Events

506 – Alaric II, eighth king of the Visigoths promulgates The Breviary of Alaric (Breviarium Alaricianum or Lex Romana Visigothorum) a collection of Roman law.

962 – Translatio imperii: Pope John XII crowns Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor, the first Holy Roman Emperor in nearly 40 years.

1032 – Conrad II, Holy Roman Emperor becomes King of Burgundy.

1509 – The Battle of Diu takes place near Diu, India, between Portugal and Turkey.

1536 – Spaniard Pedro de Mendoza founds Buenos Aires, Argentina.

1542 – Portuguese under Christovão da Gama capture a Moslem-occupied hill fort in northern Ethiopia in the Battle of Baçente.

1653 – New Amsterdam (later renamed The City of New York) is incorporated.

1709 – Alexander Selkirk is rescued after being shipwrecked on a desert island, inspiring the book Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe.

1790 – The Supreme Court of the United States convenes for the first time.

1812 – Russia establishes a fur trading colony at Fort Ross, California.

1848 – Mexican-American War: The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo is signed.

1848 – California Gold Rush: The first ship with Chinese immigrants arrives in San Francisco, California.

1876 – The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs of Major League Baseball is formed.

1878 – Greece declares war on Turkey.

1882 – The Knights of Columbus are formed in New Haven, Connecticut.

1887 – In Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania the first Groundhog Day is observed.

1899 – The Australian Premiers' Conference held in Melbourne decides to locate Australia's capital city, Canberra, between Sydney and Melbourne.

1901 – Funeral of Queen Victoria.

1913 – Grand Central Terminal is opened in New York City.

1920 – The Tartu Peace Treaty is signed between Estonia and Russia.

1920 – France occupies Memel.

1922 – Ulysses by James Joyce is published.

1925 – Serum run to Nome: Dog sleds reach Nome, Alaska with diphtheria serum, inspiring the Iditarod race.

1925 – The Charlevoix-Kamouraska earthquake strikes northeastern North America.

1934 – The Export-Import Bank of the United States is incorporated.

1935 – Leonarde Keeler tests the first polygraph machine.

1940 – Frank Sinatra debuts with the Tommy Dorsey orchestra.

1943 – World War II: The Battle of Stalingrad comes to conclusion as Soviet troops accept the surrender of 91,000 remnants of the Axis forces.

1946 – The Hungarian Republic is proclaimed.

1957 – Iskander Mirza of Pakistan lays the foundation-stone of the Guddu Barrage.

1966 – Pakistan suggests a six-point agenda with Kashmir after the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965.

1967 – The American Basketball Association is formed.

1971 – Idi Amin replaces President Milton Obote as leader of Uganda.

1972 – The British embassy in Dublin is destroyed in protest at Bloody Sunday.

1974 – The F-16 Fighting Falcon flies for the first time.

1976 – The Groundhog Day gale hits the north-eastern United States and south-eastern Canada.

1980 – Reports surface that the FBI was targeting allegedly corrupt Congressmen in the Abscam operation.

1982 – Hama Massacre: Syria attacks the town of Hama.

1987 – After the 1986 People Power Revolution the Philippines enacts a new constitution.

1989 – Soviet war in Afghanistan: The last Soviet armoured column leaves Kabul.

1990 – Apartheid: F.W. de Klerk allows the African National Congress to function legally and promises to release Nelson Mandela.

1998 – A Cebu Pacific Flight 387 DC-9-32 crashes into a mountain near Cagayan de Oro, Philippines, killing 104.

2007 – Three tornadoes hit Central Florida, killing 42 people.

Births

1208 – James I of Aragon (d. 1276)

1455 – King John of Denmark (d. 1513)

1494 – Bona Sforza, queen of Sigismund I of Poland (d. 1557)

1502 – Damião de Góis, Portuguese philosopher (d. 1574)

1506 – René de Birague, French cardinal and chancellor (d. 1583)

1522 – Lodovico Ferrari, Italian mathematician (d. 1565)

1600 – Gabriel Naudé, French librarian and scholar (d. 1653)

1613 – Noël Chabanel, French Jesuit missionary (d. 1649)

1621 – Johannes Schefferus, Alsatian humanist (d. 1679)

1649 – Pope Benedict XIII (d. 1730)

1650 – Nell Gwynne, English actress and royal mistress (d. 1687)

1669 – Louis Marchand, French organist and harpsichordist (d. 1732)

1695 – William Borlase, English naturalist (d. 1772)

1695 – François de Chevert, French general (d. 1769)

1700 – Johann Christoph Gottsched, German writer (d. 1766)

1711 – Wenzel Anton von Kaunitz, Austrian diplomat (d. 1794)

1714 – Gottfried August Homilius, German composer (d. 1785)

1717 – Ernst Gideon Freiherr von Laudon, Austrian field marshal (d. 1790)

1754 – Charles-Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord, French diplomat and statesman (d. 1838)

1786 – Jacques Philippe Marie Binet, French mathematician (d. 1856)

