Coordinates	28°36′36″N77°13′48″N
Unit name	No. 1 Squadron RAF
Dates	1 April 1911 (RE), 13 May 1912 (RFC), 1 April 1918 (RAF) to 1 November 1926 1 February 1927 – 28 January 2011.
Country	United Kingdom
Branch
Role	Close Air Support and Reconnaissance
Command structure	RAF Air Command
Garrison	RAF Cottesmore
Garrison label	Base
Motto	("First in all things")
Colors
Colors label	post 1950 aircraft insignia
Equipment	BAE Harrier GR.9
Equipment label	Aircraft
Battle honours	World War I• Western Front 1915–1918*• Ypres, 1915*• Neuve Chappelle• Loos• Somme, 1916*• Arras• Ypres, 1917• Lys• Amiens• Somme, 1918• Hindenburg Line• Independent Force and Germany, 1918*World War II• France and Low Countries, 1939–1940*• Battle of Britain, 1940*• Channel & North Sea, 1941–1945• Home Defence, 1940–1945• Fortress Europe, 1941–1944*• Arnhem• Normandy, 1944• France and Germany, 1944–1945*• Biscay, 1944–1945• RhineSuezSouth Atlantic, 1982*Gulf WarKosovo WarIraq, 2003Honours marked with an asterisk are those emblazoned on the Squadron Standard
Notable commanders
Identification symbol	A winged numeral "1"
Identification symbol label	Squadron Badge heraldry
Identification symbol 2	NA (Nov 1938 – Sep 1939) JX (Sep 1939 – Apr 1951)
Identification symbol 2 label	Squadron Codes }}

No. 1 (F) Squadron is a squadron of the Royal Air Force. It operated the Harrier GR9 from RAF Cottesmore until 28 January 2011.

The squadron motto is ''In omnibus princeps'' (Latin for "first in all things"), appropriate for the RAF's oldest squadron and one that has been involved in almost every major British military operation since World War I. This includes World War II, Suez, Falklands War, Gulf War, Kosovo War and Operation Telic (Iraq).

History

1878 to 1918

No. 1 Squadron's origins go back to 1878 when its predecessor, No. 1 Balloon Company, was formed at the Royal Arsenal, Woolwich as part of the Balloon Section. On 1 April 1911 the Air Battalion of the Royal Engineers was created. The battalion initially consisted of two companies, with No. 1 Company, Air Battalion taking responsibility for lighter than air flying. The first Officer Commanding was Captain E M Maitland.

On 13 May 1912, with the establishment of the Royal Flying Corps, No. 1 Company of the Air Battalion was redesignated No. 1 Squadron, Royal Flying Corps. No. 1 Squadron was one of the original three Royal Flying Corps squadrons. Maitland continued as the new squadron's Officer Commanding and he was promoted to major several days after the establishment of the squadron. On 1 May 1914, Major Charles Longcroft was appointed as the new squadron commander. Apart from a few weeks as a supernumerary in August and September 1914, Longcroft continued as the squadron commander until January 1915. It was also in May that the squadron airships were handed over to the Navy as it had been decided that the Navy would take over all airship activity.

The squadron was reformed as an aircraft squadron in August 1914, and equipped with a mixture of Avro 504s and Royal Aircraft Factory B.E.8s, crossed over to France on 7 March 1915. It operated mainly in the reconnaissance role, with a few single seat fighters for escort purposes. It retained Morane Parasols for reconnaissance, until becoming a dedicated fighter squadron on 1 January 1917, flying Nieuport 17s and Nieuport 27.

The obsolete Nieuports were replaced by more modern S.E.5as in January 1918. On incorporation into the RAF on 1 April 1918 the squadron kept its numeral; No 1 Squadron of the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) was displaced to become No. 201 Squadron RAF.

No. 1 Squadron had among its ranks no fewer than 31 flying aces. They included: future Air Commodore Philip Fullard, Percy Jack Clayson, William Charles Campbell, Louis Fleeming Jenkin, Tom Hazell, Harold Albert Kullberg, Gordon Olley, Robert A. Birkbeck, Guy Borthwick Moore, William Wendell Rogers, Charles Lavers, William Rooper, Edwin Cole, future Air Vice Marshal Quintin Brand, Eustace Grenfell, Harry Rigby, and Francis Magoun.

Between the wars

The squadron returned to the UK from France in March 1919, being formally disbanded on 20 January 1920. On the next day it reformed at Risalpur in the North West Frontier of India (now part of Pakistan), flying the Sopwith Snipe. and from January 1920. It moved to Hinaidi near Baghdad in Iraq in May 1921, to carry out policing duties, retaining its Snipes, although it also received one Bristol Jupiter engined Nieuport Nighthawk for evaluation. It remained in Iraq, carrying out strafing and bombing against hostile tribal forces until November 1926 when it was disbanded.

In early 1927 it was reformed at Tangmere, Sussex as a Home Defence Fighter Squadron, equipped with the Armstrong Whitworth Siskin. After receiving the Hawker Fury Mk.1 in February 1932, the squadron gained a reputation for aerobatics, giving displays throughout the United Kingdom and at the Zurich International Air Meeting in July 1937, where its display impressed but it was clear that it was outclassed by the German Messerschmitt Bf 109 and Dornier Do 17 also displayed at Zurich. The squadron re-equipped with the Hurricane Mk.I in October 1938.

