T-Pain

Whether you hate him or love him for it, T-Pain is the man most responsible for popularizing the use of Auto-Tune. Using the pitch-correction software to further melodize his lyrics, the Tallahassee native emerged onto the scene with hits like “I’m Sprung,” “I’m N Luv (Wit a Stripper),” and later joints like “Bartender,” which helped him quickly become one of the most popular figures in modern hip-hop. Having perfected the art of both the single and the summer anthem, T-Pain is the king of the catchy ring tone. He’s also a welcome guest, making appearances on both Jamie Foxx’s “Blame It,” and Kanye West’s “Good Life.” T-Pain knows how to use what he’s got to get what he wants, and that’s undoubtedly worked in his favor so far.