Staten Island, Hotbed of Pop Music The band was called the New York Dolls, but only savvy fans knew that the lead singer of this pioneering punk group, David Johansen, was born and raised on Staten Island. So were most of the members of the influential hip-hop collective Wu-Tang Clan, and though few people may realize it, Joan Baez, Christina Aguilera and Ingrid Michaelson are also natives of Staten Island. Now there's a new exhibition meant to remind the rest of the world that a large number of artists have either been born in or chosen to work and make their homes on Staten Island, the city's most overlooked borough. Called "Island Sounds: a 500 Year Music Mash-Up," the show will open to the public on May 12 at the Snug Harbor Cultural Center and Botanical Garden and run through Dec. 20, 2013. "Maybe I'm biased because I grew up here, but I hate the idea that Staten Island gets associated with a lot of negativity," Lynn Kelly, Snug Harbor's president and chief executive, said. There's so much talent flying under the radar, so many artists who were born here, lived here, recorded here or purchased instruments here, and people don't know about it. Among the musicians who have agreed to supply memorabilia for the exhibition are the guitarist Vernon Reid, a founder of the rock band Living Colour who now lives on Staten Island, and Galt MacDermot, the composer of "Hair," who also resides there. Ms. Kelly seemed particularly pleased about snaring the keyboard on which RZA of Wu-Tang Clan wrote and recorded much of "Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)," the group's groundbreaking 1993 debut CD. Perhaps the most unusual of the items that will be displayed is a collection of more than 2,000 hotel and motel keys accumulated by the drummer Sandy Gennaro, who grew up on Staten Island and, like Mr. Johansen, still lives there. Mr. Gennaro has toured with artists, including Cyndi Lauper, Bo Diddley, Joan Jett, the Monkees and Pat Travers, and has agreed to an arrangement in which he will periodically come to the exhibition and allow visitors to select a key at random and then tell the story behind the performance that took him to that locale. The exhibition is also meant to commemorate the 120th anniversary of Snug Harbor's music hall, whose stage has accommodated performances ranging from minstrel shows and vaudeville to David Bowie. Ms.Kelly said the music hall, which seats just under 700 people and on Friday will host Norah Jones, is the second oldest in New York City.