1802 – Jean Baptiste Boussingault, French chemist (d. 1887)

1803 – Albert Sidney Johnston, American Confederate general (d. 1862)

1829 – Alfred Brehm, German zoologist (d. 1884)

1829 – William Stanley, inventor and engineer (d. 1909)

1841 – François-Alphonse Forel, Swiss hydrologist (d. 1912)

1842 – Yulian Vasilievich Sokhotski, Russian mathematician (d. 1927)

1849 – Pavol Országh Hviezdoslav, Slovak poet (d. 1921)

1851 – José Guadalupe Posada, Mexican artist (d. 1913)

1860 – Curtis Guild, Jr., American politician (d. 1915)

1861 – Solomon R. Guggenheim, American art collector and philanthropist (d. 1949)

1873 – Konstantin von Neurath, German diplomat and statesman (d. 1956)

1875 – Fritz Kreisler, Austrian violinist (d. 1962)

1878 – Alfréd Hajós, Hungarian swimmer (d. 1955)

1881 – Orval Overall, American baseball player (d. 1947)

1882 – James Joyce, Irish author (d. 1941)

1887 – Ernst Hanfstängl, German pianist and politician (d. 1975)

1888 – Frederick Lane, Australian swimmer (d. 1969)

1889 – Jean de Lattre de Tassigny, French general, posthumous Marshal of France (d. 1952)

1890 – Charles Correll, American actor (d. 1972)

1892 – Tochigiyama Moriya, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 27^th Yokozuna (d. 1959)

1893 – Cornelius Lanczos, Hungarian mathematician (d. 1974)

1893 – Raoul Riganti, Argentine racing driver (d. 1970)

1895 – George Halas, American NFL co-founder (d. 1983)

1896 – Kazimierz Kuratowski, Polish mathematician and logician (d. 1980)

1897 – Aimé Avignon, France's former oldest living man (d. 2007)

1897 – Howard Johnson, American hotelier (d. 1972)

1900 – Willie Kamm, American baseball player (d. 1988)

1901 – Jascha Heifetz, Lithuanian violinist (d. 1987)

1902 – Jane Ising, German-born wife of Ernst Ising

1902 – Newbold Morris, American politician (d. 1966)

1905 – Ayn Rand, Russian-born American author and philosopher (d. 1982)

1908 – Wes Ferrell, American baseball player (d. 1976)

1909 – Frank Albertson, American actor (d. 1964)

1912 – Millvina Dean, last living survivor of the RMS Titanic (d. 2009)

1912 – Burton Lane, American composer and lyricist (d. 1997)

1913 – Poul Reichhardt, Danish actor (d. 1985)

1914 – Eric Kierans, Canadian politician and economist (d. 2004)

1915 – Abba Eban, Israeli diplomat (d. 2002)

1915 – Stan Leonard, Canadian professional golfer (d. 2005)

1916 – Xuân Diệu, Vietnamese poet (d. 1985)

1917 – Đỗ Mười, Vietnamese leader

1918 – Hella S. Haasse, Dutch writer

1919 – Georg Gawliczek, German football manager (d. 1999)

1923 – James Dickey, American poet and author (d. 1997)

1923 – Bonita Granville, American actress (d. 1988)

1923 – Red Schoendienst, American baseball player and manager

1923 – Liz Smith, American gossip columnist

1924 – Elfi von Dassanowsky, Austrian-born American producer and musician (d. 2007)

1924 – Jack Clemmons, American law enforcement officer (d. 1998)

1925 – Elaine Stritch, American actress

1926 – Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, French politician

1927 – Stan Getz, American musician (d. 1991)

1928 – Aloyisus Leon Higginbotham, Jr, American civil rights activist (d. 1998)

1929 – George Band, British mountaineer

1929 – Věra Chytilová, Czech director

1931 – Dries van Agt, Dutch politician, Prime Minister of the Netherlands from 1977 until 1982

1931 – Les Dawson, British comedian (d. 1993)

1931 – Judith Viorst, American author

1932 – Robert Mandan, American actor

1933 – Tony Jay, English actor (d. 2006)

1933 – Than Shwe, ruler of Myanmar

1936 – Duane Jones, American actor

1937 – Don Buford, American baseball player

1937 – Remak Ramsay, American actor

1937 – Tom Smothers, American musician and comedian

1939 – Akbar Adibi, Iranian scientist (d. 2000)

1940 – Wayne Fontes, American football coach

1940 – David Jason, English actor

1941 – Terry Biddlecombe, English horse racing jockey

1942 – Graham Nash, British-born American musician

1943 – Susan Hanson, English actress

1944 – Andrew Davis, British conductor

1944 – Karen Foss, American broadcaster

1944 – Geoffrey Hughes, British actor

1946 – Constantine Papadakis, Greek-American businessman

1946 – Alpha Oumar Konaré, Mali politician

1947 – Farrah Fawcett, American actress (d. 2009)

