Nico (German singer) in the context of "Federico Fellini"

Lewis Allan Reed (March 2, 1942 – October 27, 2013) was an American musician and songwriter. He was the guitarist, singer, and principal songwriter for the rock band the Velvet Underground and had a solo career that spanned five decades. Although not commercially successful during its existence, the Velvet Underground came to be regarded as one of the most influential bands in the history of underground and alternative rock music. Reed's distinctive deadpan voice, poetic and transgressive lyrics, and experimental guitar playing were trademarks throughout his long career.

Reed, John Cale, Sterling Morrison, and Angus MacLise formed the Velvet Underground in 1965. After building a reputation in the avant garde music scene, the Velvet Underground gained the attention of Andy Warhol, who became the band's manager. The Velvet Underground became something of a fixture at The Factory, Warhol's art studio, and served as his "house band" for various projects. The band released its first album, now with drummer Moe Tucker and featuring German singer Nico, in 1967, and parted ways with Warhol shortly thereafter. Following several lineup changes and three more little-heard albums, Reed quit the band in 1970.

The Velvet Underground was an American rock band formed in New York City in 1964. The New York Times wrote that the Velvet Underground was "arguably the most influential American rock band of our time". Though their integration of rock and the avant-garde earned them little commercial success during their initial nine-year run, they are now widely regarded as one of the most influential bands in rock music, as well as underground, experimental, and alternative music. Their provocative subject matter and experimentation were instrumental in the development of punk rock, new wave and other genres.

The group performed under several names before settling on the Velvet Underground in 1965, taken from the title of a 1963 book on atypical sexual behavior. Its classic lineup consisted of singer and guitarist Lou Reed, Welsh multi-instrumentalist John Cale, guitarist Sterling Morrison, and percussionist Moe Tucker. In 1966, pop artist Andy Warhol became their official manager. They served as the house band at Warhol's studio, The Factory, and performed with his traveling multimedia show, Exploding Plastic Inevitable, from 1966 to 1967. Their debut album, The Velvet Underground & Nico, featuring the German singer and model Nico, was released in 1967 to critical indifference and poor sales, although it has since been hailed as one of the greatest albums in music history.

John Davies Cale OBE (born 9 March 1942) is a Welsh musician, composer, and record producer who was a founding member of the American rock band the Velvet Underground. Over his six-decade career, Cale has worked in various styles in rock, drone, classical, avant-garde and electronic music.

John Cale studied music at Goldsmiths College before moving in 1963 to New York City, where he performed as part of the Theatre of Eternal Music and formed the Velvet Underground. Since leaving the band in 1968, Cale has released seventeen solo studio albums, including Paris 1919 (1973), Fear (1974) and Music for a New Society (1982). Cale has worked as a record producer on albums by artists including Nico, the Stooges, the Modern Lovers and Patti Smith.

Holmes Sterling Morrison Jr. (August 29, 1942 – August 30, 1995) was an American guitarist, best known as one of the founding members of the rock band the Velvet Underground, usually playing electric guitar, occasionally bass guitar, and singing backing vocals.

Unlike bandmates Lou Reed, Doug Yule, John Cale, Maureen Tucker and Nico, Morrison never released a solo album or made recordings under his own name. He was nevertheless an essential element of the group's sound as a guitarist whose percussive and syncopated rhythm playing and melodic lead parts provided the foil for Lou Reed's improvisational rhythm and lead guitar riffs.