While well-known acts like G. Love, the Roots and Spearhead stir crowds into rabid gladness from the arena’s “Summit Stage,” there will be a number of outfits on the Monterey Stage (aka Garden Stage) that are rearranging the pop music landscape. There will be veteran artists like Me’shell Ndegeocello, a solo artist for almost 15 years who has recently released her seventh studio album The World Has Made Me the Man of My Dreams to almost universal critical acclaim, and Ian Ball of the British rock group Gomez, who releases his debut solo outing Who Goes There at the end of the month. (His gorgeously quirky “The Elephant Pharmacy” should appeal to those who dabble in recreational drugs.)

Among the newer folks playing the Monterey Stage are West Indian Girl, a Los Angeles based coed outfit whose music recalls Pornos for Pyros with a pop sheen, and Brandi Carlile, a young singer/songwriter whose latest CD The Story was produced by the legendary T-Bone Burnett.

But there are two artists appearing on the Monterey Stage who are really shaking up the music industry at the moment: Colbie Caillat and CeU. In 2005, Caillat was a young songwriter working at a tanning salon with an impressive musical pedigree – her father Ken Caillat had co-produced the legendary Fleetwood Mac albums Rumours and Tusk. That year, the now-22 Caillat was persuaded by a friend to post a pair of her songs on the popular networking site MySpace. Before she knew it, Caillat had more young admirers than a High School Musical star.

While her music is not really groundbreaking – at times, it sounds like a young female’s take on Jack Johnson’s acoustic pop – Caillat’s song “Bubbly” is ultra catchy and just different enough from other current artists to remain in the mind of the listener.

When Caillat’s debut CD Coco was released this July, it surprised everyone by entering Billboard’s album chart at number five and becoming iTunes’ top selling album. At press time, “Bubbly” was hanging at number two on the iTunes’ “Top Songs” charts above singles by heavyweights like Kanye West and 50 Cent. On her liner notes, she thanks her friends on MySpace, presumably all 277,000 plus.

Another artist whose work is getting exposure in the US through non-traditional avenues is the Brazilian songwriter CeU. While CeU’s music – a smooth blend of electronica, folk, world music and reggae – is definitely palatable to American tastes, the fact that almost all of her songs are sung in Portuguese would usually mean that she would be relegated to a tiny niche in this country’s musical market. Only she has the backing of a major American corporation: Starbucks.

The coffee shop chain signed CeU as the first international act on their label Six Degrees Records. With a push from the ubiquitous coffee giant, CeU’s self-titled album is the biggest hit for a female Brazilian artist since Astrud Gilberto’s “The Girl From Ipanema” screamed up the charts in 1963. CeU’s time, like that of so many of the performers who will appear on the Monterey Stage, is now.

While well-known acts like G. Love, the Roots and Spearhead stir crowds into rabid gladness from the arena’s “Summit Stage,” there will be a number of outfits on the Monterey Stage (aka Garden Stage) that are rearranging the pop music landscape. There will be veteran artists like Me’shell Ndegeocello, a solo artist for almost 15 years who has recently released her seventh studio album The World Has Made Me the Man of My Dreams to almost universal critical acclaim, and Ian Ball of the British rock group Gomez, who releases his debut solo outing Who Goes There at the end of the month. (His gorgeously quirky “The Elephant Pharmacy” should appeal to those who dabble in recreational drugs.)

Among the newer folks playing the Monterey Stage are West Indian Girl, a Los Angeles based coed outfit whose music recalls Pornos for Pyros with a pop sheen, and Brandi Carlile, a young singer/songwriter whose latest CD The Story was produced by the legendary T-Bone Burnett.

But there are two artists appearing on the Monterey Stage who are really shaking up the music industry at the moment: Colbie Caillat and CeU. In 2005, Caillat was a young songwriter working at a tanning salon with an impressive musical pedigree – her father Ken Caillat had co-produced the legendary Fleetwood Mac albums Rumours and Tusk. That year, the now-22 Caillat was persuaded by a friend to post a pair of her songs on the popular networking site MySpace. Before she knew it, Caillat had more young admirers than a High School Musical star.

While her music is not really groundbreaking – at times, it sounds like a young female’s take on Jack Johnson’s acoustic pop – Caillat’s song “Bubbly” is ultra catchy and just different enough from other current artists to remain in the mind of the listener.

When Caillat’s debut CD Coco was released this July, it surprised everyone by entering Billboard’s album chart at number five and becoming iTunes’ top selling album. At press time, “Bubbly” was hanging at number two on the iTunes’ “Top Songs” charts above singles by heavyweights like Kanye West and 50 Cent. On her liner notes, she thanks her friends on MySpace, presumably all 277,000 plus.

Another artist whose work is getting exposure in the US through non-traditional avenues is the Brazilian songwriter CeU. While CeU’s music – a smooth blend of electronica, folk, world music and reggae – is definitely palatable to American tastes, the fact that almost all of her songs are sung in Portuguese would usually mean that she would be relegated to a tiny niche in this country’s musical market. Only she has the backing of a major American corporation: Starbucks.

The coffee shop chain signed CeU as the first international act on their label Six Degrees Records. With a push from the ubiquitous coffee giant, CeU’s self-titled album is the biggest hit for a female Brazilian artist since Astrud Gilberto’s “The Girl From Ipanema” screamed up the charts in 1963. CeU’s time, like that of so many of the performers who will appear on the Monterey Stage, is now.