1948 – Ina Garten, American author and TV personality

1948 – Al McKay, American guitarist and songwriter (Earth, Wind & Fire)

1948 – Roger Williamson, English racecar driver (d. 1973)

1949 – Duncan Bannatyne, Scottish entrepreneur

1949 – Francisco Maturana, Colombian football manager

1949 – Brent Spiner, American actor

1949 – Ross Valory, American musician (Journey)

1950 – Osamu Kido, Japanese professional wrestler

1950 – Genichiro Tenryu, Japanese professional wrestler

1950 – Barbara Sukowa, German actress

1952 – John Cornyn, American politician, junior senator of Texas

1953 – Duane Chapman, American bounty hunter

1954 – Christie Brinkley, American model

1954 – Hansi Hinterseer, Austrian singer and actor

1954 – John Tudor, American baseball player

1955 – Leszek Engelking, Polish poet, writer and translator

1955 – Virginia Leng, British equestrian

1957 – Phil Barney, French singer

1958 – Michel Marc Bouchard, Quebec playwright

1960 – Jari Porttila, Finnish sports journalist

1961 – Lauren Lane, American actress

1961 – Steve Penney, National Hockey League goaltender

1962 – Andy Fordham, English darts player

1962 – Paul Kilgus, American baseball player

1962 – Michael T. Weiss, American actor

1963 – Eva Cassidy, American singer (d. 1996)

1963 – Philip Laats, Belgian judoka

1965 – Carl Airey, English footballer

1965 – Naoki Sano, Japanese professional wrestler

1966 – Andrei Chesnokov, Russian tennis player

1966 – Robert DeLeo, American musician (Stone Temple Pilots)

1967 – Arturs Irbe, Latvian hockey player

1967 – Laurent Nkunda, Congolese military leader

1968 – Sean Elliott, American basketball player

1968 – Scott Erickson, American baseball player

1968 – Simon Wickham-Smith, British musician

1968 – Thomas Teige, German martial artist, actor and record holder

1969 – Valeri Karpin, Russian footballer

1970 – C. Ernst Harth, Canadian actor

1970 – Nikolaos Michopoulos, Greek footballer

1970 – Roar Strand, Norwegian footballer

1970 – Jennifer Westfeldt, American actress

1972 – Tego Calderón, Puerto Rican reggaeton artist

1972 – Dana International, Israeli singer

1972 – Melvin Mora, Venezuelan baseball player

1973 – Aleksander Tammert, Estonian discus thrower

1973 – Marissa Jaret Winokur, American actress

1975 – Todd Bertuzzi, Canadian hockey player

1975 – Donald Driver, American football player

1975 – Vaggelis Koutsoures, Greek footballer

1975 – Ieroklis Stoltidis, Greek footballer

1975 – Niclas Wallin, Swedish hockey player

1976 – James Hickman, British swimmer

1976 – Lori Beth Denberg, American actress

1977 – Shakira, Colombian singer

1977 – Libor Sionko, Czech football player

1978 – Eden Espinosa, American singer and actress

1978 – Barry Ferguson, Scotish football player

1978 – Rich Sommer, American actor

1979 – Urmo Aava, Estonian rally driver

1979 – Fani Chalkia, Greek hurdler

1979 – Klaus Mainzer, German rugby player

1979 – Shamita Shetty, Indian actress

1979 – Irini Terzoglou, Greek shot putter

1980 – Teddy Hart, Canadian professional wrestler

1980 – Gucci Mane, American rapper

1980 – Oleguer Presas, Spanish football player

1981 – Michelle Bass, English reality TV star and glamour model

1982 – Sergio Castaño, Spanish footballer

1982 – Han Ga In, South Korean model/actress

1982 – Kelly Mazzante, American basketball player

1982 – Brandy Talore, American pornographic actress

1983 – Ronny Cedeño, Venezuelan baseball player

1983 – Carolina Klüft, Swedish athlete

1983 – Will South, British musician (Thirteen Senses)

1983 – Jordin Tootoo, Canadian hockey player

1983 – Alex Westaway, British musician

1984 – Renn Kiriyama, Japanese actor

1984 – Rudi Wulf, New Zealand All Black rugby player

1987 – Gerard Piqué, Spanish football player

1987 – Martin Spanjers, American actor

1990 – Dan Gosling, English footballer

1992 – Danielle White, American singer

Deaths

1124 – Borivoj II, Duke of Bohemia

1218 – Konstantin of Rostov, Prince of Novgorod (b. 1186)

1250 – Eric XI of Sweden (b. 1216)

1294 – Louis II, Duke of Bavaria (b. 1229)

1307 – Oljeitu Temur Khagan, Emperor of the Mongol Empire and the Yuan Dynasty (b. 1265)

1461 – Owen Tudor, Welsh founder of the Tudor dynasty of England

1529 – Baldassare Castiglione, Italian writer (b. 1478)

1580 – Bessho Nagaharu, Japanese retainer (b. 1558)

1594 – Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina, Italian composer (b. 1525)

