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A rotating group of Los Angeles-based studio musicians, the Vitamin String Quartet have carved out a unique niche for themselves, recording new versions of songs by a wide variety of well-known rock, pop, and country artists, arranged for a small string ensemble. Since first appearing in 1999, the VSQ have released well over 300 albums (through their own Vitamin Records label), most of which feature the songs of a single artist (and in some cases interpret a single album in full), though the group have also released thematic collections based on particular moods, styles, or genres. Some of their many releases include tributes to David Bowie, Madonna, Slayer, Michael Jackson, Kanye West, and the Flaming Lips. Their canon also includes thematic collections like The Gay Wedding Collection, My Metal Valentine, and Music from the Films of John Hughes. The year-in-review sets VSQ Performs the Hits of 2021, Vols. 1 and 2 appeared in 2022, followed by a 2024 collection of Taylor Swift covers.

Since the beginning, the quartet's membership has remained flexible, but violinist and arranger Tom Tally has been a significant contributor to the group, having produced and arranged over 50 of the VSQ's albums. In 2009, the quartet took a creative step forward with the album Per_Versions, which, along with tunes from a number of alternative pop groups, included several original compositions. The following year, VSQ Performs Lady Gaga made a Top Ten appearance on the Billboard Classical Albums chart, and the ensemble joined Thirty Seconds to Mars for the rock band's 2011 appearance on MTV Unplugged (a live EP of the performance hit the top half of the Billboard 200). Meanwhile, the quartet's recordings continued to be licensed for a variety of television shows, including So You Think You Can Dance, The Vampire Diaries, Modern Family, and Westworld. The group's tributees throughout the decade spanned Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas, Sigur Rós, Kanye West, and The World of Studio Ghibli (2017).

Lana Del Rey, My Chemical Romance, and the Weeknd were among their subjects in the early 2020s, as were continued hit roundups of previous years, such as March 2022's VSQ Performs the Hits of 2021, Vol. 2. They contributed to 2023's Queen Charlotte: A Bridgeton Story: Covers from the Netflix Series and reached 23 on Billboard's Top Heatseekers chart with 2024's VSQ Performs Taylor Swift. ~ Mark Deming

A gifted pianist and composer, Kris Bowers makes genre-bending jazz that touches upon contemporary R&B, electronica, and forward-thinking modal improvisation. Bowers gained wider prominence after winning the 2011 Thelonious Monk International Jazz Piano Competition and releasing his expansive 2014 album Heroes + Misfits. He also composes for film, having contributed the soundtracks to the 2016 documentary Norman Lear: Just Another Version of You, the 2018 Oscar-winning film Green Book, and 2020's Bad Hair. He earned a Grammy nomination for his 2023 score for Netflix's Bridgerton, and garnered yet more acclaim for his score to Ava Duvernay's film Origin and the 2023 version of The Color Purple.

Born in Los Angeles in 1989, Bowers grew up listening to his parents' classic soul records and hip-hop before falling under the spell of jazz, classical music, and film scores. He studied classical piano and jazz while attending Los Angeles County High School for the Arts, and performed in numerous festivals while still a teenager. After high school, he earned both undergraduate and master's degrees in jazz performance from Juilliard. It was there that Bowers began making a name for himself as a formidable jazz musician, and he found regular work gigging around New York City. In 2011, he won first place in the prestigious Thelonious Monk International Jazz Piano Competition. That same year, he showcased his versatility by appearing on Jay-Z and Kanye West's collaborative album Watch the Throne.

In 2014, Bowers released his experimental jazz, R&B, and electronic-influenced debut album, Heroes + Misfits, on Concord. Around the same time, he began branching out into film work, scoring the soundtrack to such productions as the 2013 documentaries Seeds of Time and Elaine Stritch: Shoot Me, the 2016 documentary Norman Lear: Just Another Version of You, and the 2017 scripted drama Dear White People. He also supplied the soundtrack to the 2018 Oscar-winning biopic film Green Book, about pianist Don Shirley. More soundtrack work followed, including for the 2020 TV production Mrs. America and the satirical horror film Bad Hair. Later that year, he contributed to both Bridgerton and Bridgerton: Covers from the Netflix Original Series, picking up a Grammy nomination for Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media. Also that year, he scored director Blitz Bazawule's version of The Color Purple and Ava Duvernay's Origin. ~ Matt Collar