the soft-loud dynamic of his favorite band, the Pixies. Cobain "had that dichotomy of punk rage and alienation," the song’s producer, Butch Vig, told Rolling Stone, "but also this vulnerable pop sensibility. In 'Teen Spirit,' a lot of that vulnerability is in the tone of his voice." Sadly, by the time of Nirvana's last U.S. tour, in late '93, Cobain was tortured by the obligation to play "Teen Spirit" every night. "There are many other songs that I have written that are as good, if not better," he claimed.

More Song Stories entries »

Twitter