1648 – George Abbot, English writer

1660 – Govert Flinck, Dutch painter (b. 1615)

1660 – Gaston, Duke of Orléans, French politician (b. 1608)

1661 – Lucas Holstenius, German humanist (b. 1596)

1688 – Abraham Duquesne, French naval officer (b. 1610)

1704 – Guillaume François Antoine, Marquis de l'Hôpital, French mathematician (b. 1661)

1712 – Martin Lister, English naturalist and physician

1714 – John Sharp, English Archbishop of York (b. 1643)

1723 – Antonio Maria Valsalva, Italian anatomist (b. 1666)

1768 – Robert Smith, English mathematician (b. 1689)

1769 – Pope Clement XIII (b. 1693)

1802 – Welbore Ellis, 1st Baron Mendip, British statesman (b. 1713)

1804 – George Walton, Signer of the Declaration of Independence (b. 1749-50)

1895 – Archduke Albert, Austrian general (b. 1817)

1904 – William C. Whitney, American financier (b. 1841)

1907 – Dmitri Mendeleev, Russian chemist (b. 1834)

1909 – Carlo Acton, Italian composer and concert pianist (b. 1829)

1918 – John L. Sullivan, American heavyweight boxer (b. 1858)

1922 – William Desmond Taylor, Irish film director (b. 1872)

1925 – Jaap Eden, Dutch skater and cyclist (b. 1873)

1926 – Vladimir Sukhomlinov, Russian general (b. 1848)

1932 – Agha Petros, Assyrian nationalist leader (b. 1880)

1942 – Daniil Kharms, Russian playwright (b. 1905)

1945 – Carl Friedrich Goerdeler, German politician, member of the German resistance (b. 1884)

1945 – Johannes Popitz, Prussian finance minister, member of the German resistance (b. 1884)

1945 – Alfred Delp, German Jesuit priest, member of the German resistance (b. 1907)

1948 – Bevil Rudd, South African athlete (b. 1894)

1948 – Thomas W. Lamont, American banker; father or Corliss Lamont; great-grandfather of Ned Lamont (b. 1870)

1950 – Constantin Carathéodory, Greek mathematician (b. 1873)

1956 – Charles Grapewin, American actor (b. 1869)

1956 – Pyotr Konchalovsky, Russian painter (b. 1876)

1957 – Grigory Landsberg, Russian physicist (b. 1890)

1961 – Anna May Wong, American actress (b. 1905)

1962 – Shlomo Hestrin, Canadian-born Israeli biochemist (b. 1914)

1969 – Boris Karloff, English actor (b. 1887)

1970 – Lawrence Gray, American actor (b. 1898)

1970 – Bertrand Russell, 3rd Earl Russell, English mathematician, writer and philosopher, Nobel laureate (b. 1872)

1972 – Natalie Clifford Barney, American writer (b. 1876)

1973 – Hendrik Elias, Belgian politician (b. 1902)

1974 – Imre Lakatos, Hungarian philosopher (b. 1922)

1979 – Sid Vicious, English musician (Sex Pistols) (b. 1957)

1980 – Hanna Rovina, Israeli actress

1980 – William Howard Stein, Nobel laureate (b. 1911)

1982 – Paul Desruisseaux, French Canadian lawyer, businessman and politician (b. 1905)

1983 – Sam Chatmon, American blues musician (b. 1897)

1987 – Castilho, Brazilian footballer (b. 1927)

1987 – Alistair MacLean, Scottish novelist (b. 1922)

1988 – Marcel Bozzuffi, French film actor (b. 1929)

1989 – Ondrej Nepela, Slovak figure skater (b. 1951)

1989 – Arnold Nordmeyer, New Zealand politician (b. 1901)

1990 – Joe Erskine, Welsh boxer (b. 1934)

1992 – Bert Parks, American television host (b. 1914)

1995 – Fred Perry, British tennis player (b. 1909)

1995 – Thomas Hayward, American tenor (b. 1917)

1995 – Donald Pleasence, English actor (b. 1919)

1996 – Gene Kelly, American dancer, actor, and director (b. 1912)

1997 – Erich Eliskases, Austrian chess player (b. 1913)

1997 – Sanford Meisner, American actor (b. 1904)

1999 – David McComb, Australian musician (The Triffids) (b. 1962)

2002 – Paul Baloff, American singer (Exodus) (b. 1960)

2002 – Claude Brown, American writer (b. 1937)

2003 – Lou Harrison, American composer (b. 1917)

2004 – Bernard McEveety, American film director (b. 1924)

2005 – Max Schmeling, German boxer (b. 1905)

2007 – Vijay Arora, Indian film and television actor (b. 1944)

2007 – Billy Henderson, American singer (The Spinners) (b. 1939)

2007 – Joe Hunter, American pianist and bandleader of The Funk Brothers (b. 1927)

2007 – Filippo Raciti, Italian police officer (b. 1967)

2007 – Masao Takemoto, Japanese gymnast (b. 1919)

