• Born: 10 March 1992
• Birthplace: Los Angeles, California
• Best Known As: Lilly on TV's Hannah Montana
Emily Osment is known to viewers of the Disney Channel as Lilly Truscott, the best friend and sidekick of TV's Hannah Montana (played by Miley Cyrus). Emily's also the sister of Haley Joel Osment, the young actor who shot to stardom after M. Night Shyamalan's 1999's The Sixth Sense. She got into the business at the age of five by way of TV commercials. She was in the movies by the age of seven (1999's The Secret Life of Girls), and became known to young audiences through the Robert Rodgriguez Spy Kids sequels, in which she played Gerti Giggles (2002-03). After several auditions she earned a part in Disney's Hannah Montana as the spunky Lilly -- a Punky Brewster-fashioned skateboarder with an inclination for screwball schemes. The television series debuted in 2006 and led to a line of merchandise, a concert tour for Cyrus and a feature film.

• Born: 20 August 1992
• Birthplace: Dallas, Texas
• Best Known As: Teen star of the Disney movie Camp Rock
Name at birth: Demetria Devonne Lovato
Teen singer Demi Lovato starred alongside the Jonas Brothers in the 2008 Disney Channel movie Camp Rock. Lovato played Mitchie Torres, the shy underdog who blossoms at music camp while singing the signature tune "This is Me." (The duet with Joe Jonas was released as a single in 2008.) A petite brunette, Lovato sings and plays guitar and piano. She began acting at age six, when she landed a role as one of the friendly moppets on the TV show Barney and Friends. Disney used Camp Rock to launch Lovato into a its standard orbit of stardom: she toured with the Jonas Brothers in the summer of 2008, and was given her own Disney Channel TV series, Welcome to Mollywood (due in late 2008), and movie, Princess Protection Program (due in 2009, and co-starring her real-life friend Selena Gomez). Lovato is often compared to another Disney teen star, Miley Cyrus.
Lovato met her close friend Selena Gomez when both were in the cast of Barney and Friends... Lovato had a modest hit in 2008 with a jangly version of "That's How You Know," the theme first sung by Amy Adams in Disney's 2007 movie Enchanted.

• Born: 28 September 1987
• Birthplace: Houston, Texas
• Best Known As: She was TV's Lizzie McGuire
Hilary Duff's acting and singing career blasted off in 2003, with appearances in three movies and a Top 40 hit, "So Yesterday" (from her debut solo album, Metamorphosis). Duff became a star by way of the title role in the successful television series Lizzie McGuire (2001-03) on the Disney Channel. After filming The Lizzie McGuire Movie (2003), she left the TV show for a career on the big screen, and her busy year included the releases of Agent Cody Banks (with Frankie Muniz) and Cheaper By The Dozen (with Steve Martin), as well as the production of A Cinderella Story (with Chad Michael Murray as her Prince Charming) and Raise Your Voice, both in 2004. She released her second album, Hilary Duff in 2004, and in 2005 released Most Wanted, a collection of hits and remixes. Her other film credits include Cheaper by the Dozen 2 (2005) and Material Girls (2006, with Hilary's older sister, Haylie Duff).

• Born: 18 October 1987
• Birthplace: San Luis Obispo, California
• Best Known As: Troy Bolton in the High School Musical movies
Name at birth: Zachary Efron
Zac Efron played the singing teen basketball star Troy Bolton in the hit TV movie High School Musical. Efron grew up in Southern California and began acting in his early teens, making his way into guest-starring roles on the TV shows E.R. and Firefly. He played an autistic twin in the made-for-cable movie Miracle Run (2004, with Aidan Quinn) and starred as a reluctant jockey in the formulaic racehorce flick The Derby Stallion in 2005. The same year he joined the cast of Summerland, as hunky boyfriend Cameron Bale, and his blue eyes and tousled brown hair made him an instant hit with young female fans. He took another heartfelt teen role in the 2006 Disney cable movie High School Musical (with Vanessa Anne Hudgens and Ashley Tisdale); the movie was a surprise hit and Efron starred in sequels in 2007 and 2008. He also played the role of Link Larkin in the 2007 remake of John Waters's Hairspray (starring John Travolta and Amanda Bynes.

• Born: 9 April 1987
• Birthplace: New York, New York
• Best Known As: Pop singer of "Beautiful Soul"
Jesse McCartney is a singer and actor known for his hit single, "Beautiful Soul" (2003), and for his role in cable TV's Summerland (2004-05). Young, blonde and cute, McCartney is a pop music performer with experience in theater (he toured nationally in The King and I) and a boy band pedigree (Dream Street, 1999-2002). McCartney also appeared on the daytime television soap opera All My Children (1998-2001) and earned two nominations for Outstanding Younger Actor. His debut solo album, Beautiful Soul (2004), was a hit with MTV and Radio Disney audiences, and McCartney's kid-friendly style helped land him a duet with Anne Hathaway for the film Ella Enchanted (2004). As his music career was taking off, McCartney was cast in the WB Network's drama Summerland, playing a California surfer, but the show didn't last long and he was back in the studio. Since then he's done voice work in the movies -- Alvin and the Chipmunks (2007) and Horton Hears a Who (2008) -- and released another album, Departure (2008).

• Born: 13 December 1989
• Birthplace: Reading, Pennsylvania
• Best Known As: Teen singer of the 2009 hit "You Belong With Me"
Country singer Taylor Swift broke through in 2006 with her hit song "Tim McGraw," recorded when she was still 16 years old. Raised just outside of Reading, Pennsylvania, Swift began singing at local events when she was a kid, and even sang the national anthem at a Philadelphia 76ers basketball game when she was 11. To pursue her career in country music, Swift and her family moved near Nashville, Tennessee when she was 13. Her beauty-pageant looks and surprisingly seasoned country vocal style made her a star on Country Music Television, and her video for "Tim McGraw" -- a wistful ballad of romantic longing ("When you think Tim McGraw / I hope you think of me") -- was voted a fan favorite. She released her self-titled debut album in late 2006 and quickly became a star singer and songwriter, nominated for a Grammy Award and by the Academy of Country Music as best new female vocalist. Before she was even 18 Swift was touring nationally with top stars such as Brad Paisley and Rascal Flatts. Her 2008 album Fearless produced the hit singles "Love Story" and "You Belong With Me."
Swift was stunned by Kanye West at the MTV Music Video Awards on 13 September 2009. Swift was accepting her video for Best Female Video when Kanye grabbed the microphone and announced to the crowd, "I'm sorry, but Beyoncé had one of the best videos of all time!"

• Born: 2 July 1985
• Birthplace: New Jersey
• Best Known As: Maddie on Disney's The Suite Life of Zack and Cody
Ashley Tisdale is a Disney Channel star, known to viewers as Maddie on the Sprouse brothers' series The Suite Life of Zack and Cody and as the supersnob Sharpay in the High School Musical movies (with Vanessa Anne Hudgens and Corbin Bleu). Tisdale has been performing most of her life, including stints on stage in the early 1990s. Her screen career began with occasional appearances on television. After years of guest roles, she earned recurring roles in 2002 on The Hughleys and in 2003 on Still Standing before being cast for Zack and Cody. Part of a Disney stable that includes Zac Efron and Dylan and Cole Sprouse, Tisdale has performed in a number of Disney productions as host, actress and singer. In 2006 she appeared in the hit TV movie High School Musical and joined the national stage tour based on the film. She starred again in High School Musical sequels in 2007 and 2008. Her debut solo album, Headstrong, was released in 2007