Second World War

On the outbreak of World War II in September 1939 the Squadron was deployed to France as part of the RAF Advanced Air Striking Force. In October it flew over enemy territory for the first time and soon claimed its first victory, shooting down a Dornier Do 17 on 31 October. Further successes were made during the Phoney War, until the Battle of France erupted in May 1940. Within a week the squadron was bombed out of its base at Berry-au-Bac, north-west of Paris. A series of retreats followed, ending only when the Squadron evacuated from France on 18 June, with a return to Tangmere on 23 June. (The autobiographical book ''Fighter Pilot'' by Paul Richey, a pilot with 1 Squadron during the Battle of France, is widely regarded as a classic of air warfare literature.)

In August 1940, the squadron entered the Battle of Britain and was heavily engaged until 9 September, when the Squadron was transferred to 12 Group, and was sent to RAF Wittering to refit, rest and recuperate.

It returned to 11 Group in early 1941 and was employed in fighter sweeps and bomber escort duties. In February, it began "Rhubarb" (low-level sweeps over occupied territory) and night flying missions, and was re-equipped with the Hurricane IIA. The Squadron carried out night intruder patrols until July 1942, when it was re-equipped with the Hawker Typhoon fighter-bomber and relocated to RAF Acklington, Northumberland where it reverted to daytime operations.

The Squadron was equipped with the Spitfire IX in April 1944, and in June began anti-V1 patrols, shooting down 39 flying bombs. Missions were also flown over the Falaise Gap, strafing targets of opportunity. Later in the year it reverted to bomber escort duties, based at Haldegham. It was involved in supporting Operation Market Garden : the parachute drops into Holland, and later in support of the Allied counter-offensive in the Ardennes. The squadron dropped 250 lb bombs on to 'Key Points' (KPs), directed by radar to counter the adverse weather conditions. In May 1945 it converted to the Spitfire Mk.XXI, but these were only used operationally to cover landings on the Channel Islands.

Post war

In 1946 the Squadron returned to Tangmere and took delivery of its first jet aircraft, the Gloster Meteor. In October 1948 Major Robin Olds, USAF, under the U.S. Air Force/Royal Air Force exchange program was posted in and flying the Gloster Meteor jet fighter, he eventually served as commander of the Squadron at RAF Station Tangmere, the first non-commonwealth foreigner to command an RAF unit. During his time with 1 Sqn he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross.

The Squadron was then equipped with the Hawker Hunter F.5, which were flown from RAF Akrotiri, Cyprus during the 1956 Suez Crisis. The squadron disbanded on 23 June 1958. However, on 1 July 1958 the squadron was reformed by re-numbering No. 263 Squadron RAF at RAF Stradishall. It then moved to RAF Waterbeach from where, flying the Hunter FGA.9, it operated in the ground attack role as part of No. 38 Group RAF. The Squadron continued in this role for the next eight years, operating out of Waterbeach and then RAF West Raynham. Flight Lieutenant Alan Pollock of No. 1 Sqn was responsible for the infamous and very unofficial flying display on the 50th anniversary of the RAF in 1968.

The Harrier

Under the command of Squadron Leader Bryan Baker, the squadron became the world's first operator of a V/STOL aircraft with the arrival of the Hawker Siddeley Harrier in 1969, declared operational the following year. A detachment from No. 1 Squadron was deployed to the British Fleet during the Falklands War, operating from HMS ''Hermes'' and flying ground attack missions against Argentine forces. It replaced its first generation Harriers with Harrier IIs from 23 November 1988, being declared fully operational on the Harrier GR.5 on 2 November 1989. During the Kosovo war the Squadron flew over 800 sorties as part of NATO's Operation Allied Force.

No. 1 Squadron left the "home of the Harrier" at RAF Wittering for RAF Cottesmore on 28 July 2000. Cottesmore became home to all operational RAF Harrier squadrons – No. 20 (Reserve) Squadron, later renumbered as No. 4 (R) Squadron, the Harrier Operational Conversion Unit remained at Wittering.

One outcome of the Strategic Defence and Security Review by the coalition government in 2010 was the decision to take the RAF's Harriers out of service almost immediately. All Harrier units, including No .1 Squadron, ceased Harrier flying on 15 Decembed 2010, and 1 Sqn formally disbanded on 28 January 2011.