2007 – Eric von Schmidt, American folk/blues singer-songwriter (b. 1931)

2008 – Katoucha, Guinean model and activist (b. 1960)

Holidays and observances

A quarter day in the Christian calendar (due to Candlemas). (Scotland)

Anniversary of Treaty of Tartu (Estonia)

Feast of the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple or Candlemas (Western Christianity)

*La Chandeleur or Crêpe (Pancake) Day (France)

Celebration of Yemanja (Candomblé)

Christian Feast Day:

*Cornelius the Centurion

*Our Lady of Navigators (Brazil)

*Virgin of Candelaria (Tenerife, Spain)

*February 2 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)

Earliest day on which Shrove Monday can fall, while March 8 is the latest; celebrated on Monday before Ash Wednesday. (Christianity)

*Fastelavn (Denmark)

*Rosenmontag (Germany)

George III Day (University of King's College)

Groundhog Day (United States and Canada)

Imbolc in northern hemisphere, Lughnasadh in southern hemisphere (Neopaganism)

Inventor's Day (Thailand)

World Wetlands Day (International)

External links

BBC: On This Day

On This Day in Canada

----

Category:Days of the year Category:February

Name	The Streets
Background	solo_singer
Birth name	Michael Geoffrey Skinner
Born	November 27, 1978
Origin	Birmingham, England, United Kingdom
Instrument	Vocals, keyboards, guitar|
Genre	UK garage Electronica Hip-Hop
Years active	1994–present
Label	Locked On/679 Recordings (UK)Vice/Atlantic Records (US) (2000–2010) Warner Music (Worldwide)
Url

Michael Geoffrey "Mike" Skinner (born 27 November 1978), more commonly known by his stage name The Streets, is a British rapper, musician and record producer from Birmingham, United Kingdom.

Early life and beginnings

Skinner began using a keyboard at the tender age of five. As a teenager, he built a miniature recording studio in his bedroom. He began writing hip hop and garage music in his home in West Heath in Birmingham, with a crew of other rappers including best friend Chris Panton. He describes his background as "Barratt class: suburban estates, not poor but not much money about, really boring."

In the mid-1990s, following secondary education at Bournville School, Skinner became a student at Sutton Coldfield College, in Sutton Coldfield, and was working in fast food jobs while trying to start his own independent record label and sending off demos.

Although born in Birmingham, Skinner has often been criticised for using a Mockney accent during interviews and in many songs. He can be heard speaking in his normal accent at the beginning of the song "Fake Streets Hats". Skinner has however always identified himself with Birmingham and he is a keen supporter of Birmingham City. He even wore the club's replica shirt on stage.

Music career

2000–2003: Original Pirate Material

The Streets started out as a group project but quickly became a one-man act as band members fell away. At the end of 2000, the Locked On label, who had success with The Artful Dodger featuring Craig David, agreed to release "Has It Come To This" under the name The Streets. Skinner moved from Birmingham to Brixton to pursue his recording career, he then moved to Camden Town for three years before returning to Brixton. "Has It Come to This?" proved to be a breakthrough hit for the Streets, going Top 20 in March 2001. For The Streets' debut album, Original Pirate Material, Skinner wanted to take UK garage in a new direction with material reflecting the lifestyle of clubbers in Britain. The track "Let's Push Things Forward" reflects the philosophy of the album. The album was released and proved to be successful both with critics and the general public alike. In the UK, the album was nominated for the Mercury Prize and was favourite with the bookies to win it (it was later won by Ms. Dynamite). The Streets was nominated for best album, best urban act, best breakthrough artist and best British male artist in the 2002 BRIT Awards. The NME named it as one of their top five albums of 2002. The cover image is Towering Inferno by the acclaimed photographer Rut Blees Luxemburg. Subsequent singles from that album included "Don't Mug Yourself", "Weak Become Heroes" and "Let's Push Things Forward" which all reached the top forty in the UK. Many of his songs have a UK garage feel. Original Pirate Material had debuted and peaked at number twelve in the UK album charts, and wouldn't reach any higher until his next album was released.

The success of Original Pirate Material in the UK led to a US release of the album through Vice/Atlantic in late 2002. Though the album was not a commercial success in the States, it was received positively by Rolling Stone, Spin, the New York Times, Blender, USA Today and the Los Angeles Times all nominating it as one of the albums of the year. The album was named Entertainment Weekly's "album of the year". The album reached number two on the Billboard electronic charts and the top 20 on the independent and Heatseeker charts in the US in 2003.

2004–2005: A Grand Don't Come for Free

In May 2004, he released a new single, "Fit But You Know It" which became his highest debuting and highest selling single to that point, reaching number four in the UK.

"Fit But You Know It" is from his second album, A Grand Don't Come for Free which is a concept album about a short period in the protagonist's life. The events depicted include losing a thousand pounds, the start of a new relationship, going on holiday, breaking up, and eventually finding the grand again. The MC's remix of "Fit But You Know It" features formerly underground MCs such as Kano, Tinchy Stryder, Donae'o, Lady Sovereign and Devilman (music).

