Prince is a general term for a ruler, monarch or member of a monarch's or former monarch's family, and is a hereditary title in the nobility of some European states. The feminine equivalent is a princess. The English word derives, via the French word prince, from the Latin noun princeps, from primus(first) + capio(to seize), meaning "the chief, most distinguished, ruler, prince".

Historical background

in the Senate of the Roman Republic.]] The Latin word prīnceps (older Latin *prīsmo-kaps, literally "the one who takes the first [place/position]"), became the usual title of the informal leader of the Roman senate some centuries before the transition to empire, the princeps senatus.

Emperor Augustus established the formal position of monarch on the basis of principate, not dominion. He also tasked his grandsons as summer rulers of the city when most of the government were on holiday in the country or attending religious rituals, and, for that task, granted them the title of princeps.

The title has generic and substantive meanings:

generically, prince refers to members of a family that ruled by hereditary right, the title being used to refer either to sovereigns or to cadets of a sovereign's family. The term may be broadly used of persons in various cultures, continents or eras. In Europe, it is the title legally borne by dynastic cadets in monarchies, and borne by courtesy by members of formerly reigning dynasties.

as a substantive title, a prince was a monarch of the lowest rank in post-Napoleonic Europe, e.g. Princes of, respectively, Andorra, Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, Mingrelia, Monaco, Waldeck and Pyrmont, Wallachia, etc.

also substantively, the title was granted by popes and secular monarchs to specific individuals and to the heads of some high-ranking European families who, however, never exercised dynastic sovereignty and whose cadets are not entitled to share the princely title, e.g. de Beauvau-Craon, Colonna, von Bismarck, von Dohna-Schlobitten, von Eulenburg, de Faucigny-Lucinge, von Lichnowsky, von Pless, Ruffo di Calabria, (de Talleyrand) von Sagan, van Ursel, etc.

generically, cadets of some non-sovereign families whose head bears the non-dynastic title of prince (or, less commonly, duke) were sometimes also authorized to use the princely title, e.g. von Carolath-Beuthen, de Broglie, Demidoff di San Donato, Lieven, de Mérode, Pignatelli, Radziwill, von Wrede, Yussopov, etc.

substantively, the heirs apparent in some monarchies use a specific princely title associated with a territory within the monarch's realm, e.g. the Princes of, respectively, Asturias (Spain), Grão Pará (Brazil, formerly), Orange (Netherlands), Viana (Navarre, formerly), Wales (UK), etc.

substantively, it became the fashion from the 17th century for the heirs apparent of the leading ducal families to assume a princely title, associated with a seigneurie in the family's possession. These titles were borne by courtesy and preserved by tradition, not law, e.g. the princes de, respectively, Bidache (Gramont), Marcillac (La Rochefoucauld), Tonnay-Charente (Mortemart), Poix (Noailles), Léon (Rohan-Chabot),

Prince as generic for ruler

The original, but now less common use of the word, originated in the application of the Latin word princeps, from Roman, more precisely Byzantine law, and the classical system of government that was the European feudal society. In this sense, a prince is a ruler of a territory which is sovereign, or quasi-sovereign, i.e., exercising substantial (though not all) prerogatives associated with monarchs of independent nations, as was common, for instance, within the historical boundaries of the Holy Roman Empire. In medieval and Early Modern Europe, there were as many as two hundred such territories, especially in Italy, Germany, and Gaelic Ireland. In this sense, "prince" is used of any and all rulers, regardless of actual title or precise rank. This is the Renaissance use of the term found in Niccolò Machiavelli's famous work, Il Principe.

As a title, by the end of the medieval era, prince was borne by rulers of territories that were either substantially smaller than or exercised fewer of the rights of sovereignty than did emperors and kings. A lord of even a quite small territory might come to be referred to as a prince before the 13th century, either from translations of a native title into the Latin princeps (as for the hereditary ruler of Wales), or when the lord's territory was allodial. The lord of an allodium owned his lands and exercised prerogatives over the subjects in his territory absolutely, owing no feudal homage or duty as a vassal to a liege lord, nor being subject to any higher jurisdiction. Most small territories designated as principalities during feudal eras were allodial, e.g. the Princedom of Dombes.

Lords who exercised lawful authority over territories and people within a feudal hierarchy were also sometimes regarded as princes in the general sense, especially if they held the rank of count or higher. This is attested in some surviving styles for e.g., British earls, marquesses, and dukes are still addressed by the Crown on ceremonial occasions as high and noble princes (cf. Royal and noble styles).

In parts of the Holy Roman Empire in which primogeniture did not prevail (i.e. Germany), all legitimate agnates had an equal right to the family's hereditary titles. While this meant that offices, such as emperor, king, and elector could only be legally occupied by one dynast at a time, holders of such other titles as duke, margrave, landgrave, count palatine, and prince could only differentiate themselves by adding the name of their appanage to the family's original title. Not only did this tend to proliferate unwieldy titles (e.g. Princess Katherine of Anhalt-Zerbst ane Karl, Count Palatine of Zweibrucken-Neukastell-Kleeburg), but as agnatic primogeniture gradually became the norm in the Holy Roman Empire by the end of the 18th century, another means of distinguishing the monarch from other members of his dynasty became necessary. Gradual substitution of the title of Prinz for the monarch's title of Fürst occurred, and became customary in all German dynasties except in the grand duchies of Mecklenburg and Oldenburg. Both Prinz and Fürst are translated into English as "prince", but they reflect not only different but mutually exclusive terms.

This distinction had evolved before the 18th century (in most families: Liechtenstein long remained an exception, cadets and females using Fürst/Fürstin into the 19th century) for dynasties headed by a Fürst in Germany. The custom spread through the Continent to such an extent that a renowned imperial general who belonged to a cadet branch of a reigning ducal family, remains best known to history by the generic dynastic title, Prince Eugene of Savoy. Note that the princely title was used as a prefix to his Christian name, which also became customary.

Cadets of France's princes étrangers began to affect similar usage but when, for example, the House of La Tour d'Auvergne's ruling dukes of Bouillon, attempted to use the same style, it was initially resisted by historians such as Père Anselme -- who, however, willingly recognized use of territorial titles, i.e. he accepts that the ducal heir apparent is known as prince de Bouillon, but would record in 1728 only that the heir's cousin, the comte d'Oliergues was "known as the Prince Frederick" ("dit le prince Frédéric").

The post-medieval rank of gefürsteter Graf (princely count) embraced but elevated the German equivalent of the intermediate French, English and Spanish nobles. In Germany, these nobles rose to dynastic status by preserving from the Imperial crown (de jure after the Peace of Westphalia in 1648) the exercise of such sovereign prerogatives as the minting of money; the muster of military troops and the right to wage war and contract treaties; local judicial authority and constabular enforcement; and the habit of inter-marrying with sovereign dynasties. Eventually, these titles came to be more highly valued than that of Fürst itself, and by the 19th century, their cadets would become known as Prinzen.

Prince of the Blood

, was the premier prince du sang during his lifetime (painted by Joost van Egmont).]]

Currently, the husband of a queen regnant is usually titled prince or prince consort, whereas the wives of male monarchs take the female equivalent of their husbands' title—the same as is used when a female mounts the throne in her own right, such as empress or queen. In Brazil, Spain and Portugal, however, the husband of a female monarch was accorded the masculine equivalent of her title—at least after she bore him a child. In previous epochs, husbands of queens regnant often shared their consorts' regnal title and rank.

But in cultures which allow the ruler to have several wives (e.g. four in Islam) and/or official concubines, for these women sometimes collectively referred to as harem there are often specific rules determining their hierarchy and a variety of titles, which may distinguish between those whose offspring can be in line for the succeesion or not, or specifically who is mother to the heir to the throne.

To complicate matters, the style His Royal Highness, a prefix normally accompanying the title of a dynastic prince, of royal or imperial rank, that is, can be awarded separately (as a compromise or consolation prize, in some sense).

Although the definition above is the one that is most commonly understood, there are also different systems. Depending on country, epoch, and translation, other meanings of prince are possible.

Over the centuries foreign-language titles such as Italian principe, French prince, German Prinz (son of a king or emperor) Fürst (peer), Russian kniaz, etc., are usually translated as prince in English.

Some princely titles are derived from that of national rulers, such as tsarevich from tsar. Other examples are (e)mirza(da), khanzada, nawabzada, sahibzada, shahzada, sultanzada (all using the Persian patronymic suffix -zada, meaning son, descendant).

However, some princely titles develop in unusual ways, such as adoption of a style for dynasts which is not pegged to the ruler's title, but rather continues an old tradition (e.g. grand duke in Romanov Russia), claims dynastic succession to a lost monarchy (e.g. prince de Tarente for the La Trémoïlle heirs to the Neapolitan throne, or is simply assumed by fiat (e.g. prince Français by the House of Bonaparte).

Specific titles

]] In some dynasties, a specific style other than prince has become customary for dynasts, such as fils de France in the House of Capet, and infante in Spain, Portugal, and Brazil (infante was borne by children of the monarch other than the heir apparent, for whom each realm did use a unique princely title, viz, "Prince Imperial" in Brazil, "Prince of Brazil" in Portugal until 1822, and "Prince of Asturias" in Spain).

Sometimes a specific title is commonly used by various dynasties in a region, e.g. Mian in various of the Punjabi princely Hill States (lower Himalayan region in British India).

European dynasties usually awarded apanages to princes of the blood, typically attached to a feudal noble title, such as Britain's royal dukes , the Dauphin in France, the Count of Flanders in Belgium, and the Count of Syracuse in Sicily. Sometimes appanage titles were princely, e.g. Prince of Achaia (Courtenay), prince de Condé (Bourbon), Prince of Carignan (Savoy), but it was the fact that their owners were of princely rank rather than that they held a princely title which ensured their prominence.

:*For the often specific terminology concerning a probable future successor, see Crown Prince and links there.

Prince as a substantive title

Other princes derive their title not from dynastic membership as such, but from inheritance of a title named for a specific and historical territory, although the family's possession of prerogatives or properties in that territory may be long past. Such are most of the "princedoms" of France's ancien régime so resented for their pretentiousness by St-Simon. These include the princedoms of Arches-Charleville, Boisbelle-Henrichemont, Chalais, Château-Regnault, Guéméné, Martigues, Mercoeur, Sedan, Talmond, Tingrey, and the "kingship'' of Yvetot, among others.

===Prince as a reigning monarch===

A prince or princess who is the head of state of a territory that has a monarchy as a form of government is a reigning prince.