Aircraft operated

Year of introduction

Avro 504 −1915-1916

B.E.8 – 1915-1916

Morane Parasol – 1915-1916

Nieuport 17 – 1916-1917

Nieuport 27 – 1917-1918

SE5a – 1918-1920

Sopwith Snipe – 1920-1927

Armstrong Whitworth Siskin – 1927-1933

Hawker Fury – 1933-1937

Hawker Hurricane – 1937-1943

Hawker Typhoon – 1943-1944

Supermarine Spitfire – 1944-1950

Gloster Meteor – 1950-1957

Hawker Hunter – 1957-1970

Hawker Siddeley Harrier – 1970-2010

Commanding officers

According to Halley, Shaw and Franks & Connor

{| |- | width="33%" valign="top" |

Date appointed	Name
13 May 1912
1 May 1914
28 January 1915
19 August 1915
24 November 1915
24 December 1916	Major G C St P de Dombasle
20 June 1917	Major A Barton-Adams (MiD)
3 August 1918	Major W E Young, DFC
21 January 1920	S/Ldr. J O Andrews, DSO, MC & Bar
18 September 1920
10 November 1922	S/Ldr. G G A Williams
8 October 1923
25 May 1924
19 April 1926	S/Ldr. C.N. Lowe
11 April 1927	S/Ldr. E D Atkinson, MC, DFC, AFC
19 March 1928	S/Ldr. E O Grenfell, MC, DFC, AFC
27 July 1931	S/Ldr. C B S Spackman, DFC & Bar
21 November 1933	S/Ldr. R W Chappell, MC
1 October 1934	S/Ldr. C.W. Hill
31 January 1936	[[Flight Lieutenant
1 December 1936	S/Ldr. C.W. Hill
12 April 1937	S/Ldr. F R D Swain, AFC
15 January 1938	S/Ldr. I A Bertram
17 April 1939	S/Ldr. P J H Halahan, DFC
24 May 1940	S/Ldr. D A Pemberton, DFC
10 November 1940	S/Ldr. M H Brown, DFC
23 April 1941	S/Ldr. R E P Brooker, DFC
3 November 1941
31 July 1942	S/Ldr. R C Wilkinson, [[Order of the British Empire
30 May 1943	S/Ldr. A Zweigbergh
3 April 1944
29 April 1944	S/Ldr. H P Lardner-Burke, DFC & Bar
11 January 1945	S/Ldr. D G S R Cox, DFC & Bar
21 April 1945	S/Ldr. R S Nash, DFC
9 January 1946	S/Ldr. H R Allen, DFC
26 October 1946	S/Ldr. C H MacFie, DFC

| width="33%" valign="top" | {|class="wikitable" ! style="text-align: left" |Date appointed ! style="text-align: left"|Name |- | 7 May 1947 | F/Lt. N H D Ramsey (acting) |- | 15 July 1947 | S/Ldr. T R Burne, DSO, DFC |- | 4 February 1949 | Major R Olds USAF |- | 1 October 1949 | S/Ldr. T R Burne, DSO, DFC |- | 10 January 1950 | Major D F Smith USAF |- | 18 August 1950 | S/Ldr. J L W Ellacombe, DFC & Bar |- | 21 November 1952 | S/Ldr. R B Morison, DFC |- | 27 July 1953 | S/Ldr. D I Smith |- | 1 December 1953 | S/Ldr. F W Lister, DSO, DFC |- | 1 June 1955 | F/Lt. H Irving (acting) |- | 8 August 1956 | S/Ldr. R S Kingsford |- | 5 July 1958 | S/Ldr. L de Garis, AFC |- | 1 December 1958 | S/Ldr. J J Phipps |- | 1 January 1961 | S/Ldr. P V Pledger |- | 1 January 1963 | S/Ldr. F L Travers-Smith |- | 28 December 1964 | S/Ldr. D C G Brook |- | 1 November 1966 | S/Ldr. G. Jones |- | 20 September 1968 | S/Ldr. L A B Baker |- | 10 April 1969 | W/Cdr. J A Mansell |- | 21 May 1969 | S/Ldr. L A B Baker |- | 4 August 1969 | W/Cdr. D Allison |- | October 1969 | S/Ldr. L A B Baker |- | 1 January 1970 | W/Cdr. K W Hayr, AFC |- | 6 January 1972 | W/Cdr. E J E Smith, OBE |- | 3 December 1973 | W/Cdr. P P W Taylor, AFC |- | 9 July 1976 | W/Cdr. J G Saye |- | 17 July 1978 | W/Cdr. R B Duckett, AFC |- | 26 March 1981 | W/Cdr. P T Squire, DFC, AFC |- | 23 December 1983 | W/Cdr. J D L Feesey, AFC |- | 13 June 1986 | W/Cdr. I M Stewart |- | 3 October 1988 | W/Cdr. I R Harvey MBE, BSc |- | 17 May 1991 | W/Cdr. C C N Burwell, MBE |- | 29 April 1994 | W/Cdr. D Walker, AFC, BSc |- | 18 March 1996 | W/Cdr. M A Leakey, BSc |- | 26 November 1997 | S/Ldr. I Cameron (acting) |- | 9 January 1998 | W/Cdr. A Golledge, DSO, BSc |- | 26 October 1999 | W/Cdr. S M Bell, BSc |} |}

References

Notes

Bibliography

Ashworth, Chris. ''Encyclopedia of Modern Royal Air Force Squadrons''. Wellingborough, UK:PSL, 1989. ISBN 1-85260-013-6.

Bowyer, Michael J.F and John D.R. Rawlings. ''Squadron Codes, 1937–56''. Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, UK: Patrick Stephens Ltd., 1979. ISBN 0-85059-364-6.

