It’s time for the American Music Awards and the nominees and performers are heating up the competition with record sales and chart-topping hits. Snakkle unearthed some choice before they were stars photos of some of the current and past nominees, can you figure out who is who?

The 2015 Billboard Music Awards, hosted by Ludacris (again!) honors the best and brightest artists that grace the top of the Billboard charts throughout the year. Superstars like Taylor Swift and Jennifer Lopez and the Kardashian-Jenners were there, and Snakkle wanted to see what these musicians and past nominees looked like before they were strutting their stuff onstage and inspiring millions with their hit tunes.

Next up in the glittery celebrity awards season is the 43rd annual NAACP Image Awards, which air on NBC February 17 at 8 p.m. (EST/PST). The awards ceremony honors diversity in the arts and features A-list talent, from Beyonce to Eddie Murphy, all up for some of the biggest awards of the night. Snakkle dug into the archives to look back at the humble beginnings of many of the nominees in our gallery of greatness to come!

2011 was a great year for music, with new and old favorites leading the charge to the top of the Billboard charts. From fresh-faced ingénues to comeback kids and dance-floor superstars, the hits just kept coming. Take a look back and see if you can name Billboard’s top artists of the year before they were stars.

Counting down till MTV’s Video Music Awards? Snakkle unearthed some trophy-worthy pics and videos of nominated artists like Adele, Kanye West, Rihanna, Justin Bieber, and more!