New Faces 2012
We all have our favorite, tried-and-true stars, but it's an exciting thing when fresh faces come along. Those breakouts that inspire us to scour the 'net for everything we can learn about the new talent's next big project. For these 12 new faces, we've done the work for you. Check out RollingStone.com’s list of noteworthy newcomers in television, film and music.
By Tracey Ford
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Outasight
Not familiar with Outasight? Well, you’ve probably heard his 2011 single "Tonight Is the Night" if you’ve seen a Pepsi commercial or a talent competition show. After two years signed to Warner with no solid project to tout, Pepsi reached out to Outasight to use his tune in its "Who’s Next?" ad campaign, which debuted during The X Factor. The cola company’s endorsement was just the boost the electro-pop rapper needed; it seems his label has now taken him off ice. Outasight is expected to release his debut album later this year.
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Jennifer Hall
Fans of the HBO series Unscripted are familiar with Jennifer Hall's self-deprecating humor. Known as a "little bit of this and little bit of that" actress, Hall waited six years before appearing on a series in a main role. She continues to belittle herself to make us laugh in NBC's Up All Night, where she plays Missy, Ava's gutless assistant. Holding her own next to Will Arnett, Christina Applegate and Maya Rudolph, Hall's major feat this season was taking her character from a recurring role to a main character mid-season.
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Azealia Banks
Formerly known as Miss Bank$, rapper Azealia Banks shed her old moniker when she departed from XL Recordings. Born and raised in Harlem, Banks crossed the border to Montreal in 2010. The change of scenery proved to be the right move. Thanks to YouTube, Banks caught the attention of tastemakers with her cover of Interpol's "Slow Hands" and the buzz single "212." Producer Paul Epworth (Adele's 21, Cee Lo Green's The Lady Killer) began working with Banks on her upcoming debut, which will now be released on Universal.
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Ezra Miller
Playing disturbed teens seems to suit Ezra Miller well. Hailed for his performance in the indie flick We Need to Talk About Kevin, the actor's resume makes him the go-to guy for roles based on compulsive, violent, depressed youth. At eight years old, an innocent Miller performed in Phillip Glass' White Raven, but his opera career ended with puberty. Fortunately, music is still in his veins. His band Sons of an Illustrious Father released its second album in 2011. Miller's next film, the adaptation of the beloved Stephen Chbosky book The Perks of Being a Wallflower, has yet to receive a release date.
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Selah Sue
Selah Sue is proof that the world is smaller, and that MySpace still has a stake in launching careers. The Belgian reggae-soul singer placed a few songs on the site at the request of her friends, and the rest is history. But she didn’t take the direct route to fame. Sue passed up a record deal six years ago, because it "wasn’t the right time." Years later, she’s found her own footing. The songstress released the Black Part Love EP, opened for Prince, and collaborated with Cee Lo Green on "Please," from her self-titled debut.
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Amandla Stenberg
In her big screen debut as a young Cataleya in 2011's Colombiana, Amandla Stenberg set the stage for Zoe Saldana, but it's Stenberg's role in the upcoming Hunger Games that will surely launch her into Twilight-like ascendancy. In the upcoming film, Stenberg plays Rue, main character Katniss Everdeen's tragic ally in the 74th Hunger Games. Fans of the trilogy won't be surprised to know that things don't turn out so well for Sternberg's character, but we predict we'll be seeing more of Stenberg as soon as The Hunger Games hits theaters.
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Mr. Muthafuckin’ eXquire
It's not often that a rapper emerges reflecting a style that's not akin to the spirit of the hip-hop elite. Hailing from Brooklyn, Mr. Muthafuckin' eXquire has been compared to B.I.G. by peers (namely newbie Danny Brown, who's also on our list), while fans make connections between the emcee and Kool Keith, MF Doom and Method Man. Four years after the release of his debut, The Big Fat Kill, eXquire continues to roll out the raw with his breakout tape Lost in Translation and his latest, Merry eX-mas & Suck My Dick. Next up for eXquire's Peel Off crew: Brokest Rich Ni**as.
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Taissa Farmiga
Talent runs in the Farmiga family, but Taissa Farmiga wasn't aware of this until her older sis Vera cast her in Higher Ground. Now, Taissa – who began her acting career, accepting the role of Young Corinne, via text message – thanks her sister for her newfound fame. Farmiga went on to land a spot on FX's American Horror Story. The next season of Horror Story will feature an entirely new cast, but no worries. Farmiga will be in high demand now that she no longer resides in the haunted Victorian.
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Sharon Van Etten
Born in New Jersey, cultivated in Nashville and based in Brooklyn, Sharon Van Etten has garnered fans of both folk and country music. Hailed by NPR and the Nashville Scene for having one of the most original voices of late, Van Etten added her vocals to the Antlers' "Thirteen" off the acclaimed album Hospice, which was released a few months after her debut. With two notable albums under her belt, Van Etten spent 2011 recording her new album Tramp with the National’s Aaron Dessner.
Watch Van Etten perform "Serpents" on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon
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Jeremy Allen White
After a few stints on Law & Order, Jeremy Allen White snagged the role of Lip – the oldest son in the dysfunctional Gallagher clan – on Showtime's Shameless. White holds his own alongside the distinguished William H. Macy, who does a bang-up job playing the most hopeless small-screen father since Ed O'Neill as Al Bundy. White's character becomes the de facto dad this season but, battling his own demons, Lip's allegiance will wane if the family doesn't come to his rescue when he needs them.
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Danny Brown
It was a decade in the making, but Danny Brown is finally being recognized as one of the most unique rappers catching waves. Brown came close to striking gold in 2003 when Roc-A-Fella Records showed interest, but he admits they didn't really "get" him. He returned home without a deal and landed in jail. Once free, Brown dropped a series of mixtapes and EPs, most notably 2010's The Hybrid, which led to a deal with Fool's Gold and the release of XXX. Dubbed one of the best hip-hop albums of the year, it's safe to say people definitely get him now.
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Beth Behrs
There is a bevy of poor twenty-somethings residing in Williamsburg as we speak, but none of them make us laugh quite like newcomer Beth Behrs and her partner in crime, Kat Denning, in CBS' Two Broke Girls. Behrs, the less experienced actress of the two, hit the sitcom jackpot when cast in the Whitney Cummings and Michael Patrick King-produced series in 2010. Behrs admits that, like Caroline, she's lived paycheck to paycheck and had her fair share of bad gigs, including a stint as a hostess in a not-so-great establishment.
Watch Behrs' discover the magic of extreme couponing on Two Broke Girls