The album debuted at number two in the UK album charts, but later reached the number one position. Soon after the album was released, his success grew even larger in July 2004, with the second single "Dry Your Eyes" debuting at the top of the chart in the UK. The success of this album and its singles led to a re-kindling of interest in the first album Original Pirate Material, which re-entered the UK album charts and beat its original chart peak of two years earlier. "Blinded By the Lights", the third single from A Grand Don't Come for Free, hit the Top 10 in September 2004, and a fourth and final single, "Could Well Be In", was released in late 2004.

2006–2007: The Hardest Way to Make an Easy Living

Skinner's third studio album under The Streets moniker, The Hardest Way to Make an Easy Living, was released on 10 April 2006 in the United Kingdom and on 25 April 2006 in North America. In the UK it debuted at number one on the album chart. It was a change in direction from his first two albums, the lyrical theme moving away from the stories about working class Britain and instead focusing on the ups and downs of the fame that Skinner encountered after the huge success of his previous albums.

The lead single, titled "When You Wasn't Famous", was released two weeks prior to the album. The song is about Skinner's troubles with trying to date a famous person, following his new found fame. It was also named 'Track of the Week' by NME in early March 2006, but when it came into the UK singles charts, it only reached the latter course of the top 10, peaking at number eight. There has been much speculation over which celebrity "When You Wasn't Famous" is about - Rachel Stevens and Cheryl Cole are two names that have been ruled out, despite Skinner dedicating the song to Cole on Top Of The Pops. This reluctance to reveal the subject may be more than simple politeness, as some of the descriptions of the unnamed starlet in the track are potentially damaging. At one point, Skinner discloses "my whole life I never thought I'd see a pop star smoke crack."

The second single, "Never Went to Church", is a tribute to Skinner's late father, and appears to use the chord progression of The Beatles' "Let It Be" as a backing beat.

The Streets appeared on The Late Show with David Letterman on 26 June 2006 to promote the new album.

The album also featured the track "Prangin Out" which later would go on to be remixed with Babyshambles frontman Pete Doherty

2008–2009: Everything Is Borrowed

In September 2008, Skinner released his fourth studio album, Everything Is Borrowed. One song from the album, was on Skinner's MySpace page for a while before being replaced by a cover of "Your Song". In a posting on his MySpace blog, Skinner noted that the group's upcoming LP would contain "peaceful, positive vibes" in comparison with 2006's The Hardest Way To Make An Easy Living.

In a blurb about the album on Skinner's MySpace, he says "This album started off life as parables but then I realised that it might get a bit cheesy so I got rid of the alien song and the devil song replaced them with more straight up songs. I've pretty much kept my promise that I made to myself not to reference modern life on any of them though which is hard to do and keep things personal at the same time."

2010–present: Computers and Blues

It was originally reported that Skinner said that the fifth record would be similar to Lou Reed's Berlin.

"The final Streets album (the fifth one) will be dark and futuristic. This could not be further from the album you're about to hear, but it's what is on my mind at the moment. I feel inspired by the synthesizer exhibition we just visited in Graz [Austria] after the gig we just did." He has repeatedly stated that it will be the last Streets album, remarking that he is "fucking sick" of the name and connotations that come along with it. In a Beat Stevie episode where he describes the making of Everything Is Borrowed, Skinner says that the final Streets album will be "one more banger" and will be "dancing music to drink tea to".

The album will be released on 7 February 2011.

The first single from the album will be Going Through Hell, the music video for which is currently playing on music channels.

The album's artwork features student accommodation at University of East Anglia in Norwich.

Live line-up

The Streets regularly plays live, and has performed at several major festivals.

Up until recently his playing line-up was Mike Skinner, Leo the Lion singing backing vocals, Eddie "The Kid" playing keyboard, Johnny Drum Machine playing drums, and long-time friend Morgan Nicholls playing bass and guitar. Morgan has since left the band to focus on playing with rock band Muse, playing a variety of instruments as part of their live show.

His current live line-up consists of Kevin Mark Trail on backing vocals, Wayne Vibes on guitar and bass, Chris Brown on keyboards, Magic Mike on samplers and Johnny Drum Machine as drummer and musical director. Skinner has credited Johnny Drum Machine as the only other member of The Streets to have appeared on all the albums.

Performance trademarks include crowd controlling "Go Low" (the whole audience drops to the floor) and "Go Moses" (audience parts down the middle, Skinner runs to the back and crowd surfs back to the stage) with variable success.

Other projects

The Beats Recordings

In 2005, Mike Skinner and Ted Mayhem launched the independent record label The Beats Recordings. A subsidiary of 679 Recordings, The Beats was home to British hip hop acts such as The Mitchell Brothers, Example and Professor Green. The label closed in 2007.