Nominal principalities

The current princely monarchies include:

the co-principality of Andorra (current reigning princes are the French President Nicolas Sarkozy and HE Joan Enric Vives Sicília)

The emirate of Kuwait (current reigning emir is Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah)

The principality of Liechtenstein (current reigning prince is Hans-Adam II)

The principality of Monaco (current reigning prince is Albert II)

The Emirate of Qatar (Emir Hamad bin Khalifa)

The member emirates of the federation in the United Arab Emirates (United Arab Principalities):

* Abu Dhabi (Emir Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, also president of the UAE.)

* Ajman (Emir Humaid bin Rashid Al Nuaimi)

* Dubai (Emir Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, also Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE)

* Fujairah (Emir Hamad bin Mohammed Al Sharqi)

* Ras al-Khaimah (Emir Saqr bin Mohammad al-Qassimi)

* Sharjah (Emir Sultan III bin Muhammad al-Qasimi)

* Umm al-Quwain (Emir Saud bin Rashid Al Mu'alla)

Micronations

In the same tradition some self-proclaimed monarchs of so-called micronations establish themselves as virtual princes:

Roy Bates calls himself Prince Roy of the Principality of Sealand

Leonard George Casley calls himself Prince Leonard I of the Principality of Hutt River (enclave in Australia)

Princes as representants of a reigning monarch

Various monarchies provide for different modes in which princes of the dynasty can temporarily or permanently share in the style and / or office of the Monarch, e.g. as Regent or Viceroy.

Though these offices must not be reserved for members of the ruling dynasty, in some traditions they are, possibly even reflected in the style of the office, e.g. prince-lieutenant in Luxembourg repeatedly filled by the Crown prince before the grand duke's abdication, or in form of consortium imperii.

Some monarchies even have a practice in which the Monarch can formally abdicate in favor of his heir, and yet retain a kingly title with executive power, e.g. Maha Upayuvaraja (Sanskrit for Great Joint King in Cambodia), though sometimes also conferred on powerful regents who exercised executive powers.

Non-dynastic princes

France and the Holy Roman Empire (Holy Roman Empire).]] In several countries of the European continent, e.g. in France, prince can be an aristocratic title of someone having a high rank of nobility in chief of a geographical place, but no actual territory and without any necessary link to the royal family, which makes comparing it with e.g. the British system of royal princes difficult.

The kings of France started to bestow the style of prince, as a title among the nobility, from the 16th century onwards. These titles were created by elevating a seigneurie to the nominal status of a principality—although prerogatives of sovereignty were never conceded in the letters patent. These titles held no official place in the hierarchy of the nobility, but were often treated as ranking just below dukedoms, since they were often inherited (or assumed) by ducal heirs:

French titles of prince recognized by the king

* Holy Roman Empire States annexed by France

** Arches-Charleville: in the Ardennes region, near the border with the Empire.

** Château-Renaud: near Arches-Charleville.

** Dombes: on the east bank of the Rhône.

** Orange.

** Sedan: principalty part of the Duchy of Bouillon.

* Ancient principalties seated in the Kingdom of France

** Boisbelle, later Henrichemont: in the Berry region, a sovereign principalty recognized in 1598.

** Luxe: in the Béarn region, also styled Sovereign Count.

** Yvetot: in the Normandy region, recognized as King of Yvetot.

* Principalties created by the King

** Château-Porcien: in the Ardennes region, created in 1561 in the House of Croÿ.

** Guéméné: in Brittany, created in 1667 in the House of Rohan. Used at times for the heir of the Duke of Montbazon or form the Duke himself.

** Joinville: in the Champagne region, created in 1552 in the house of Lorraine.

** Martigues: in the Provence region, created 16th century in the House of Lorraine.

** Mercœur: in the Auvergne region, created in 1563 in the House of Lorraine, later a duchy. Recreated in 1719.

** Tingry: in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region, created in 1587 in the House of Luxemburg.

* The princes of Condé and Conti, cadets of the French royal house, used recognized princely titles, but the lordships of Condé and Conti were never formally created principalties by the King.

Unrecognized titles of Prince

* Aigremont

* Anet: used by the Dukes of Vendôme, then the Dukes of Penthièvre.

* Antibes: claimed by the de Grasse family.

* Bédeille: in Béarn.

* Bidache: in Béarn used by the House of Gramont, but the heir was usually styled Count of Guiche rather than Prince of Bidache.

* Carency: in Artois. Originally a lordship of the House of Bourbon. It was inherited by the Counts of La Vauguyon, who used the style of Prince of Carency for the heir.

* Chabanais: in Angoumois. Reduced to a marquessate in 1702

* Chalais: in Périgord. Inherited by the elder branch of the House of Talleyrand. Grandeeship of Sapin annexed to the title in 1714.

* Commercy: lordship of Lorraine. Younger sons of the House of Lorraine used the style of Prince of Commercy.

* Courtenay: the House of Courtenay descended from Louis VI of France but was never recognized as Princes of the Blood by the King. The last branch of the house used the style of Prince of Courtenay from the 17th century. The style passed to the Dukes of Bauffremont.

* Elbeuf: lordship of Normandy. Younger sons of the House of Lorraine used the style of Prince of Elbeuf ; later a duchy.

* Lamballe: in Brittany, used by the heir of the Duke of Penthièvre.

* Lambesc: in Provence, used by various cadets of the House of Lorraine, notably by the heirs of the Dukes of Elbeuf.

* Léon: viscountcy of Brittany. The heirs of the Dukes of Rohan used the style of Prince of Léon.

* Listenois: in Franche-Comté, used by the Dukes of Bauffremont after the Courtenay inheritance.

* Marsillac: in Angoumois, used by the heir of the Duke of La Rochefoucauld.

* Maubuisson: in Île-de-France, used by the Dukes of Rohan-Rohan.

* Montauban: in Brittany, used by various cadets of the House of Rohan.

* Montbazon: a duchy of the House of Rohan, style of Prince of Montbazon used by various cadets of the House.

* Mortagne: in Aquitaine, used by the Dukes of Richelieu.

* Poix: in Picardy, used by various houses, raised two times to a duchy.

* Pons: in Saintonge, used by cadets of the House of Lorraine.

* Rochefort: used by cadets of the House of Rohan.

* Soubise: used by cadets of the House of Rohan, also Dukes of Rohan-Rohan.

* Soyons: in Dauphiné, used by cadets of the Dukes of Uzès.

* Talmond: in Vendée, used by the Dukes of La Trémoïlle.

* Tonnay-Charente: used by the heirs of the Dukes of Mortemart.

* Turenne: sovereign viscountcy on the House of La Tour d'Auvergne, style of Prince of Turenne used by cadets of the house.

This can even occur in a monarchy within which an identical but real and substantive feudal title exists, such as Fürst in German. An example of this is:

Otto von Bismarck was called Prince of Bismarck in the empire of reunited Germany, under the Hohenzollern dynasty.

Spain and France (the Netherlands).]] In other cases, such titular princedoms are created in chief of an event, such as a treaty of a victory. An example of this is:

The Spanish minister Manuel Godoy was created Principe de la Paz or Prince of Peace by his king for negotiating the 1795 double peace-treaty of Basilea, by which the revolutionary French republic made peace with Prussia and with Spain.

The triumphant generals who led their troops to victory often received a victory title from Napoleon, both princely and ducal.

King William I of the Netherlands bestowed the victory title of prince of Waterloo upon Arthur Wellesley, Duke of Wellington after his victory over Napoleon I Bonaparte at Waterloo in 1815.

Poland and Russia (Poland).]] In Poland specifically, the titles of prince dated either to the times before the Union of Lublin or were granted to Polish nobles by foreign kings, as the law in Poland forbade the king from dividing nobility by granting them hereditary titles. For more information, see The Princely Houses of Poland.

In the Russian system, knyaz, translated as "prince", is the highest degree of official nobility. Members of older dynasties that were eventually subjected to the Russian imperial dynasty were also accorded the title of knyaz -- sometimes after first being allowed to use the higher title of tsarevich (e.g. the Princes Gruzinsky and Sibirsky. Rurikid branches used the knyaz title also after they were succeeded by the Romanovs as the Russian imperial dynasty. An example of this is:

Grigori Aleksandrovich Potemkin who was made Prince Potemkin

The title of prince in various Western traditions and languages

In each case, the title is followed (when available) by the female form and then (not always available, and obviously rarely applicable to a prince of the blood without a principality) the name of the territorial associated with it, each separated by a slash. If a second title (or set) is also given, then that one is for a Prince of the blood, the first for a principality. Be aware that the absence of a separate title for a prince of the blood may not always mean no such title exists; alternatively, the existence of a word does not imply there is also a reality in the linguistic territory concerned; it may very well be used exclusively to render titles in other languages, regardless whether there is a historical link with any (which often means that linguistic tradition is adopted)

Etymologically, we can discern the following traditions (some languages followed a historical link, e.g. within the Holy Roman Empire, not their linguistic family; some even fail to follow the same logic for certain other aristocratic titles):

Romance languages

Languages (mostly Romance) only using the Latin root princeps:

*Catalan: Príncep /Princesa - Príncep /Princesa

*French: Prince /Princesse - Prince /Princesse

*Friulian: Princip /Principesse - Princip /Principesse

*Italian: Principe /Principessa - Principe /Principessa

*Latin (post-Roman): Princeps/*Princeps/*

*Monegasque: Principu /Principessa - Principu /Principessa

*Occitan: Prince /Princessa - Prince /Princessa

*Portuguese: Príncipe /Princesa - Príncipe /Princesa

*Rhaeto-Romansh: Prinzi /Prinzessa - Prinzi /Prinzessa

*Romanian: Prinţ /Prinţesă - Principe /Principesă

*Spanish: Príncipe /Princesa - Príncipe /Princesa

*Venetian: Principe /Principessa - Principe /Principessa

Celtic languages

*Breton: Priñs /Priñsez

*Irish: Prionsa /Banphrionsa - Flaith /Banfhlaith

*Scottish Gaelic: Prionnsa /Bana-phrionnsa - Flath /Ban-fhlath

*Welsh: Tywysog /Tywysoges - Prins /Prinses

Germanic languages

Languages (mainly Germanic) that use (generally alongside a princeps-derivate for princes of the blood) an equivalent of the German Fürst:

*English:Prince /Princess - Prince /Princess

*Afrikaans: Prins

*Danish: Fyrste /Fyrstinde - Prins /Prinsesse

*Dutch: Vorst /Vorstin- Prins /Prinses

*Faroese: Fúrsti /Fúrstafrúa, Fúrstinna - Prinsur /Prinsessa

*Frisian: Foarst /Foarstinne - Prins /Prinsesse

*German: Fürst /Fürstin - Prinz /Prinzessin

*Icelandic: Fursti /Furstynja - Prins /Prinsessa

*Luxembourgish: Fürst /Fürstin - Prënz /Prinzessin

*Norwegian: Fyrste /Fyrstinne - Prins /Prinsesse

*Old English: Ǣðeling /Hlæfdiġe

*Swedish: Furste /Furstinna - Prins /Prinsessa

Slavic and Baltic languages

Slavic and Baltic languages:

*Belarusian: Tsarevich, Karalevich, Prynts /Tsarewna, Karalewna, Pryntsesa

*Bulgarian: (phonetically pronounced) Knyaz /Knaginya, Kral, Prints /Printsesa

*Bosnian: Кнез/Књегиња or Knez/Kneginja, Краљевић/Краљевна or Kraljević/Kraljevna, Принц/Принцеза or Princ/Princeza

*Croatian: Knez/Kneginja, Kraljević/Kraljevna, Princ/Princeza

*Czech: Kníže /Kněžna, Princ/Princezna

*Latvian: Firsts /Firstiene - Princis /Princese

*Lithuanian: Kunigaikštis /Kunigaikštiene - Princas /Princese

*Macedonian: Knez /Knezhina, Tsarevich, Kralevich, Prints /Tsarevna, Kralevna, Printsesa

*Polish: Książę /Księżna, Książę, Królewicz /Księżna, Królewna

*Russian: Knyaz /Knyagina Knyazhyna, Tsarevich, Korolyevich, Prints /Tsarevna, Korolyevna, Printsessa

*Serbian: Кнез/Књегиња or Knez/Kneginja, Краљевић/Краљевна or Kraljević/Kraljevna, Принц/Принцеза or Princ/Princeza

*Slovak: Knieža /Kňažná, Kráľovič, Princ /Princezná

*Slovene: Knez /Kneginja, Kraljevič, Princ /Kraljična, Princesa

*Ukrainian: Knyaz /Knyazhnya, Tsarenko, Korolenko, Prints /Tsarivna, Korolivna, Printsizna

Other languages

Albanian: Princ /Princeshë - Princ /Princeshë

Arabic: Emir /Emira - Prince /Princess

Estonian: Vürst /Vürstinna - Prints /Printsess

Finnish: Ruhtinas /Ruhtinatar - Prinssi /Prinsessa

Georgian: თავადი / Tavadi

Greek (Medieval, formal): Prigkips, Πρίγκηψ/Prigkipissa, Πριγκήπισσα

Greek (Modern, colloquial): Prigkipas, Πρίγκηπας/Prigkipissa, Πριγκήπισσα

Hindi: Rājkumār (राजकुमार), Kũwar (कुँवर), both from Sanskrit rāj (royal) + kumāra (a boy)

Hungarian (Magyar): Herceg / Hercegnő, or Fejedelem / Fejedelemnő if head of state.

Maltese: Prinċep /Prinċipessa - Prinċep /Prinċipessa

Turkish: Prens /Prenses

Malaysian: Putera / Puteri

Urdu: Shahzada / Shahzadi - Prince /Princess

Filipino: Prinsipe / Prinsesa - Prince / Princess

The title of prince in other traditions and languages

The above is essentially the story of European, Christian dynasties and other nobility, also 'exported' to their colonial and other overseas territories and otherwise adopted by rather westernized societies elsewhere (e.g. Haiti).

Applying these essentially western concepts, and terminology, to other cultures even when they don't do so, is common but in many respects rather dubious. Different (historical, religious...) backgrounds have also begot significantly different dynastic and nobiliary systems, which are poorly represented by the 'closest' western analogy.

It therefore makes sense to treat these per civilization.

Islamic traditions

Arabian tradition since the caliphate - in several monarchies it remains customary to use the title Sheikh (in itself below princely rank) for all members of the royal family. In families (often reigning dynasties) which claim descent from Muhammad, this is expressed in either of a number of titles (supposing different exact relations): sayid, sharif; these are retained even when too remote from any line of succession to be a member of any dynasty.

Malay countries

In the Ottoman empire, the sovereign of imperial rank (incorrectly known in the west as (Great) sultan) was styled padishah with a host of additional titles, reflecting his claim as political successor to the various conquered states. Princes of the blood, male and female, were given the style sultan (normally reserved for Muslim rulers)

Persia (Iran) - Princes as members of a Royal family, are referred to by the title Shahzadeh, meaning "descendant of the king". Since the word zadeh could refer to either a male or female descendant, Shahzadeh had the parallel meaning of "princess" as well. Princes can also be sons of provincial kings (Khan) and the title referring to them would be the title of Khanzadeh. Princes as people who got a title from the King are called "Mirza", diminutive of "Amir Zadeh" (King's Son).

East Asian traditions

China

In ancient China, the title of prince developed from being the highest title of nobility (synonymous with duke) in the Zhou Dynasty, to five grades of princes (not counting the sons and grandsons of the emperor) by the time of the fall of the Qing Dynasty.The Chinese word for prince 'Wang' 王 literally means King as Chinese believe the emperor 'huangdi'皇帝 is the ruler of all kings. The most accurate translation of the English word 'prince' in Chinese is 皇子（son of the Emperor) or 王子 (son of the King).

Japan

In Japan, the title of prince (kôshaku ) was used as the highest title of kazoku ( Japanese modern nobility) before the present constitution. The title kôshaku, however, is more commonly translated as duke to avoid confusion with the royal ranks in the imperial household, shinnô ( literally king of the blood), female naishinnô ( literally queen (by herself) of the blood), and shinnôhi literally consort of king of the blood), or ô ( literally king); female, jyo-ôh ( literally queen (by herself)) and ôhi ( literally consort of king). The former is the higher title of a male member of the Imperial family and the latter is the lower.

Korea

In Korea, the title Prince was used king's male line descendant. Prince translate generally three division. In Jo-seon, king's legitimate son was used title 대군(Dae-goun). And a son born of a concubine and king's a great-great-grandson was used 군. Present prince usually translate 왕자.

See princely states for the (often particular, mainly Hindu) title on the Indian subcontinent in (former British) India (including modern Pakistan and Bangladesh) as well as Burma and Nepal.

Indochina: Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos

Thailand

In Thailand (formerly Siam) the title of Prince was divided into three classes depending on the rank of their mothers. Those who were borne of a King and had a royal mother (a Queen or a Princess consort) are titled Chaofa Chai (: lit. translation: Male Celestial Lord). Those borne of a King and a commoner mother or children of Chaofas are tilted Phra Ong Chao (พระองค์เจ้า). And finally the children of Phra Ong Chaos are titled Mom Chao (หม่อมเจ้า), abbreviated as M.C. (or ม.จ.).

Philippines (Principalia)

African traditions

A Western model was sometimes copied by emancipated colonial regimes (e.g. Bokassa I's short-lived Central-African Empire in Napoleonic fashion). Otherwise, most of the styles for members of ruling families do not lend themselves well to English translation. Nonetheless, in general the princely style has gradually replaced the colonialist title of chief, which does not particularly connote dynastic rank to Westerners, e.g. Swazi Royal Family and Zulu Royal Family.

The title of prince in religion

was a prince of the Roman Catholic Church during his lifetime.]]

In states with an element of theocracy, this can affect princehood in several ways, such as the style of the ruler (e.g. with a secondary title meaning son or servant of a named divinity), but also the mode of succession (even reincarnation and recognition).

Furthermore, certain religious offices may be considered of princely rank, and/or imply comparable temporal rights.

The Pope, Cardinals, Prince Bishops, Lord Bishops, Prince-Provost, and Prince-abbots are referred to as Princes of the Church. Also in Christianity, Jesus Christ is sometimes referred to as the Prince of Peace. Other titles for Jesus Christ are Prince of Princes, Prince of the Covenant, and Prince of the Kings of the Earth. Further, Satan is often titled the Prince of Darkness; and in the Christian faith he is also referred to as the Prince of this World and the Prince of the Power of the Air. Another title for Satan, not as common today but apparently so in approximately 30 A.D. by the Pharisees of the day, was the title Prince of the Devils. Prince of Israel, Prince of the Angels, and Prince of Light are titles given to the Archangel Michael. Some Christian churches also believe that since all Christians, like Jesus Christ, are children of God, then they too are princes and princesses of Heaven. Saint Peter, a disciple of Jesus, is also known as the Prince of the Apostles.

See also

Auctoritas, Dominate, Potestas and Imperium

Crown Prince, Grand Prince and Infante

Fils de France and Petit-Fils de France

First Prince of the Blood

Fürst

Grand Duchy, Grand duke and Grand duchess

Infante and Infanta

Heir apparent and Heir presumptive

King consort and Queen consort

King Consort in Portugal

King regnant and Queen regnant

List of British princes and List of British princesses

Monsieur and Madame Royale

Nobility, Royalty and Royal and noble ranks

Prince of the Apostles

Prince consort and Princess consort

Prince Consort in Portugal

Prince du Sang

Prince-elector and Prince Regent

Prince of the Church: Pope, Cardinal (Roman Catholic), Crown-cardinal, Prince-Bishop, Lord Bishop, Prince-Provost, and Prince-abbot

Princess

Principality and Princely state

References

External links

Princely States in British India and talaqdars in Oudh.

RoyalArk thorough on a limited number of dynasties.

World Statesmen select the present state, often navigate within for a former polity.

Category:Court titles Category:Feudalism Category:Heads of state Category:Royal titles Category:Noble titles Category:Positions of authority Category:Men's social titles

Name	Will Smith
Caption	Smith in May 2010
Birth name	Willard Christopher Smith, Jr.
Birth date	September 25, 1968
Birth place	Wynnefield, West Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Other names	The Fresh Prince
Occupation	Actor, rapper, film producer, record producer, television producer
Years active	1985–present
Spouse
Website	http://www.willsmith.com/

Willard Christopher "Will" Smith, Jr. (born September 25, 1968) is an American actor, film producer and pop rapper. He has enjoyed success in music, television and film. In April 2007, Newsweek called him the most powerful actor on the planet. Smith has been nominated for four Golden Globe Awards, two Academy Awards, and has won multiple Grammy Awards.

In the late 1980s, Smith achieved modest fame as a rapper under the name The Fresh Prince. In 1990, his popularity increased dramatically when he starred in the popular television series The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. The show ran for nearly six years (1990–1996) on NBC and has been syndicated consistently on various networks since then. In the mid-1990s, Smith transitioned from television to film, and ultimately starred in numerous blockbuster films that received broad box office success. In fact, he is the only actor in history to have eight consecutive films gross over $100 million in the domestic box office as well as being the only actor to have eight consecutive films in which he starred open at the #1 spot in the domestic box office tally.

