Suzanne Vega is one of the most solid, outstanding artists in today’s music world. She began her work long before it was “cool” to be a female vocalist, and has never left her path of evocative, meaningful and powerful songs. Like jazz-pop singer Sade, she has a voice that gets under your skin, and gives you goose-bumps. But her lyrics are far more profound than is usual in the pop business. Proving that a “serious” female singer/songwriter could sell and grab Grammy awards, Vega’s success opened the door for a whole new generation of women artists, from Tracy Chapman to Michelle Shocked, and lately, Alanis Morissette, Fiona Apple and Alaskan songstress Jewel.