Beat Stevie

An online channel currently presented by Mike and business partner Ted Mayhem, Beat Stevie is an "anything goes" blog/music show also shown on Channel 4 in their 4Music late night strand. The episodes often include backstage footage and onstage hijinks.

In one of the episodes, Mike and Ted get trained by pickup artist and dating coach 5.0 of Love Systems on how to approach and talk to women.

Acting

Skinner had a cameo role in the fifth series of Doctor Who as a security guard, featuring in the episode "The Time of Angels".

In December 2010, it was revealed that Skinner had had relationships with both Rachel Stevens and Cheryl Cole (then Tweedy) circa. 2004.

Promotional and campaign work

Skinner is an ardent fan of Reebok Classics shoes; he is often seen wearing a pair of white Workout Plus trainers, and has mentioned them in the lyrics for his song "Let's Push Things Forward", in which he raps, "Let's put on our Classics and have a little dance, shall we?". In 2005, he signed up to appear in a twelve-month ad campaign for Reebok's "I Am What I Am" campaign.

Discography

Original Pirate Material (2002)

A Grand Don't Come for Free (2004)

The Hardest Way to Make an Easy Living (2006)

Everything Is Borrowed (2008)

Computers and Blues (2011)

References

External links

Mike Skinner on Twitter

Category:1978 births Category:Living people Category:English male singers Category:English electronic music groups Category:Music from Birmingham, West Midlands Category:Grime artists Category:People with epilepsy Category:BRIT Award winners Category:Ivor Novello Award winners Category:People from Barnet Category:UK garage musicians

Name	Nick Jonas
Birth name	Nicholas Jerry Jonas
Landscape	Portrait
Background	solo_singer
Born	September 16, 1992Dallas, Texas, United States
Origin	Wyckoff, New Jersey, United States
Instrument	Vocals, guitar, drums, piano, keyboards glockenspiel, cello
Genre	Teen pop, pop rock
Occupation	Vocalist, musician, actor, singer–songwriter
Years active	2002–present
Label	Hollywood, Columbia
Associated acts	Jonas Brothers, Nick Jonas & The Administration, Miley Cyrus
Notable instruments	Gibson SGFender TelecasterGibson ES-335

Nicholas Jerry "Nick" Jonas (born September 16, 1992) is an American singer-songwriter, musician and actor best known as one of the Jonas Brothers, a pop-rock band he formed with his brothers Joe and Kevin. The Jonas Brothers originally started as an attempted solo singing career for Nick, but the record producer liked the sound when his brothers sang backup for him. He previously starred in the Disney Channel original series JONAS L.A. as Nick Lucas, alongside his brothers. He also starred in the Disney Channel original movie Camp Rock and . He formed the band Nick Jonas & The Administration, which released its first album in 2010. He and his brothers recently concluded their tour with the cast of .

Personal life

Nick Jonas was born in Dallas, Texas, the son of Denise (née Miller), a former sign language teacher and singer, and Paul Kevin Jonas, Sr., a songwriter, musician, and former ordained minister at an Assemblies of God church. He was raised in Wyckoff, New Jersey and homeschooled by his mother. Nick is of Irish (from his maternal grandfather), Cherokee, Italian, and German descent.

He was diagnosed with Type I diabetes at the age of 13 and wears an OmniPod insulin pump to help him manage his condition. He has developed the Change for the Children Foundation. Partnering with five different charities, their goal is to raise money and awareness for diabetes. He also developed a public service announcement with the Washington Nationals to support diabetes care at Children's National Medical Center in Washington, D.C.

Since August 6, 2008, Bayer Diabetes Care has partnered with Jonas as a diabetes ambassador to promote the idea for young people to manage their diabetes. Jonas testified in the U.S. Senate to promote more research funding for the condition.

Miley Cyrus has stated that she dated Jonas from June 2006 to December 2007. Cyrus claimed they were "in love" and began dating soon after they first met.

Acting

Theatre

Jonas's career started when he was discovered at the age of 6 in a barber shop while his mother was getting her hair cut and was referred to a professional show business manager. At the age of 7, he began performing on Broadway. He had acted in several plays, including A Christmas Carol (in 2000 as Tiny Tim and Scrooge at eight), Annie Get Your Gun (in 2001 as Little Jake), Beauty and the Beast (in 2002 as Chip), and Les Misérables (in 2003 as Gavroche). After Les Misérables closed, he performed in The Sound of Music (as Kurt) at the Paper Mill Playhouse.

On June 21, 2010 Jonas made his West End debut performing in Les Misérables for the second time, but this time as the role of Marius Pontmercy. Jonas was originally supposed to play the role for only three weeks, but was able to extend his run until July 24, 2010 because of changes in the Jonas Brothers tour schedule. He also appeared in the 25th Anniversary Concert at The 02 Arena on October 3, 2010, again playing the role of Marius Pontmercy.

Television

On August 17, 2007, Jonas, along with his brothers, guest starred in an episode of Hannah Montana, which aired after the premiere of High School Musical 2 and the Disney Channel show Phineas and Ferb. The episode broke basic cable records with a record 10.7 million viewers and became basic cable's most watched series telecast ever.