Evans, Andy. ''BAE/McDonnell Douglas Harrier''. Malborough, Wiltshire, UK: The Crowood Press, 1998. ISBN 1-86126-105-5.

Flintham, Vic and Andrew Thomas. ''Combat Codes: A Full Explanation and Listing of British, Commonwealth and Allied Air Force Unit Codes Since 1938''. Shrewsbury, Shropshire, UK: Airlif Publishing Ltd., 2003. ISBN 1-84037-281-8.

Franks, Norman and Mike O'Connor. ''Number One in War and Peace: The History of No. 1 Squadron, 1912–2000''. London: Grub Street, 2000. ISBN 1-90230-455-1.

Halley, James J. ''Famous Fighter Squadrons of the RAF: Volume 1''. Windsor, UK: Hylton Lacey, 1971. ISBN 0-85064-100-4.

Halley, James J. ''The Squadrons of the Royal Air Force & Commonwealth, 1918–1988''. Tonbridge, Kent, UK: Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd., 1988. ISBN 0-85130-164-9.

Jefford, Wing Commander C.G., MBE,BA,RAF (Retd). ''RAF Squadrons, a Comprehensive Record of the Movement and Equipment of all RAF Squadrons and their Antecedents since 1912''. Shrewsbury: Airlife Publishing, 1998 (second edition 2001). ISBN 1-84037-141-2.

Rawlings, John D.R. ''Coastal, Support and Special Squadrons of the RAF and their Aircraft''. London: Jane's Publishing Company Ltd., 1982. ISBN 0-7106-0187-5.

Rawlings, John D.R. ''Fighter Squadrons of the RAF and their Aircraft''. London: Macdonald and Jane's (Publishers) Ltd., 1969 (new edition 1976, reprinted 1978). ISBN 0-354-01028-X.

Shaw, Michael. ''No. 1 Squadron''. Shepperton, Surrey, UK: Ian Allan Ltd., 1986. ISBN 0-71101-581-3.

Shaw, Michael. ''Twice Vertical: The History of No. 1 Squadron Royal Air Force''. London: Macdonald & Company Ltd, 1971. ISBN 0-35603-799-1.

External links

Category:Military units and formations established in 1911 001 Squadron 001 Squadron Category:Military units and formations of the United Kingdom in the Falklands War Category:Military units and formations disestablished in 2011 No. 01 Category:1911 establishments in the United Kingdom

cs:1. stíhací peruť RAF pl:No. 1 Squadron RAF

Coordinates	28°36′36″N77°13′48″N
name	Alicia Keys
background	solo_singer
birth name	Alicia Augello Cook
alias	Lellow
birth place	January 25, 1981
origin	New York City, New York, United States
instrument	Vocals, piano, keyboards, cello, synthesizer, vocoder, guitar, bass guitar
genre	Soul, R&B;, pop, hip hop, jazz, neo soul, electronic
occupation	singer-songwriter, record producer, actress
years active	1997–present
label	RCA, J, Arista, Columbia
website	}}

Alicia Augello Cook (born January 25, 1981), better known by her stage name Alicia Keys, is an American R&B; singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress. Keys was raised by a single mother in the Hell's Kitchen area of Manhattan in New York City. At age seven, Keys began playing the piano. She attended Professional Performing Arts School and graduated at 16 as valedictorian. Keys released her debut album with J Records, having had previous record deals first with Columbia and then Arista Records.

Keys' debut album, ''Songs in A Minor'', was a commercial success, selling over 12 million copies worldwide. She became the best-selling new artist and best-selling R&B; artist of 2001. The album earned Keys five Grammy Awards in 2002, including Best New Artist and Song of the Year for "Fallin'". Her second studio album, ''The Diary of Alicia Keys'', was released in 2003 and was also another success worldwide, selling eight million copies. The album garnered her an additional four Grammy Awards in 2005. Later that year, she released her first live album, ''Unplugged'', which debuted at number one in the United States. She became the first female to have an ''MTV Unplugged'' album to debut at number one and the highest since Nirvana in 1994.

Keys made guest appearances on several television series in the following years, beginning with ''Charmed''. She made her film debut in ''Smokin' Aces'' and went on to appear in ''The Nanny Diaries'' in 2007. Her third studio album, ''As I Am'', was released in the same year and sold six million copies worldwide, earning Keys an additional three Grammy Awards. The following year, she appeared in ''The Secret Life of Bees'', which earned her a nomination at the NAACP Image Awards. She released her fourth album, ''The Element of Freedom'', in December 2009, which became Keys' first chart-topping album in the United Kingdom. Throughout her career, Keys has won numerous awards and has sold over 30 million albums worldwide and 25 million singles, which makes her one of the best selling artists of all time. ''Billboard'' magazine named her the top R&B; artist of the 2000–2009 decade, establishing herself as one of the best-selling artists of her time. In 2010, VH1 included Keys on its list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. ''Billboard'' magazine placed her number ten on their list of Top 50 R&B;/Hip-Hop Artists of the Past 25 Years.