Fourteen of the 19 fiction films he has acted in have accumulated worldwide gross earnings of over $100 million, and 4 of them took in over $500 million in global box office receipts. His most financially successful films have been Bad Boys, Bad Boys II, Independence Day, Men in Black, Men in Black II, I, Robot, The Pursuit of Happyness, I Am Legend, Hancock, Wild Wild West, Enemy of the State, Shark Tale, Hitch and Seven Pounds. He also earned critical praise for his performances in Six Degrees of Separation, Ali and The Pursuit of Happyness, receiving Best Actor Oscar nominations for the latter two.

Family and early life

West Philadelphia born and raised, Smith also spent time in Germantown in Northwest Philadelphia. His mother, Caroline (née Bright), was a school administrator who worked for the Philadelphia school board, and his father, Willard Christopher Smith, Sr., was a refrigeration engineer. He was raised Baptist. His parents separated when he was 13, and did not actually divorce until Smith was around 30.

While it is widely reported that Smith turned down a scholarship to attend the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), he never applied to MIT, although he was admitted to a "pre-engineering program" there.

Recording and acting career

Early work (1985–1995)

Smith started as the MC of the hip-hop duo DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince, with his childhood friend Jeffrey "DJ Jazzy Jeff" Townes as turntablist and producer as well as Ready Rock C (Clarence Holmes) as the human beat box. The trio was known for performing humorous, radio-friendly songs, most notably "Parents Just Don't Understand" and "Summertime". They gained critical acclaim for winning the first ever Grammy in the Rap category (1988). He had a line in "Voices That Care", a 1991 Gulf War song by a celebrity group. Smith spent money freely during his early career and underpaid his income taxes. The Internal Revenue Service eventually assessed a $2.8 million tax debt against Smith, took many of his possessions, and garnished his income. Smith was nearly bankrupt in 1990 when the NBC television network signed him to a contract and built a sitcom, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, around him. The show was successful and began his acting career. Smith set for himself the goal of becoming "the biggest movie star in the world," studying box office successes' common characteristics. In 1998 Smith starred with Gene Hackman in Enemy of the State. Smith turned down the role of Neo in The Matrix in favor of Wild Wild West. Despite the disappointment of Wild Wild West, Smith has said that he harbors no regrets about his decision, asserting that Keanu Reeves's performance as Neo was superior to what Smith would have achieved.

International success (2001–present)

In 2005, Smith was entered into the Guinness Book of World Records for attending a record breaking three premieres in a 24-hour time span.

He has planned to star in a feature film remake of the television series It Takes a Thief.

On December 10, 2007, Smith was recognized at Grauman's Chinese Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard. Smith left an imprint of his hands and feet outside the world renowned theater in front of many fans. Later that month, Smith starred in the film I Am Legend, released December 14, 2007. Despite marginally positive reviews, its opening was the largest ever for a film released in the United States during December. Smith himself has said that he considers the film to be "aggressively unique". A reviewer said that the film's commercial success "cemented [Smith's] standing as the number one box office draw in Hollywood." On December 1, 2008, TV Guide reported that Smith has been selected as one of America’s top ten most fascinating people of 2008 for a Barbara Walters ABC special that aired on December 4, 2008.

Smith is currently developing a film entitled The Last Pharaoh, in which he will star as Taharqa.

President Barack Obama has stated that if a film were to ever be made about his life, he would have Smith play his part, because "he has the ears". Obama stated that the two have discussed a possibility of a film based on the 2008 election, but this may not happen until the end of the Obama presidency.

He is currently filming Men in Black III for a 2012 release playing Agent J one of his more popular earlier roles, making this his first major starring role in four years.

Personal life

December 11, 2009, in Oslo, Norway: Smith with wife Jada and children Jaden and Willow]] Smith was raised by his parents in West Philadelphia. Smith credits his father's dedication when discussing his own involvement in the lives of his three children: "I look at my father and how he was able to keep four kids fed and clothed and still managed to find time to spend with us." Smith married Sheree Zampino in 1992. They had a son, Willard Christopher Smith III, also known as "Trey", but divorced in 1995. Trey appeared in his father's music video for the 1998 single "Just The Two Of Us". Smith married actress Jada Pinkett in 1997. Together they have had two children: Jaden Christopher Syre (born 1998), his co-star in The Pursuit of Happyness, and Willow Camille Reign (born 2000), who appeared as his daughter in "I Am Legend". Along with his brother, Harry Smith, he owns Treyball Development Inc., a Beverly Hills-based company named after his first son. Smith and his family reside on Star Island in Miami Beach, Florida and in Los Angeles, Stockholm, Sweden and Philadelphia.

Smith was consistently listed in Fortune Magazine's "Richest 40" list of the forty wealthiest Americans under the age of 40. He donated $4,600 to the presidential campaign of Democrat Barack Obama. December 11, 2009, Smith and his wife hosted the Nobel Peace Prize Concert in Oslo, Norway, when Barack Obama had won the prize.

Smith has said he has studied multiple religions, including Scientology, and he has said many complimentary things about Scientology and other faiths. Despite his praise of Scientology, Smith said "I just think a lot of the ideas in Scientology are brilliant and revolutionary and non-religious" and "Ninety-eight percent of the principles in Scientology are identical to the principles of the Bible.... I don't think that because the word someone uses for spirit is 'thetan' that the definition becomes any different." He has denied having joined the Church of Scientology, saying "I am a Christian. I am a student of all religions, and I respect all people and all paths." Smith gave $1.3 million to charities in 2007, of which $450,000 went to two Christian ministries, and $122,500 went to three Scientology organizations; the remaining beneficiaries included "a Los Angeles mosque, other Christian-based schools and churches, and [...] the Yitzhak Rabin Memorial Center in Israel". Smith and his wife have also founded a private elementary school in Calabasas, California, the New Village Leadership Academy, which has attracted controversy and speculation over its use of Study Technology, a teaching methodology developed by L. Ron Hubbard, the founder of Scientology.

Discography

Big Willie Style (1997)

Willennium (1999)

Born to Reign (2002)

Lost and Found (2005)

Filmography

Box office grosses

References

Further reading

External links

Official site

in 2002

Category:Living people Category:1968 births Category:Actors from Pennsylvania Category:African American film actors Category:American hip hop musicians Category:American rappers Category:American television actors Category:Baptists from the United States Category:Columbia Records artists Category:Grammy Award winners Category:Interscope Records artists

Category:People from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Category:Rappers from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Category:Beatboxers

Category:African-American film producers Category:African American rappers

Name	Ofra Haza
Background	solo_singer
Birth name	Bat Sheva' Ofra Haza Bat Shoshana / Yefet Haza
Alias	Ofra Haza
Born	November 19, 1957
Died	February 23, 2000Sheba Medical Center, Ramat Gan, Israel
Origin	Ha'tikva neighborhood, Tel Aviv, Israel
Instrument	Vocals, Piano
Genre	World, Pop, Ethnic electronica, Middle eastern
Occupation	Singer, songwriter, actress
Years active	1969–2000
Movies	"Shlager" (1979 Israel), "Suburban Girl" (1979 Israel), "Primal Justice" (1997 Israel), "Prince Of Egypt" (1999 USA)
Label	Hed ArziEastWest RecordsShanachie RecordsBMG AriolaAusfahrtSire/Warner Bros. Records
Url	Ofra.Haza.Co.IL}}

Ofra Haza ( November 19, 1957 – February 23, 2000) was an Israeli singer, actress and international recording artist. She was one of the most popular and appreciated female singers in Israel.

Haza was born the youngest of nine children in the poor Tel Aviv neighborhood of Hatikvah in 39 Boaz Street. At an early age she became a local, then national, success story, the subject of great pride for many Israelis.

Her voice has been described as mezzo-soprano, of near-flawless tonal quality, capable of lending itself to a variety of musical styles with apparent ease.

Inspired by a love of her Yemeni Jewish culture, the appeal of her musical art quickly spread to a wider Middle Eastern audience, somehow bridging the divide between Israel and the Arab countries. As her career progressed, the multi-lingual Haza was able to switch between traditional and more commercial singing styles without jeopardizing her credibility. The music, too, fused elements of Eastern and Western instrumentation, orchestration and dance-beat. Success was to follow in Europe and the Americas; during her singing career, she earned many platinum and gold discs.

Early career

At the age of twelve and one-half years, Haza joined a local theater troupe, and manager Bezalel Aloni spotted her exceptional singing talent. He staged many of his productions around Haza as the centrepiece and later on he became her longtime manager and mentor. At the age of 19, she was Israel's first pop princess and retrospectively, music journalists described her as "The Madonna of the East".

By the time she had completed her military service in 1979, Aloni's protégée had matured as a singer and was ready to launch a solo career.

Her first album, entitled Al Ahavot Shelanu (Our Love), was released in 1980 and yielded a string of popular radio hits, including "Hageshem" (The Rain), "Shir Ahava La'chayal" (Love Song For The Soldier), "Kmo Tzipor" (Like A Bird) and what ultimately became her signature song in her homeland, "Shir Ha'frecha" (The Bimbo Song). The latter was written for the film Shlagger (1979) in which Haza played a leading role. At first, radio stations across the country refused to play the song due to its explicit lyrics but it quickly climbed the charts and reached #1, where it stayed for five consecutive weeks.

A second album soon followed, Bo Nedaber (Let's Talk), which included the hugely popular hits "Tfila" (Prayer) and "Simanim Shel Ohavim" (Lovers Signs).

Her third album, Pituyim (Temptations) came out in 1982 and enjoyed equal success with such hits as "Gabriel" and "Kol Yom Matchila Shana" (A New Year Starts Everyday). With this album, more well-known writers agreed to write her songs, including Tzvika Pick and Nurit Hirsh.

In 1983, Haza's career jumped to a new level of success and popularity. At the Eurovision Song Contest, she came in a close second to the Luxembourg entry with the song "Chai" (Alive). Her popularity in Israel reached enormous heights. Her 1983 album, Chai, became her biggest-selling album to date and the title track was voted the #1 song of the year. Author and historian John Kennedy O'Connor notes in The Eurovision Song Contest - The Official History that Haza's performance of this song was highly symbolic as it contains the lyric "Israel Is Alive". As the contest was held in Munich, Germany, the scene of the 1972 Olympic's massacre, there was considerable patriotism involved with the Israeli entry. Additional hits from the album included "Amen Lamilim" (Amen For Words) and "Sof Hakayitz" (End Of Summer). Haza was voted "Female Vocalist Of The Year" four years in a row, from 1980 through 1983. Later that year, Haza released Shirey Moledet which consisted of her renditions of well-known Israeli folk songs. Public response was so overwhelming, she went on to release two more volumes (in 1985 and 1987).