Jonas and his brothers filmed a Disney Channel Original Movie called Camp Rock where they play a band called "Connect Three." Joe plays the lead male role and lead singer "Shane Gray"; Nick plays the role of "Nate," a guitarist; and Kevin plays the role of "Jason," also a guitarist. A soundtrack for the movie was released on June 17, 2008. The movie premiered on June 20, 2008 in the USA on Disney Channel, and Canada on Family. Production began on the sequel, in September 2009 and is set to premiere during the summer of 2010.

The reality short series, , premiered on Disney Channel on May 16, 2008. The show, which ran until September 5, 2008, documents the brothers' lives on the Look Me In The Eyes Tour. The name was inspired by the band's hit song "When You Look Me in the Eyes". The series was renewed for a second season, which premiered on March 21, 2010. The second season follows the band on the European leg of their World Tour 2009.

Jonas and his brothers previously starred in the Disney Channel Original Series JONAS about a pop band trying to live a normal life, which premiered May 2, 2009 and concluded on March 14, 2010. Filming for the second season began in February 2010. The second season was renamed Jonas L.A., and premiered on June 20, 2010. On November 8, 2010, it was announced that the series had been cancelled.

Jonas will appear in the 2011 series Mr. Sunshine; he will play Eli White, an up-and-coming singer who wants everything his way before he performs at the Sunshine Center.

Singing

Solo artist

In 2002 while performing in Beauty and the Beast, Nick had written a song with his father called "Joy to the World (A Christmas Prayer)." With background vocals from the Beauty and the Beast cast, Nick performed the song on the 2002 annual Broadway "Equity Fights AIDS" album, Broadway's Greatest Gifts: Carols for a Cure, Vol. 4. In November 2003, INO Records received a demo copy of "Joy To The World (A Christmas Prayer)." The label released the song to Christian radio, where it quickly became popular on Record & Radio's Christian Adult Contemporary Chart. A second single, "Joy to the World (A Christmas Prayer)" (a new solo recording), was released on November 16. It was supposed to be followed by a December release of a self-titled solo album Nicholas Jonas, but the album was pushed back. It did, however, get a limited release. Nick, along with Kevin and Joe, had written several other songs for the album.

Nick Jonas is currently working on a side project from the Jonas Brothers called "Nick Jonas and the Administration". Their debut album Who I Am was released February 2, 2010. The band members consist of Tommy Barbarella on keyboard, Michael Bland on drums, John Fields on bass, and David Ryan Harris on guitar. Although David Ryan Harris recorded guitar in the studio for Who I Am he was unable to go on tour with the rest of band and was ultimately replaced by Sonny Thompson.

In January 2010 Jonas embarked on the Who I Am Tour with the Administration. This was Jonas' first tour without his brothers. The tour consisted of 22 dates that began on January 2, 2010 in Dallas, Texas and concluded on January 30, 2010 in Berkeley, California.

Jonas Brothers

After meeting with Jonas and hearing the song, "Please Be Mine", written and performed by the brothers, Daylight/Columbia Records decided to sign the three as a group act. After being signed to Columbia, the brothers considered naming their group "Sons of Jonas" before settling on the name "Jonas Brothers."

It's About Time, the brothers first album was released on August 8, 2006. According to the band's manager, it was only a "limited release" of a little over 50,000 copies. Because Sony was not interested in further promoting the band, the Jonas Brothers considered switching labels. The band was ultimately dropped by Columbia Records in early 2007.

After shortly being without a label, the Jonas Brothers signed with Hollywood Records in February 2007. Around the same time, brothers began appearing in commercials for Baby Bottle Pops, singing the jingle. It reached number five on the Billboard 200 chart in its first week. It has since sold over three million copies worldwide.

The Jonas Brothers' third studio album, A Little Bit Longer, was released in the United States on August 12, 2008. It sold over 2 million copies worldwide. The Jonas Brothers were listed number 9 on the richest pop acts of 2008 with Coldplay and AC/DC making over 62 million.

Discography

Studio albums

Singles

Other charted songs

Awards and nominations

Tours

In January 2010, Nick Jonas & The Administration began touring in support of their debut album, Who I Am. Apart from guest appearances at specific events, it marks the first time Nick has toured without his brothers, Kevin and Joe.

Filmography

References

External links

Category:1992 births Category:2000s singers Category:2010s singers Category:Actors from New Jersey Category:American child actors Category:American child singers Category:American Christians Category:American drummers Category:American film actors Category:American male singers Category:American multi-instrumentalists Category:American musicians of Italian descent Category:American people of German descent Category:American people of Irish descent Category:American people of Italian descent Category:American pop guitarists Category:American singer-songwriters Category:American stage actors Category:American television actors Category:Jonas Brothers members

Category:Living people Category:Musicians from New Jersey Category:Native American people Category:People from Wyckoff, New Jersey