Life and career

1981–96: Early life

Keys was born Alicia Augello Cook on January 25, 1981, in the Hell's Kitchen area of Manhattan, in New York City, New York. She is the only child of Teresa Augello, a paralegal and part-time actress, and Craig Cook, a flight attendant. Keys' mother is of Italian, Scottish, and Irish descent, and her father is African American; Keys has expressed that she was comfortable with her biracial heritage because she felt she was able to "relate to different cultures". Her parents separated when she was two and she was subsequently raised by her mother during her formative years in Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan. In 1985, Keys made an appearance on ''The Cosby Show'' at the age of four, where she and a group of girls played the parts of Rudy Huxtable's sleepover guests in the episode "Slumber Party". Throughout her childhood, Keys was sent to music and dance classes by her mother. She began playing the piano when she was seven and learned classical music by composers such as Beethoven, Mozart and Chopin. Keys enrolled in the Professional Performing Arts School at the age of 12, where she majored in choir and began writing songs at the age of 14. She graduated in three years as valedictorian at the age of 16.

In 1994 Keys met long-term manager Jeff Robinson after she enrolled in his brother's after-school program. The following year Robinson introduced Keys to her future A&R; at Arista Records, Peter Edge, who later described his first impressions to HitQuarters: "I had never met a young R&B; artist with that level of musicianship. So many people were just singing on top of loops and tracks, but she had the ability, not only to be part of hip-hop, but also to go way beyond that." Edge helped Robinson create a showcase for Keys and also got involved in developing her demo material. He was keen to sign Keys himself but was unable to do so at that time due to being on the verge of leaving his present record company. Keys signed to Columbia Records soon after. At the same time as signing a recording contract with Columbia Records, Keys was accepted into Columbia University. At first, Keys attempted to manage both but after four weeks dropped out of college to pursue her musical career fulltime.

1997–2000: Career beginnings

Keys signed a demo deal with Jermaine Dupri and So So Def Recordings, where she appeared on the label's Christmas album performing "The Little Drummer Girl". She also co-wrote and recorded a song entitled "Dah Dee Dah (Sexy Thing)", which appeared on the soundtrack to the 1997 film, ''Men in Black''. The song was Keys' first professional recording; however, it was never released as a single and her record contract with Columbia ended after a dispute with the label. Keys was unhappy with the label because her career had stalled during her two years under contract at Columbia due to executive indecision over her direction and major changes within the company. Keys called Clive Davis, who sensed a "special, unique" artist from her performance and signed her to Arista Records, which later disbanded. Keys almost chose Wilde as her stage name until her manager suggested the name Keys after a dream he had. Keys felt that name represented her both as a performer and person. Following Davis to his newly formed J Records label, she recorded the songs "Rock wit U" and "Rear View Mirror", which were featured on the soundtracks to the films ''Shaft'' (2000) and ''Dr. Dolittle 2'' (2001), respectively.

2001–2002: ''Songs in A Minor''

Keys released her first studio album, ''Songs in A Minor'', in June 2001. It debuted at number one on the ''Billboard'' 200 and sold 236,000 copies in its first week. The album sold over 6.2 million copies in the United States, where it was certified six times Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). It went on to sell over 12 million copies worldwide, establishing Keys' popularity both inside and outside the United States, where she became the best-selling new artist and best-selling R&B; artist of 2001. The album's lead single, "Fallin'", spent six weeks at number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. The album's second single, "A Woman's Worth", was released in February 2002 and peaked at number 7 on the ''Billboard Hot 100'' and number three on the ''Hot R&B;/Hip-Hop Songs'', as her second Top 10 single in both charts. The album's third single, "How Come You Don't Call Me", was released in June 2002 and peaked at number 59 on the ''Billboard Hot 100'' and number 30 on the ''Hot R&B;/Hip-Hop Songs''. The album's fourth single, "Girlfriend", was released in November 2002 in UK and peaked at number 82 on the ''Hot R&B;/Hip-Hop Songs''. The following year, the album was reissued as ''Remixed & Unplugged in A Minor'', which included eight remixes and seven unplugged versions of the songs from the original.

''Songs in A Minor'' led Keys to win five awards at the 2002 Grammy Awards: Song of the Year, Best Female R&B; Vocal Performance, and Best R&B; Song for "Fallin'", Best New Artist, and Best R&B; Album; "Fallin'" was also nominated for Record of the Year. Keys became the second female solo artist to win five Grammy Awards in a single night, following Lauryn Hill at the 41st Grammy Awards. That same year, she collaborated with Christina Aguilera for the latter's upcoming album ''Stripped'' on a song entitled "Impossible", which Keys wrote, co-produced, and provided with background vocals. During the early 2000s, Keys also made small cameos in television series ''Charmed'' and ''American Dreams''.