Bait Ham (A Place For Me) was released in 1984 and included such hits as "Yad Beyad" (Hand In Hand), "Itcha Halayla" (With You Tonight) and the title track. The album quickly went gold. In December that year, Haza released what was to become the turning-point of her career, a collection of Yemenite songs, simply titled Yemenite Songs. Despite lukewarm radio airplay, the album went on to become a best-seller, quickly reaching platinum status. This LP was reissued in the United States by Shanachie Records under the title Fifty Gates of Wisdom.

The album Adama (Earth) followed in 1985 and saw the top writers in the country contribute to the album: Sasha Argov, Naomi Shemer, Ya'akov Orland and Ehud Manor, among others. The album produced the enormously popular hits, "Adama", "Goral Echad" (One Destiny) and "Mishehu Holech Tamid Iti" (Someone Always Walks With Me).

In 1986, Haza tried to update her sound and gathered with acclaimed producer Yizhar Ashdot to create what some consider to be her most interesting work, Yamim Nishbarim (Broken Days). The album had an edgy rock sound and the lyrics were deep and personal and written by Haza herself, a first. The album went gold and produced the hits "Kol Haklafim" (Open Your Cards), "Bo Ve-Nagen Oti" (Come and Play Me) and "Hake'ev Haze" (This Pain).

When asked about her musical roots in an interview on KCRW-FM radio (1993, Santa Monica), Haza spoke of her Yemenite Jewish parents, a childhood filled with music and singing and a passion for traditional Yemenite songs, picked up from her mother. Questioned about the theatre troupe, she spoke of poverty and the total neglect of successive governments for the Hatikvah region; and how, by way of protest, the community had rallied to create something positive and dramatic, which would make others sit up and take notice of a forgotten neighbourhood. Throughout the interview, Aloni can be heard in the background, adding information and correcting Haza about her age (by subtracting two years), when asked about her first album.

International artist

2000"]] Her greatest international recognition came with the single "Im Nin'Alu", taken from the album Shaday (1988), which won the New Music Award for Best International Album of the Year. The song topped the Eurochart (Europe's equivalent to the American Billboard charts) for two weeks in June that year and was on heavy rotation on MTV channels across the continent. For years to come, this song would be extensively re-released, re-mixed and sampled, for example on Coldcut's remix of Eric B. & Rakim's "Paid in Full," and by DJ Cheb I Sabbah in La Kahena. The single made only a brief appearance in the UK top 40 singles chart, but became a dancefloor favorite across Europe and the USA, topping the German charts for nine weeks. Subsequent singles were also given the dance-beat / MTV-style video treatment, most notably, "Galbi", "Daw Da Hiya" and "Mata Hari", but none quite matched the runaway success of her first hit. "Im Nin' Alu" would go on to be featured on an in-game radio playlist of the video game , released in 2005 and featured on Panjabi MC's album "Indian Timing" in 2009.

Haza also received critical acclaim for the albums Fifty Gates of Wisdom (1988), Desert Wind (1989), Kirya (1992), Ofra Haza (1997) and for her collection of children's songs, L'Yeladim (1982).

Kirya (co-produced by Don Was) received a Grammy nomination.

In 1994, Haza released her first Hebrew album in seven years, Kol Haneshama (The Whole Soul). Though not an initial chart success, the album produced one of her biggest hits to date, "Le'orech Hayam" (Along The Sea). The song did not have any substantial chart success upon its release to radio but became an anthem after Haza performed it on the assembly in memorial to deceased Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, a week after he was assassinated. Radio stations around the country started playing it and people took notice. Its lyrics became even more symbolic following Haza's own death in 2000.

Collaborations and performances

as the narrator]] Her collaborative work with internationally established acts included the single "Temple of Love (Touched by the Hand of Ofra Haza)", recorded with The Sisters of Mercy in 1992. Thomas Dolby co-produced Yemenite Songs and Desert Wind, where he was also a guest musician. Haza guested on Dolby's album Astronauts And Heretics (1992), singing on the track "That's Why People Fall In Love". She recorded "My Love Is for Real" with Paula Abdul in 1995 and on Sarah Brightman's album Harem, Haza's vocals were included on "Mysterious Days", thanks to an idea by Brightman's partner Frank Peterson (ex-Enigma), who produced both Harem (2003) and the album Ofra Haza (1997).

For the Kirya album, Iggy Pop, a friend of Don Was, performed the narration on "Daw Da Hiya" and Haza joined him and a host of other stars for the video and single release "Give Peace A Chance" in 1991. She also sang on the soundtracks of Colors (1988), Dick Tracy (1990), Wild Orchid (1990), Queen Margot (1994) and The Prince of Egypt (1998). In The Prince of Egypt, she voiced the small role of Yocheved, as well as singing "Deliver Us". When Hans Zimmer, who was working with Haza on the music for The Prince of Egypt, introduced her to the artists, they thought that she was so beautiful that they drew Yocheved, whom Haza voiced, to look like the singer. For The Prince of Egypt's soundtracks, Haza sang the song "Deliver Us" in 17 languages (including Czech — "Tak vyveď nás", Dutch — "Verlos ons, Heer", English — "Deliver Us", Finnish — "Johdata", French — "Délivre nous", German — "Erlöse uns", Greek — "Eleftheri", Hebrew — "Hoshia Na", Hungarian — "Szabadíts", Italian — "Ascoltaci", Norwegian — "Befri Oss", Polish — "Uwolnij Nas", Portuguese — "Liberte Nos", Spanish — "Libranos", Swedish — "Befria Oss"; about half of these were sung phonetically). On the soundtrack of The Governess (1998), Haza is the featured singer on seven of the twelve tracks and worked closely with film music composer Edward Shearmur. In 1999, she performed (together with late Pakistani artist Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan) the track "Forgiveness", on the contemporary symphony album The Prayer Cycle by Jonathan Elias. As a featured background vocalist, Haza's voice has been recorded, re-mixed or sampled for Black Dog's "Babylon" single, Eric B and Rakim's "Paid In Full (Coldcut Remix)" and for the M/A/R/R/S hit "Pump Up The Volume". The single "Love Song" has been re-mixed by DJs many times, its powerful vocal performance and comparatively sparse musical arrangement making it the perfect vehicle for a dance-rhythm accompaniment.

Covers of songs by other artists included the Carole King / James Taylor classic "You've Got a Friend", Madonna's "Open Your Heart", Gary Moore's "Separate Ways", and Led Zeppelin's "Kashmir".

There were many distinguished live performances and Haza spoke with fond memories of her visits to Japan and Turkey. Notable too, was her performance at the 1994 Nobel Peace Prize Ceremony in Oslo, where she appeared alongside Irish singer Sinéad O'Connor. "Paint Box" was written specially for the event. Her 1990 live recording, Ofra Haza At Montreux Jazz Festival was released in 1998.

Haza shared duets and concert performances with Glykeria, Yehudit Ravitz, Paul Anka, Paula Abdul, Michael Jackson, Iggy Pop, Hoite, Buddha Bar, Ishtar, Gidi Gov, Whitney Houston, Tzvika Pick, Khaled, Prachim Yerushalaim, The Sisters of Mercy, Thomas Dolby, Stefan Waggershausen, Eric B and Rakim, Gila Miniha, Hans Zimmer, Hagashash Hachiver, Yaffa Yarkoni, Shoshana Damari and posthumously with Sarah Brightman.

At the fall of 1999, Haza recorded new material for a new album that she worked on with Ron Aviv, a music producer from Petah Tikva. At the time, she also worked with the Finnish violinist Linda Brava, who released a previously unreleased track called Tarab on her MySpace page on 14 May 2010. On the track, Haza sings in English, Arabic and Hebrew, while Brava plays the electric violin. The track might be the last recording of Haza, before she died.

Marriage

On 15 July 1997 Haza married businessman Doron Ashkenazi. They had no children together. Ashkenazi died of a suspected drug overdose on 7 April 2001, leaving a daughter from his previous marriage and a 14-year-old adopted son Shai Ashkenazi.

Death

Ofra Haza died on 23 February 2000 at the age of 42, of AIDS-related pneumonia. While the fact of her HIV infection is now generally acknowledged, the decision by the major Israeli newspaper Ha'aretz to report about it shortly after her death caused controversy in Israel.

After Haza's death was announced, Israeli radio stations played non-stop retrospectives of her music and Prime Minister Ehud Barak praised her work as a cultural emissary, commenting that she also represented the Israeli success story — "Ofra emerged from the Hatikvah slums to reach the peak of Israeli culture. She has left a mark on us all".

The disclosure that Haza had likely died as a result of AIDS added another layer to the public mourning. That a star with a reputation for clean living could be stricken caused shock among fans, debate about the media's potential invasion of her privacy, and speculation about how she had become infected, particularly blaming her husband.

Other reports indicate that she may have contracted the virus as a result of a blood transfusion in a Turkish hospital following a miscarriage.

She is buried in Yarkon Cemetery, Tel Aviv, Israel.

Legacy

Bezalel Aloni, Haza's manager and producer of 28 years, published a book Michtavim L'Ofra (Letters to Ofra) in 2007. The book is partially an autobiography of Aloni and partially a biography of Haza, which also consists of compiled letters written by Aloni.

On 22 March 2007, the Tel Aviv Jaffa Municipality and the Tel Aviv Development Fund renamed part of the public park in the Hatikva Quarter to Gan Ofra (Ofra's Park) on the seventh anniversary of her death, in honour of Haza. The park is placed at the end of Bo'az street where Haza's childhood home was built. The designated area features a children's playground, symbolizing her love for children and the old quarter where she grew up and always came back to.

Tributes

Touched By The Hand of Ofra Haza Fanzine (2008–2009) was a tribute fanzine.

Sharim Ofra (Singing Ofra) 2002 — A tribute concert to commemorate the life of Ofra Haza where Israeli singers sang Haza's songs.

Documentaries

Life & Death of Ofra Haza 2002 — Aired on the Israeli channel 2, 29 Januray 2002. This documentary in Hebrew focuses on Haza's entire life and career until her sad death.

Sodot (Secrets) 2005 — Aired on Israeli channel YES, this documentary in Hebrew and partly English is about Haza's life and attempts to answer questions surrounding her death.

