Who was the first musician or band that you discovered on your own?

It's a bit embarrassing but Cyndi Lauper and the Pet Shop Boys 🤣

Moby
Goyte

Sir Alfred Yankovic, the Weird

Parachute. Now one of their songs is in my top 5 all time. Called Hurricane.

[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2KD_TnbPvOU]

I think it was Smashing Pumpkins for me.

Death Cab for Cutie.

Prolly Alice Cooper

The Distillers 🥰

[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tddumYb0ytI]

Iron Maiden.

I cannot remember the first, maybe Tom Paxton.
But since then
Guy Clark
Robert Earl Keen
Billy Joe Shaver
Stan Rogers
Kate Wolf
Ray Wylie Hubbard

The list goes on.

[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2S1I_ien6A]

Good Question. I can only remember the most recent ones:

Seo linn.
Dropkick Murphy's.
The Hu.
The Dead South.
Christopher Lee.

Believe it or not, Bruce Springsteen well before Born to Run.

In fact, I still think his first two albums were his best.

Back in the late 70's and from a small local radio station that played all the alternative music.
[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=opZ4kYFjwqI]

Too many to list but one of the first ones was Missing Persons

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

Backstreet boyz

Tears for Fears

Blood, Sweat & Tears

Marshel Tucker Band

Elton John.

Queen

Tool

The Doors, I always saw the biopic at Blockbuster one day I finally rented it and then bought every album

The Verve