2003–2005: ''The Diary of Alicia Keys'' and ''Unplugged''

Keys followed up her debut with ''The Diary of Alicia Keys'', which was released in December 2003. The album debuted at number one on the ''Billboard'' 200, selling over 618,000 copies its first week of release, becoming the largest first-week sales for a female artist in 2003. It sold 4.4 million copies in the United States and was certified four times Platinum by the RIAA. It sold eight million copies worldwide, becoming the sixth biggest-selling album by a female artist and the second biggest-selling album by a female R&B; artist. The album's lead single, "You Don't Know My Name", peaked at number three on the ''Billboard Hot 100'' and number one on ''Hot R&B;/Hip-Hop Songs'' for eight consecutive weeks, his first Top 10 single in both charts since 2002's "A Woman's Worth ". The album's second single, "If I Ain't Got You", was released in February 2004 and peaked at number 4 on the ''Billboard Hot 100'' and number one on the ''Hot R&B;/Hip-Hop Songs'' for six weeks. The album's third single, "Diary", peaked at number 8 on the ''Billboard Hot 100'' and number two on the ''Hot R&B;/Hip-Hop Songs'' chart, being their third consecutive Top 10 single in both charts. The album's fourth and final single, "Karma", which peaked at number 20 on the ''Billboard Hot 100'' and number 17 on the ''Hot R&B;/Hip-Hop Songs'', first release to fail to achieve top ten status on both charts. "If I Ain't Got You" became the first single by a female artist to remain on the ''Billboard'' Hot R&B;/Hip-Hop Songs chart for over a year. Keys also collaborated with recording artist Usher on the song "My Boo" from his 2004 album, ''Confessions (Special Edition)''. The song topped the ''Billboard Hot 100'' for six weeks and ''Hot R&B;/Hip-Hop Songs'' for three weeks, became her first number-one single in ''Hot 100'' since 2001's "Fallin'".

Keys won Best R&B; Video for "If I Ain't Got You" at the 2004 MTV Video Music Awards; she performed the song and "Higher Ground" with Lenny Kravitz and Stevie Wonder. Later that year, Keys released her novel ''Tears for Water: Songbook of Poems and Lyrics'', a collection of unreleased poems from her journals and lyrics. The title derived from one of her poems, "Love and Chains" from the line: "I don't mind drinking my tears for water." She said the title is the foundation of her writing because "everything I have ever written has stemmed from my tears of joy, of pain, of sorrow, of depression, even of question". The book sold over US$500,000 and Keys made ''The New York Times'' bestseller list in 2005. The following year, she won a second consecutive award for Best R&B; Video at the MTV Video Music Awards for the video "Karma". Keys performed "If I Ain't Got You" and then joined Jamie Foxx and Quincy Jones in a rendition of "Georgia on My Mind", the Hoagy Carmichael song made famous by Ray Charles in 1960 at the 2005 Grammy Awards. That evening, she won four Grammy Awards: Best Female R&B; Vocal Performance for "If I Ain't Got You", Best R&B; Song for "You Don't Know My Name", Best R&B; Album for ''The Diary of Alicia Keys'', and Best R&B; Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals" for "My Boo" with Usher.

Keys performed and taped her installment of the ''MTV Unplugged'' series in July 2005 at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. During this session, Keys added new arrangements to her original songs and performed a few choice covers. The session was released on CD and DVD in October 2005. Simply titled ''Unplugged'', the album debuted at number one on the U.S. ''Billboard'' 200 chart with 196,000 units sold in its first week of release. The album sold one million copies in the United States, where it was certified Platinum by the RIAA, and two million copies worldwide. The debut of Keys' ''Unplugged'' was the highest for an ''MTV Unplugged'' album since Nirvana's 1994 ''MTV Unplugged in New York'' and the first ''Unplugged'' by a female artist to debut at number one. The album's first single, "Unbreakable", peaked at number 34 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and number four on the Hot R&B;/Hip-Hop Songs. It remained at number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot Adult R&B; Airplay for 11 weeks. The album's second and final single, "Every Little Bit Hurts", was released in January 2006, it failed to enter the U.S. charts.

Keys opened a recording studio in Long Island, New York, called The Oven Studios, which she co-owns with her production and songwriting partner Kerry "Krucial" Brothers. The studio was designed by renowned studio architect John Storyk of WSDG, designer of Jimi Hendrix' Electric Lady Studios. Keys and Brothers are the co-founders of KrucialKeys Enterprises, a production and songwriting team who assisted Keys in creating her albums as well as create music for other artists.

2006–2008: Film debut and ''As I Am''

In 2006, Keys won three NAACP Image Awards, including Outstanding Female Artist and Outstanding Song for "Unbreakable". She also received the Starlight Award by the Songwriters Hall of Fame. In October 2006, she played the voice of Mommy Martian in the "Mission to Mars" episode of the children's television series ''The Backyardigans'', in which she sang an original song, "Almost Everything Is Boinga Here". That same year, Keys nearly suffered a mental breakdown. Her grandmother had died and her family was heavily dependent on her. She felt she needed to "escape" and went to Egypt for three weeks. She explained: "That trip was definitely the most crucial thing I've ever done for myself in my life to date. It was a very difficult time that I was dealing with, and it just came to the point where I really needed to—basically, I just needed to run away, honestly. And I needed to get as far away as possible."

Keys made her film debut in early 2007 in the crime film ''Smokin' Aces'', co-starring as an assassin named Georgia Sykes opposite Ben Affleck and Andy García. Keys received much praise from her co-stars in the film; Reynolds said that Keys was "so natural" and that she would "blow everybody away". ''Smokin' Aces'' had a hit moderate performance at the box office, earning only $57,103,895 worldwide during its theatrical run. In the same year, Keys earned further praise for her second film, ''The Nanny Diaries'', based on the 2002 novel of the same name, where she co-starred alongside Scarlett Johansson and Chris Evans. ''The Nanny Diaries'' had a hit moderate performance at the box office, earning only $44,638,886 worldwide during its theatrical run. She also guest starred as herself in the "One Man Is an Island" episode of the drama series ''Cane''.