Dokoceleb Ofra Haza 2007 — Aired on the Israeli entertainment station HOT, 22 February 2007. This documentary in Hebrew focuses on Haza's career, achievements and marriage.

Lost Treasure of Ofra Haza 2010 — Aired on the Israeli channel 10, 22 February 2010. This documentary in Hebrew and partly English focuses on Haza's inheritance.

Albums

1974 — Ahava Rishona (with Shechunat Hatikvah Workshop Theatre)

1976 — Ve-hutz Mizeh Hakol Beseder (with Shechunat Hatikvah Workshop Theatre)

1977 — Atik Noshan (with Shechunat Hatikvah Workshop Theatre)

1979 — Shir HaShirim Besha'ashu'im (with Shechunat Hatikvah Workshop Theatre)

1980 — Al Ahavot Shelanu

1981 — Bo Nedaber

1982 — Temptations

1982 — Li-yeladim (Children's Songs)

1983 — Hai

1983 — Shirei Moledet A

1984 — Bayt Ham

1984 — Shirei Teyman (a.k.a. Yemenite Songs or Fifty Gates of Wisdom)

1985 — Adamah

1985 — Shirei Moledet B

1986 — Yamim Nishbarim

1987 — Album HaZahav (The Golden Album)

1988 — Shaday

1988 — Yemenite Love

1989 — Desert Wind

1989 — Shirei Moledet A + B

1992 — Kirya

1993 — Oriental Nights

1994 — Kol Haneshama

1995 — The Golden Album (Double Compilation CD, Hed Arzi 2ANP15190))

1995 — Queen in Exile (Unreleased)

1997 — Ofra Haza

1998 — Ofra Haza At Montreux Jazz Festival (Live - recorded 1990)

1998 — Shirei Moledet 3

2000 — Greatest Hits vol.1/Bemanginat Halev (Melody Of The Heart)

2001 — Music History

2004 — Greatest Hits vol.2/Bemanginat Halev (Melody Of The Heart)

2008 — Forever Ofra Haza - Her Greatest Songs Remixed (incl. previously unreleased track)

Soundtracks

1988 — Colors

1990 — Dick Tracy

1990 — Wild Orchid

1994 — La Reine Margot (Queen Margot)

1998 — The Prince of Egypt

1998 — The Governess

1999 — The King And I (Hebrew version)

2000 —

See also

Mizrahi Music

References

External links

Ofra Haza Official Website

ofra haza in Internet Movie Database Website

ofra haza in "Jewish Women Encyclopedia"

ofra haza memorial page in Find a Grave Website

Category:1957 births Category:2000 deaths Category:AIDS-related deaths in Israel Category:Dance musicians Category:Eurovision Song Contest entrants of 1983 Category:Israeli columnists Category:Israeli Eurovision Song Contest entrants Category:Israeli female singers Category:Israeli film actors Category:Israeli Jews Category:Israeli pop singers Category:Jewish musicians Category:Jewish singers Category:People from Tel Aviv Category:Sire Records artists Category:Yemenite Jews

Name	Lily Allen
Background	solo_singer
Birth name	Lily Rose Beatrice Allen
Born	May 02, 1985Hammersmith, London, England
Instrument	Guitar
Genre	2 Tone, indie pop, grime, ska, alternative rock
Occupation	Actress, presenter, musician, songwriter
Years active	2005–present(on hiatus, as of 2010)
Label	Regal (2006–2010)Capitol (2007–2010)
Url

Lily Rose Beatrice Allen (born 2 May 1985) is an English recording artist, talk show host, and actress. She is the daughter of actor and musician Keith Allen and film producer Alison Owen. In her teenage years, her musical tastes evolved from glam rock to alternative. A year later, Allen abandoned school and concentrated on improving her performing and compositional skills. Afterwards, she created several demo songs, and near the end of 2005, she created a profile on MySpace, where she made some of her recordings public.

A contract was signed with the label Regal Recordings, as the views on MySpace rose to tens of thousands. In 2006, she began to work on completing what would be her first studio album and its first mainstream single "Smile" reached the top position on the UK Singles Chart in July 2006. Her debut record, Alright, Still, was well received on the international market, selling over 2.6 million copies and brought Allen a nomination at the Grammy Awards, BRIT Awards and MTV Video Music Awards. She then began hosting her own talk-show, Lily Allen and Friends, on BBC Three.

Her second major album release, It's Not Me, It's You, saw a genre shift for her, having more of an electropop feel, rather than the ska and reggae influences of the first one. The album debuted at #1 on the UK Albums Chart and the Australian ARIA Charts and was appreciated by the critics, noting the singer's musical evolution and maturity. It spawned the hit singles "The Fear" and "Fuck You", popular mostly in Europe. Allen and Amy Winehouse have been credited with starting a process that led to the media-proclaimed "year of the women" in 2009 that has seen five female artists making music of "experimentalism and fearlessness" long nominated for the Mercury Prize. In September 2009, Allen stated that she sees no way that she could ever make a profit making new records. In August she announced her pregnancy and began a hiatus. Her family settled in the North London borough of Islington. She has an older sister, Sarah; a younger brother, Alfie Owen-Allen (who was the subject of her song "Alfie"); and a younger sister Rebecca. She has a number of half-siblings. Allen lived for a while with comedian Harry Enfield while her mother dated him. She is the god-daughter of Wild Colonials vocalist Angela McCluskey. The late Clash singer and guitarist Joe Strummer is also referred to as a godparent; while not literally true, Strummer was close to Allen. Allen has fond memories of the week and a half they would spend together at Glastonbury Festival as part of a regular collective centred on Strummer and her father. Strummer's musical past would not come into focus for Allen until after his death.

In 1988, at the age of three, Allen appeared on The Comic Strip Presents... episode "The Yob," which her father had co-written. When Allen was four years old, her father left the family. Allen grew up with her mother in a working class environment, living in a council house environment for most of her childhood.

When Allen was 11, former University of Victoria music student Rachel Santesso overheard Allen singing Wonderwall by Oasis in the school's playground; impressed, Santesso, who would later become an award-winning soprano and composer, called Allen into her office the next day and started giving her lunchtime singing lessons. This would lead to Allen singing Baby Mine from Disney's Dumbo at a school concert. Allen would tell Loveline that the audience was "brought to tears at the sight of a troubled young girl doing something good". At that point Allen said she knew that music was something she needed to do either as a lifelong vocation or to get it out of her system. Allen played piano to grade 5 standard and achieved Grade 8 in singing. She also played violin, guitar and trumpet as well as being a member of a chamber choir. Her first solo was "In the Bleak Midwinter." She dropped out of school at age fifteen, not wanting to "spend a third of her life preparing to work for the next third of her life, to set herself up with a pension for the next third of her life."

Music career

2005–07: Alright, Still

Allen met her first manager, George Lamb in Ibiza. Allen was rejected by several labels, which she attributed to her drinking and being the daughter of Keith Allen. When the executive who had signed her left, the label lost interest and she left without releasing the folk songs many of which were written by her father.

Allen studied horticulture to become a florist, but changed her mind and returned to music. She began writing songs, and her manager introduced her to production duo Future Cut in 2004. They worked in a small studio in the basement of an office building.

Allen created an account on MySpace and began posting demos in November 2005. Allen received a 2008 NME Award nomination for the category of "Best Band Blog." Allen's songs have been downloaded from her MySpace page 19 million times. As at 9 February 2009, Allen had 448,000 MySpace friends. She was the fifth most popular musical act of 2008, according to the social networking site. Allen used her MySpace blog for controversies surrounding her. By February 2009 she had stopped the practice because "It's boring when people just pick stuff up and write about it. People get hurt, people get upset.". Lily is about to perform her last ever live gig at Big Chill Festival 2010.

Allen's debut album, Alright, Still, was released as a limited-edition 12" vinyl in the UK on 3 July 2006; the full CD release followed in the UK and the rest of Europe on 17 July 2006. The album features between 11 and 14 tracks (depending on the edition), most of which were previewed on her MySpace page, including the singles "Smile" (the first song she wrote with Future Cut), "LDN", "Knock 'Em Out", and "Alfie". "Friday Night", co-written with Jonny Bull, was also included, alongside "Littlest Things" produced by Mark Ronson, help earn Ronson a "Producer of the Year – Non Classical" 2008 Grammy Award. In a 2010 interview Ronson said that that Allen would angrily blame him when stories appeared in the press calling Ronson "the man behind" Allen's music. Ronson noted that "There is no one behind Lily Allen, it's all her". In September 2006, "Smile" was made available on the United States version of iTunes Store. By December 2006, her music video for Smile had been played on various music channels as well as the song getting a little airplay. Entertainment Weekly named Alright, Still as one of the top 10 albums of 2006 despite the fact that it had not yet been released in the U.S. Allen also did several promotional ads for MTV as their Discover and Download artist of the month for January 2007.

On the week ending on 28 January 2007, British artists made chart history taking all top 10 places in the Official UK Albums chart for the first time since the chart was established in 1956, according to British record labels trade association the BPI, the album Alright, Still was number nine that week.

The album was released in the United States on 30 January 2007, landing at 20 on the Billboard Album Charts. Allen won a 2008 BMI songwriting award for "Smile". "Smile" was the first single. The U.S. version contains three additional tracks: "Nan, You're A Window Shopper", "Blank Expression" (on the iTunes version) and a new remix of "Smile" by Mark Ronson. On 5 March 2007, the single "Alfie" was released.

By January 2009 the album had sold 960,000 copies in the United Kingdom and 520,000 copies in the United States. Allen said she cringes now when listening to tracks from Alright, Still, as it reminds her that she was a "sort of over-excitable teenager who desperately wanted attention" when she wrote it.

2008–09: It's Not Me, It's You

in London on 6 July 2007.]] In April 2008, Allen said she was heading in a "new direction." She posted two new song demos on her MySpace page and planned to release a mixtape to give her fans an idea of what the new direction was. Allen said the new direction was undertaken because: "I did a retro thing last time, and since I did that, a lot of other people did it too. I wanted to separate myself from the group and move forward."

Allen posted on MySpace a partial clip of a song, originally called both "Guess Who Batman" and "Get With the Brogram," but was eventually entitled "Fuck You" The song was originally written about the British National Party but ended up being about George W. Bush. Allen had also posted early versions of "The Fear" (then titled "I Don't Know"), "I Could Say", and "Who'd Have Known". By 19 August, there were between 250,000 and one million plays for each song from the album that she has made available to listen to on her MySpace page.

