17 hot sirens setting our screens afire, song after song

Shakira: Because she is what dreams are made of. From a young, virtually-unknown, non-English-speaking singer from Columbia, Shakira erupted on the world music stage in 1998. Using her mixed heritage to the fullest, by bringing Arabic sounds and influences, such as belly-dancing, and merging them with the Latino and American pop music sounds to create a unique fusion, Shakira is an honestly sizzling artiste because her Hips Don’t Lie.

Avril Lavinge: From appearing in Converse sneakers, baggy skaterboi jeans, black nail polish and over-sized ties, to a custom-made, ivory strapless Vera Wang gown, this Complicated rockstar has gone through a drastic image make-over! Not that we mind, as long as she keeps us happy with cheeky videos!

Victoria Beckham: Known more for her fashion sense, and marriage to David Beckham, Posh is the only Spice girl to continue making headlines the same way they did in the 90s!

Nelly Furtado: How many of us know that Nelly Furtado actually has Indian influences? Growing up in Canada, with Indian friends speaking Punjabi and Hindi, she ended up watching a lot of bhangra and Bollywood. She says that when she started getting invitations to Indian cultural festivals, she learnt a couple of songs, such as Kabhi Kabhi, and really liked Lata Mangeshkar, and Asha Bhosle, who she’s even done a collaboration with. Check her out singing in Hindi, and you’ll be surprised!

Beyonce Knowles: Being a Survivor of the now unsung Destiny’s Child, she has made us fall Dangerously in Love with her. As a child who would charge her parents’ houseguests $5 each for performance, to multi-million dollar sales as a singer, she has another significant achievement to her resume: An entry of the word ‘bootylicious’ to the Oxford English Dictionary coined by her to celebrate her curves.

Jennifer Lopez: J.LO has always denied rumors that her derriere is insured for $1 billion, but despite her well-endowed assets, she’s earned herself a status as a talented singer and actress. Her debut in Salena was followed up by a multi-faceted career, including movies, clothes, perfumes and albums. Though her much-publicized engagement with Ben Affleck ended, her low-key marriage to Marc Anthony lasts, and Jenny is a proud mom on the block with twins.

Hillary Duff: Initial success met her as an actress. Hillary Duff's debut in the Lizzie McGuire series, that was turned into a movie, launched her film career. And subsequently she established herself in the music industry, releasing three patinum albums, two of which topped the charts. Famous for her cat-fights with Lindsay Lohan, her main competition in the tweens market, she is now trying to bring sis Haylie into the limelight too.

Jessica Simpsons: The ubiqutious “dumb-blonde”, rumours has it, that when Jessica went to the White House, she told Secretary of the Interior, Gale Norton, “I really like what you’ve done with the place.” She says, “I had no idea that she was a member of the Cabinet, not an interior decorator!” Mom Tina claims that Jessica scored 160 on an IQ test. Yeah right! Nonetheless, being famous, despite un-recallable hits, she proves that blondes do have more fun!

Alicia Keys: The songstress with five Grammies mixes classical music to hip-hop and R&B with ease. What’s more, she was studying in the Ivy League, Columbia University, before she left to pursue music!

Kylie Minouge: Need we say anything to extol the popularity of this immensely famous popstar? From her girl next door looks to more risqué images, this lady’s gone through a lot. Last year, post being diagnosed with breast cancer, she brought much needed awareness to the disease. Now she's expressed a desire to resume her career. Best of luck!

Gwen Stefani: No Doubt became a huge influence in the 90s, partly due to Gwen’s quirky fashion statements, that included bindis and cholis. She has styled and re-styled her hair so many times that she says “I haven’t seen my real hair color since the 9th grade!” Although she has now delivered a child, she is just as delicious as ever.

Fergie: Yet another Disney discovery, another celeb in and out of rehab (what’s this connection between musical success, Disney and rehab??) who ventured into music, Fergie has proved she can actually sing, with a grammy in her kitty with the Black-Eyed Peas, as well as a solo album that topped the charts.

Rihanna: In 2004, When Jay-Z signed on island girl Rihanna, the Barbadian beauty was dismissed as a Caribbean copy of Beyonce. However, when she chopped off her hair, and released 2007’s Good Girl Gone Bad, with her chart-topping song, ‘Umbrella,’ she made us all sit up and take notice. Oh, and remember the cute teenage girl in the movie Bring it On: All or Nothing? Yup, that was Rihanna!

Shania Twain: By giving the younger Rihannas and Ashlees of the music industry tough competition, with her gorgeous scuplted bod and sizzling looks, she has showed us that you don’t need to be in your tweenage, teenage or twenties to look gorgeous. This forty year old is Still The One, and definitely with it!

Christina Aguilera: ’Coz she reaffirmed in us the belief that pregnant woman look super hot! Since storming the international pop scene in 1999, as a teenage squeaky-clean, but powerfully-voiced popstar, she has Come on over, to establish herself as a respectable musician. Though in the process, Dirrty-ing her image just a trifle bit.

Nicole Scherzinger: Despite Scherzinger being a not-so-hot, tounge twisterish sort of name, this girlicious Pussycat Doll is scorching, uber-hot! What’s the X-Factor that makes all of us wish our Girlfriend Was Hot Like Her? Though we could have included all of the Pussycat Dolls along with her, let’s be honest. She’s the only one that does something... anything!

Britney Spears: From starting out as a conservative Christian raised Southern gal, she retains her spot in the limelight. From her marriages - Jason Alexander and Kevin Federline, and her babies Sean Preston, and Jayden James Federline, to being blamed for her bad parenting skills (We didn't see what the fuss was about. Here, in India we all drive with our kids on our laps, instead of in car-seats!). After being in and out of rehabs and psychiatrists offices, Britney is now out with her latest album Circus.