Keys released her third studio album, ''As I Am'', in November 2007; it debuted at number one on the ''Billboard'' 200, selling 742,000 copies in its first week. It gained Keys her largest first week sales of her career and became her fourth consecutive number one album, tying her with Britney Spears for the most consecutive number-one debuts on the ''Billboard'' 200 by a female artist. The week became the second largest sales week of 2007 and the largest sales week for a female solo artist since singer Norah Jones' album ''Feels like Home'' in 2004. The album has sold nearly four million copies in the United States and has been certified three times Platinum by the RIAA. It has sold nearly six million copies worldwide. Keys received five nominations for ''As I Am'' at the 2008 American Music Award and ultimately won two. The album's lead single, "No One", peaked at number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 for fifth consecutive weeks and Hot R&B;/Hip-Hop Songs for ten consecutive weeks, became her first number-one single in ''Hot 100'' since 2004's "My Boo" and becoming Keys' third and fifth number-one single on each chart, respectively. The album's second single, "Like You'll Never See Me Again", was released in late 2007 and peaked at number 12 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and number one on the ''Hot R&B;/Hip-Hop Songs'' for seven consecutive weeks. From October 27, 2007, when "No One" reached No. 1, through February 16, 2008, the last week "Like You'll Never See Me Again" was at No. 1, the Keys was on top of the chart for 17 weeks, more consecutive weeks than any other artist in ''Hot R&B;/Hip/Hop Songs'' chart. The album's third single, "Teenage Love Affair", which peaked at number 54 on the '''Billboard Hot 100'' and number three on the ''Hot R&B;/Hip-Hop Songs''. The album's fourth and final single, "Superwoman", which peaked at number 82 on the ''Billboard Hot 100'' and number 12 on the ''Hot R&B;/Hip-Hop Songs''.

"No One" earned Keys the awards for Best Female R&B; Vocal Performance and Best R&B; Song at the 2008 Grammy Awards. Keys opened the ceremony singing Frank Sinatra's 1950s song "Learnin' the Blues" as a "duet" with archival footage of Sinatra in video and "No One" with John Mayer later in the show. Keys also won Best Female R&B; Artist during the show. She starred in "Fresh Takes", a commercial micro-series created by Dove Go Fresh, which premiered during ''The Hills'' on MTV from March to April 2008. The premiere celebrated the launch of new Dove Go Fresh. She also signed a deal as spokesperson with Glacéau's VitaminWater to endorse the product, and was in an American Express commercial for the "Are you a Cardmember?" campaign. Keys, along with The White Stripes' guitarist and lead vocalist Jack White, recorded the theme song to ''Quantum of Solace'', the first duet in Bond soundtrack history. In 2008, Keys was ranked in at number 80 the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 All-Time Top Artists. She also starred in ''The Secret Life of Bees'', a film adaptation of Sue Monk Kidd's acclaimed 2003 bestseller novel of the same name alongside Jennifer Hudson, Dakota Fanning, Paul Bettany and Queen Latifah, released in October 2008 via Fox Searchlight. ''The Secret Life of Bees'' had a hit moderate performance at the box office, earning only $39,947,322 worldwide during its theatrical run. Her role earned her a nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture at the NAACP Image Awards. She also received three nominations at the 2009 Grammy Awards and won Best Female R&B; Vocal Performance for "Superwoman".

In an interview with ''Blender'' magazine, Keys allegedly said "'Gangsta rap' was a ploy to convince black people to kill each other, 'gangsta rap' didn't exist" and went on to say that it was created by "the government". The magazine also claimed she said that Tupac Shakur and The Notorious B.I.G. were "essentially assassinated, their beefs stoked by the government and the media, to stop another great black leader from existing". Keys later wrote a statement clarifying the issues and saying her words were misinterpreted. Later that year, Keys was criticized by anti-smoking campaigners after billboard posters for her forthcoming concerts in Indonesia featured a logo for the A Mild cigarette brand sponsored by tobacco firm Philip Morris. She apologized after discovering that the concert was sponsored by the firm and asked for "corrective actions". In response, the company withdrew its sponsorship.

2009–2010 ''The Element of Freedom'', marriage and motherhood

Keys and manager Jeff Robinson signed a film production deal to develop live-action and animated projects with Disney. Their first film will be a remake of the 1958 comedy ''Bell, Book and Candle'' and will star Keys as a witch who casts a love spell to lure a rival's fiancé. Keys and Robinson also formed a television production company called Big Pita. Keys and Robinson will develop live-action and animated projects from their company, Big Pita and Little Pita, with Keys as producer, thespian, banner spearheading soundtrack and music supervision.