After the release of her first album, her parent record company, EMI, was taken over by Terra Firma. Her management company, Empire Artist Management, was replaced by Twenty-First Artists, although her core team remained in place. It's Not Me, It's You was first scheduled for an early 2008 release, but her miscarriage and creative issues delayed the release date to the autumn. During autumn 2008, EMI was undergoing restructuring. According to Allen, this led to a situation were "everyone is terrified of losing their jobs. So no one wants to make decisions or give you their opinion in case it comes back on them. As an artist, that really is terrifying." Due to this negative environment, a decision with Allen's full approval was made to move the album's eventual release date to February 2009 by Regal/Parlophone." On 26 February, the album was at the number 5 position on the Pan-European Charts. The album has been certified as platinum in the United Kingdom.

The first single from the album, "The Fear", was released digitally on 9 December 2008 and released on CD on 26 January 2009. It entered the chart at number 136 on limited edition, and was number 1 for the first four weeks after its official release. As of 26 February the single was at the number 3 position on the Eurochart. This single also topped the first ever Mobile Downloads Chart, which is based on sales of full-track downloads to mobile phones in the United Kingdom. The video for the single was released 4 December. Three weeks before its release, the single was in top 20 on Nielsen Music Control's U.K. Radio Airplay. In the United States on 12 January, the single was "worked" to Triple A Radio formats, then Top 40.

The second single released from the album, "Not Fair", was released for download in March; its physical release was scheduled for May 2009. It debuted at the number 16 position on the UK singles chart By 27 April, the single had moved up to the number 9 position. On 18 May the song resided at the number 7 position on the Australian charts. Not Fair has been described as a humorous song about a lazy lover. Allen has played the song to the person in question, and he did not realise the song was about him.

At the urging of her record company, Allen tried unsuccessfully to create the album with several writers and producers. Allen eventually returned to Greg Kurstin who had written three songs for Alright, Still. Allen released a statement saying "We decided to try and make bigger sounding, more ethereal songs, real songs ... I wanted to work with one person from start to finish to make it one body of work. I wanted it to feel like it had some sort of integrity. I think I've grown up a bit as a person and I hope it reflects that." "Chinese" references take-away food, and although believed to be about a boy, it is actually about time spent with her mother.

On 23 October, Allen released "Everyone's At It", the first track from the album for download on her MySpace page. The song appears to be a commentary on the drug culture and is expected to cause controversy. It includes the lyrics "I'm not trying to say that I'm smelling of roses, but when will we tire of putting shit up our noses... It's meant to be fun and this just doesn't feel right... So you've got a prescription, and that makes it legal. I find those excuses overwhelmingly feeble… The kids are in danger, they're all getting habits. From what I can see, everyone's at it."

The release of the album is a factor in EMI’s more than trebling its earnings. An online game, Escape the Fear, was created by Matmi as part of the viral marketing campaign targeted at people unaware of Allen or the album. Players playing the role of Allen must negotiate a series of obstacles standing in the way of Allen's dreams. Since its release, the game has topped the worldwide viral charts three times, including the week of Christmas—a highly contested time of the year. By 18 February 2009, the game had been played over two million times. On Allen's website, there are remixes of songs from the album by fans who have been allowed access to individual parts of the songs.

According to the British music website Last.fm, Allen was the third most listened to artist, and the most listened to British artist in 2009 on its site. As of March 2010, "It's Not Me, It's You" was the fourth best selling digital album of all time in the United Kingdom.

Her work on this album with Greg Kurstin earned her the Songwriters of the Year at the 2010 Ivor Novello Awards. In addition, she won with Kurstin Best Song Musically and Lyrically and Most Performed Work for "The Fear". Allen appeared overwhelmed by this recognition from what she considered "real awards", saying "This song is so much about feeling so lost. It has made me feel quite found all of a sudden."

In October 2010 Allen was awarded by the United States music licensing organization Broadcast Music, Inc for extensive United States radio airplay of her sing "The Fear".

2010–present: Musical hiatus

In September 2009 she shut down her MySpace account and stopped social networking completely in December due to the abuse she was taking. On 2 February 2010 Allen made several posts to her Twitter account. The first posting was "hello, I'm back".

Also in September 2009 Allen announced that she is considering a career in acting and that she will not renew her record contract. In a blog, her last before taking it down, Allen wrote that she has "no plans" to make another record. "The days of me making money from recording music have been and gone as far as I'm concerned". Allen's spokesperson said "She is not quitting pop music. She is not thinking about her next album right now because she is still in the middle of promoting her current record."

In February 2010 Allen responded to a question about how her 2010 Brit Award for "British Female Solo Artist" would affect her hiatus: "This hasn't changed my plans to quit. It's actually been really good as something to work towards for the last six months, knowing I'd be doing this. It is the perfect way to say goodbye. I have so much I want to do now with my shop and record label.". In May she stated that following her remaining shows she still plans on taking a break saying "I'm ready to just take a break from it," "I'm still writing... I'm not writing for myself.".

Collaborations and other music

Allen provided backing vocals on the Basement Jaxx song "Lights Go Down" (from Crazy Itch Radio) and appears on tracks on Robbie Williams's 2006 album, Rudebox on the Manu Chao-cover "Bongo Bong and Je Ne T'Aime Plus" (produced by Mark Ronson) and also on "Keep On." She also provides vocals on "Rawhide" by Jamie T. She performed a duet with rapper Dizzee Rascal on the song "Wanna Be" that appeared on Rascal's Maths + English album. Rapper Common has also collaborated with Allen on the track "Drivin' Me Wild" from his seventh album Finding Forever. On 30 June 2008, Allen and Klaxons singer Jamie Reynolds announced they were working on a new song and had completed a cover of Joe Jackson's "Steppin Out."

Allen and New Young Pony Club provided backing vocals to the song "Never Miss a Beat" that appears on the Kaiser Chiefs' album Off With Their Heads. The song was released as a single on 6 October 2008. Allen's voice on the song was described as unrecognisable due to Mark Ronson's production. The album was released on the 13 October. Allen was expected to provide vocals for the track "Always Happens like That."

Allen wrote a song for the 2008 Shockwaves Awards entitled "From Barry to Billericay" about comedian James Corden. She contributed the song "She's So Lovely and Naive" for the soundtrack of the 2008 British comedy film Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging. Allen presented members of Squeeze with their Ivor Novello Lifetime Achievement Award. Glenn Tilbrook later remarked that he really like Allen's cover of "Up the Junction."

On 12 December 2008, Mark Ronson premièred Allen's cover version of Britney Spears' song "Womanizer" on his East Village radio show. Allen in her MySpace blog said Ronson was supposed to "talk all over it so it wouldn't get ripped." Instead Ronson played the song in its entirety and the cover within days had been heard worldwide causing Allen to get into "serious trouble" with her label. Allen has played the song at gigs.

Touring

In 2007, she played the newly launched Park Stage at the Glastonbury Festival, replacing M.I.A. who had cancelled. Saying "it's big shoes to fill, and we're doing it acoustically so it might sound a bit funny" she ended her set singing a cover of Blondie's "Heart of Glass." Allen describes this performance as the highlight of the 2006–2008 period In concert, Allen performed a parody of 50 Cent's "Window Shopper," called "Nan, You're a Window Shopper," which was commercially released as a B-side to "LDN," because approval was not given in time for the Alright, Still release. Nonetheless, the song appears on the U.S. version of the album. During the festival she reunited two members of The Specials an act that guitarist Lynval Golding claimed played a "massive part" in the group's 2009 reunion.

Allen performed to positive reviews when Irving Plaza was rechristened as The Fillmore New York at Irving Plaza on 11 April 2007. Allen cancelled a scheduled appearance at the 2008 Isle of Wight Festival telling festival promoter John Giddings the reason for the cancellation was that her album was behind schedule. Giddings said that the reason given was not acceptable and possibly a lie. Giddings decided not to sue her.

On 29 June 2008, Allen performed at the Glastonbury Festival alongside producer Mark Ronson. An emotional Allen dedicated her performance of "Littlest Things" to her grandmother who died the night before. On 3 July, in a surprise appearance with Ronson at the Wireless Festival, Allen appeared to perform "Littlest Things" and "Oh My God." She forgot some song lyrics. in Zagreb, Croatia, 24 June 2009]] Allen's first concert to promote It's Not Me, It's You was held 28 January 2009 at Koko in London. It was her first London gig in 18 months. A few days later she played at a gay nightclub where she dressed up as Britney Spears for the song "Womanizer." She also dressed up as The Pink Panther and wore a revealing Little Bo Peep romper suit. On 10 February Allen played the first of three scheduled "secret" shows at New York’s Bowery Ballroom sponsored by MySpace. The New York gig was also sponsored by TurboTax. Additional concerts were scheduled for Tokyo, and London. A 9 date tour of Great Britain and Ireland was started . She opened the tour with a performance at the O2 Academy Glasgow where she connected with the audience. The loudest cheers were for her song "The Fear." In Manchester she was supported by La Roux. In April 2009 completed a sold out 14 city United States tour. She also played Toronto and was be backed by Natalie Portman's Shaved Head.

she has been confirmed for the Oxegen Festival, T-Mobile INmusic festival, Bestival Festival and Big Weekend Festival.

Allen was scheduled for return engagements at the T In The Park festival. Starting on 5 June 2009 Allen was scheduled to tour Australia and Japan. There were 762,000 requests to see her performance on the BBC's Glastonbury online service, the second highest amount for any performer.

In addition she was scheduled for an 11 July appearance at the Summer Series at London's Somerset House. In August 2009 Allen is scheduled to duet with American musician/actor David Cassidy at the Flatlake Festival in Ireland. She provided funding for "Artane Band" a marching band consisting of teenagers, for the purpose of travel expenses to the festival. In November and December 2009, she was scheduled for a 14 date tour of the United Kingdom and Ireland. In January 2010, Allen was scheduled to appear at the Australian and New Zealand rock festival Big Day Out. Allen is scheduled to be a headliner at the Peace & Love Festival in Sweden in early July.

Other work

Acting career

Allen signed a one series contract to present her own BBC Three TV show entitled Lily Allen and Friends based on the social networking phenomenon that helped to launch her music career. The singer asked her MySpace friends to suggest the name for the show. The guests on the first show that aired in February 2008 were Cuba Gooding Junior and David Mitchell, and later guests included Mark Ronson, Joanna Page, James Corden, Lauren Laverne, Roisin Murphy, Louis Walsh, and Danny Dyer. The show received a 2% share of the total multi-channel audience share despite a high-profile nationwide marketing campaign. Her third show received a 2.7% share. Allen was quoted in a British tabloid as rating the show "probably five out of 10" and said "I made a lot of money out of it".

On 1 April 2008, citing Allen's rapid development as a TV host and her popularity among its target audience BBC Three announced it was renewing Lily Allen and Friends for a second season. On 1 January 2009, she presented a 60-minute programme for 4Music called Lily Allen's 10 Best of British. On 12 January 2009, BBC Three controller Danny Cohen said that the show will not air in the Spring of 2009 as originally scheduled because of music commitments. Cohen noted "She is on the record as doing a second series and we are looking forward to having her back but we don't know at the moment".

The BBC was criticised by several teacher unions for a video shown on Lily Allen and Friends that apparently showed a student running up from behind and pulling down his teachers trousers. The unions said broadcasting this clip was irresponsible and greatly added to the teacher's embarrassment. While introducing the clip Allen called it "kegging" and said "It's very childish, but very funny". On 12 June 2009 Allen filmed a scene on the Australian soap opera Neighbours. She was scheduled to play herself in a scene with Matthew Werkmeister.

Allen performed for the 2008 New Year's Eve episode of Jools Holland's Hootenanny. In February 2009, she performed "The Fear" on GMTV. In the United States she appeared on The Today Show on 10 February 2009, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno on 16 February 2009, and The Ellen DeGeneres Show on 18 February 2009. On 3 April she performed on the Jimmy Kimmel Live show. On 21 April she was interviewed and performed on The View. She also performed on 24 April on Late Night with David Letterman.

Fashion career

In May 2007, Allen launched a line of dresses, shoes, and accessories entitled Lily Loves. Allen is reported to enjoy a "special relationship" with Chanel that is said to include borrowing clothes and jewellery and being flown in to sit in the front row of their shows. Karl Lagerfeld, the head designer for the company personally hired and photographed Allen for a campaign to promote a luxury line of handbags due to launch in September 2009.

Allen won the 2008 Glamour Women of the Year Awards "Editors Special Award." Allen was nominated for a Highstreet Fashion Award in the category of "Best Dressed Celebrity." In a readers poll for the weekly British style magazine Look, Allen was named the ninth best style role model. Allen has been described by the UK edition of Elle Magazine as a person who is not overly trendy in her fashion choices.

According to a newspaper report Allen told Capital Radio she has done modelling for a unnamed company. . Allen was scheduled to unveil a line of jewellery in September 2009. The line was supposed to have nine ranges and is influenced by Chanel and Dinny Hall.

Allen and her sister were scheduled to open her own clothing store entitled "Lucy In Disguise" on 15 September 2010. On 7 September the pair open a temporary pop up shop that featured vintage designer clothes and a hair stylist for customers.

Philanthropy

Allen has taken an interest in environmental and social concerns. Although the singer is a staunch supporter of the Labour Party, she has been credited with helping inspire a parliamentary rebellion against Prime Minister Gordon Brown when she wrote to all Members of Parliament asking them to back an amendment to an energy bill. She records at Studio A which is currently the only solar powered studio in Europe. Allen has been nominated with nine others for the title of Greenest Star in Playhouse for Disney Playhouse's inaugural Playing for the Planet Awards. She has since confirmed her support for the UK Labour Party and for Prime Minister Gordon Brown in particular.

Allen performed at a benefit concert for War Child, an international child protection agency that works with children affected by war. Backed by Keane, Allen sang "Smile" and "Everybody’s Changing." The singer and The Clash guitarist Mick Jones performed The Clash’s song "Straight to Hell" on a album for the charity Heroes.

Allen received support from the animal rights organisation PETA after a faux fur coat she was spotted wearing was mistaken for a coat made of real fur.

Allen has been named the face of the National Portrait Gallery as part of the gallery's marketing campaign. The picture was photographed by Nadav Kander emblazoned with the words, "Vocalist, Lyricist, Florist" . Allen and Jamie Hince, guitarist for The Kills raised £48,350 for the children’s charity The Hoping Foundation. The pair sang Dream A Little Dream Of Me at a karaoke auction fundraiser.

After the British Government's plans to implement a three strikes policy for file sharing copyright infringement, Lily Allen came out in strong support for disconnecting offenders. Creating a blog entitled "It’s Not Alright" against file sharing, it subsequently came to light that she had copied text directly from the Techdirt website of an interview with 50 Cent. This led to an exchange on the internet, which culminated in accusations being made that Allen had infringed on other artists' copyrights by creating mix tapes early in her career, that she then made available via her website.

On 1 October 2009 Allen and several other musicians released the world's first digital musical petition aimed at pressuring world leaders attending the December 2009 climate change summit in Copenhagen. The petition involved a cover of the song "Beds are Burning" by Midnight Oil.

Image and personal life

Due to her outspokenness, Allen has been the subject of many controversies. Disparaging remarks about musicians Luke Pritchard of The Kooks, Bob Geldof, Amy Winehouse, Kylie Minogue, and Katy Perry have all garnered minor press attention. She later said that making fun of other pop stars was a result of a lack of confidence, saying "I felt like 'Oh God, I'm short, fat, ugly and I hate all these people who flaunt their beauty.'" Photos of her drunk and topless in the Cannes Film Festival were also widely covered in the press. Her appearance at the 2008 Glamour Awards also generated criticism, as she showed up intoxicated wearing a dress covered in decapitated Bambi figures, and had an on-stage, expletive-laced exchange with Elton John. Allen has shown her third nipple on television. Allen feels like she has become a drunk character in a comic. "I wish my comic character wasn't that, but there's nothing I can do." In an interview with Q magazine saying "They’re just tits” Allen revealed she has been flashing people for years partially because of her aversion to bras. On the BBC's Test Match Special on 21 August 2009, she spoke about her love of the game of cricket.

Allen supports Fulham Football Club.

In May 2009 a French football magazine So Foot published a fake interview in which Allen was quoted as making derogatory remarks about David and Victoria Beckham and Ashley and Cheryl Cole. Some of the material was reprinted in the British tabloid The Sun. Both publications later apologized and paid damages to Allen. Citing invasion of privacy and copyright infringement, in November 2010 Allen took legal action against Associated Newspapers, the parent company of the Daily Mail after the Daily Mail published photographs of Allen's home.

In June 2010 she claimed the Brit Awards are fixed, saying "The Brit Awards is a TV show, and a record company executive makes deals with ITV and the producers about who wins what award in exchange for performance time." A spokesperson for the awards said "This process makes it 100 per cent transparent and completely democratic." In August she said the X-Factor is everything she detests about modern western culture.

Allen has spoken out against illegal file sharing and has criticized other musicians by name who support the practice. A group of supporters of the practice launched a denial of service attack dubbed Operation Payback that shut down Allen's website and targeted other critics.

In 2010 Allen bought Old Overtown House, a 17C property set in 8 acres, in the village of Cranham in the Cotswolds, for £3m.

Relationships

In September 2007, Allen began dating musician Ed Simons of the Chemical Brothers. In December 2007, Allen announced that she and Simons were expecting a child. In January 2008, it was revealed that Allen had suffered a miscarriage.

Allen began dating Sam Cooper, the owner of a building company, in the summer of 2009. On 5 August 2010, Allen announced that she was pregnant with her and Cooper's first child, later confirmed to be a boy due early in 2011. Allen's pregnancy involved early complications, including "about a week and a half of really heavy bleeding", leading her to tell The Sunday Times in September 2010 that she had "been living in fear for the past three months". On 30 October 2010, Allen tweeted "Say a little prayer". The following day, on 1 November 2010, Allen's publicist announced that Allen had lost the baby, approximately six months into her pregnancy. Following the announcement several celebrities, including Katy Perry, Justin Bieber and Dannii Minogue, tweeted consolation messages to her. On 5 November Allen tweeted "Thank you for all your kind messages. I'm still very sick but the messages are helping me to be stronger. Thank you x x." However, the next day, on 6 November, Allen was rushed to the hospital, where she responded well to treatment for the blood poisoning condition septicaemia. In December Allen's sister told a British newspaper that Allen will try again to have a child in 2011 saying "she is absolutely determined to be a mum. This is what she wants more than anything in the whole wide world, more than her singing career."

Reception

Allen was included on the NME Cool List for 2006. She was voted the third coolest person of the year in New Musical Express. She ranked "Number One Reason to Love '07" and "Hottest Woman of Pop/R&B.;" in Blender magazine. Allen was also rated number 10 on BBC Three's list of Most Annoying People of 2006. Allen was voted fourth coolest celebrity in a poll taken of 20,000 teenagers by the social networking website Bebo that was released in December 2008.

Rapper Example has recorded a new version of "Smile" called "Vile," which is an answer song written from the perspective of the ex-boyfriend (although he was never actually Allen's boyfriend). Both songs were then parodied by Chris Moyles on his Radio 1 breakfast show in a song called "Piles." "LDN" has spawned an answer song by rapper Sway DaSafo and a remix by UK grime artist JME. Evening Standard columnist Nick Cutis wrote that "Lily Allen and Madonna have arguably done more for female equality with their 'unladylike' swearing in public than with their singing careers." Siouxsie Sioux said Allen and Amy Winehouse are the two current musicians she regards as strong female role models.

In 2009 Allen was the subject of cover stories for both Spin Magazine and Q Magazine. MTV said in February 2009 "She seems less like the model of a 21st century pop star and more like the kind of girlfriend you'd have when you're 22 – the awesome kind you'd go backpacking around Europe with, wear a sarong with. She is perfectly imperfect. Which is why she's probably also the most interesting pop star ever created." Allen's album It's Not Me, It's You has been praised for trying to define the times. Allen said that she does not write songs with a big picture in mind.

In January 2010, The Guardian ran an editorial praising Allen. The editorial noted that at the beginning of 2009 she was on "the well-worn path of celebrity offspring" and complimented her for branching out and tackling subjects other pop stars have not.

Allen's music is used as part of an exhibition at the British Library tracing the history of Cockney English. The exhibition, which runs from 12 November 2010 through 11 April 2011, uses Allen's music to demonstrate today's younger urban mode of Cockney English.

Discography

Alright, Still (2006)

It's Not Me, It's You (2009)

See also

List of awards and nominations received by Lily Allen

References

External links

Category:1985 births Category:Living people Category:2000s singers Category:2010s singers Category:BBC people Category:BRIT Award winners Category:British television talk show hosts Category:Capitol Records artists Category:English environmentalists Category:English female singers Category:English feminists Category:English people of Welsh descent Category:English pop singers Category:English singer-songwriters Category:English songwriters Category:English television personalities Category:Ivor Novello Award winners Category:LGBT rights activists from the United Kingdom Category:Musicians from London Category:Old Bedalians Category:Old Millfieldians Category:People from Hammersmith Category:People from Islington