Keys collaborated with the record producer Swizz Beatz to write and produce "Million Dollar Bill" for Whitney Houston's seventh studio album, ''I Look to You''. Keys had approached Clive Davis for permission to submit a song for the album. Keys also collaborated with the recording artist Jay-Z on the song "Empire State of Mind" from his 2009 album, ''The Blueprint 3''. The song topped the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and became her fourth number-one single on that chart. At the 53rd Grammy Awards ceremony, "Empire State of Mind" won Best Rap/Sung Collaboration and Best Rap Song. It had also been one of the five nominees for Record of the Year. The following month, the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers honored Keys with the Golden Note Award, an award given to artists "who have achieved extraordinary career milestones". She collaborated with Spanish recording artist Alejandro Sanz for "Looking for Paradise", which topped the Hot Latin Songs chart, this was Keys' first number one on all three charts, which also made her the first African-American of non-Hispanic origin to reach #1 on the ''Hot Latin Tracks''. Keys released her fourth studio album, ''The Element of Freedom'', in December 2009. It debuted at number two on the ''Billboard'' 200, selling 417,000 copies in its first week. As part of the promotional drive for the album, she performed at the Cayman Island Jazz Festival on December 5, the final night of the three day festival which will be broadcast on Black Entertainment Television (BET). The album's lead single, "Doesn't Mean Anything", has peaked at number 60 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and number 14 on the ''Hot R&B;/Hip-Hop Songs''. Keys was ranked as the top R&B; recording artist of the 2000–2009 decade by ''Billboard'' magazine and ranked at number five as artist of the decade, while her song, "No One", was ranked at number six on the magazine's songs of the decade. In the United Kingdom, ''The Element of Freedom'' became Keys' first album to top the UK Albums Chart. The album's second single, "Try Sleeping with a Broken Heart", was released in November 2009 and peaked at number 27 on the ''Billboard Hot 100'' and number two on the ''Hot R&B;/Hip-Hop Songs''. The album's third single, "Put It in a Love Song", featuring Grammy-winner Beyoncé, peaked at number 60 on the ''Hot R&B;/Hip-Hop Songs''. The music video for the single, which was filmed in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, has been postponed several times, and later it was confirmed that Alicia Keys' team made a decision not to release the video. The album's fourth single, "Empire State of Mind (Part II) Broken Down", was released in February 2010 and peaked at number 55 on the ''Billboard Hot 100'' and number 76 on the ''Hot R&B;/Hip-Hop Songs''. The album's fifth single, "Un-Thinkable (I'm Ready)", was released in May 2010 and peaked at number 21 on the ''Billboard Hot 100'' and number one on the ''Hot R&B;/Hip-Hop Songs'', for twelve consecutive weeks and became the album's most successful single, becoming Keys' eighth number-one single on ''Hot R&B;/Hip-Hop Songs'' chart. The album's sixth and final single, "Wait Til You See My Smile", was released in December 2010 in the U.K only.

In May 2009, Swizz Beatz announced that he and Keys were romantically involved, and in May 2010, a representative for Keys and Swizz Beatz confirmed that they were engaged and expecting a child together. During the time of the 2010 FIFA World Cup, the couple took part of a union and had the unborn child blessed in a Zulu ceremony, which took place in the Illovo suburb of Johannesburg, South Africa. Keys and Swizz Beatz were married on the French island of Corsica on July 31, 2010. On October 14, 2010, Keys gave birth to a son, Egypt Daoud Ibarr Dean, in New York City.

2011-Present: Ten Year Celebration, Project 5, Stick Fly and Upcoming New Album

In June 2011, ''Songs in A Minor'' was re-released as deluxe and collector's editions in commemoration of its 10th anniversary. To support the release, Keys embarked on a four-city promotional tour, entitled Piano & I: A One Night Only Event With Alicia Keys, featuring only her piano. Keys is also set to co-produce the Broadway premiere of ''Stick Fly'', which will open in December 2011. On September 26, 2011, was the premiere of ''Project 5'' known as ''Five'', short film that marks the debut of Alicia Keys as a director. It is a documentary of five episodes that tell stories of five women who were victims of breast cancer and how it affected their lives. The production also has co-direction of the actresses Jennifer Aniston, Demi Moore and film director Patty Jenkins.

On September 23, she performed at ''iHeart Music Festival'' and sang her new song "A Place Of My Own", which is present in her fifth studio album. On October 7, RCA Music Group announced it was disbanding J Records along with Arista Records and Jive Records. With the shutdown, Keys (and all other artists previously signed to these three labels) will release her future material on the RCA Records brand.

Musical style

An accomplished pianist, Keys incorporates piano into a majority of her songs and often writes about love, heartbreak and female empowerment. She has cited several musicians as her inspirations, including Prince, Nina Simone, Barbra Streisand, Marvin Gaye, Quincy Jones, Donny Hathaway and Stevie Wonder. Keys' style is rooted in gospel and vintage soul music, supplemented by bass and programmed drumbeats. She heavily incorporates classical piano with R&B;, soul and jazz into her music. She began experimenting with other genres, including pop and rock, in her third studio album, ''As I Am'', transitioning from neo soul to a 1980s and 1990s R&B; sound with her fourth album, ''The Element of Freedom''. Patrick Huguenin of the ''New York Daily News'' stated that her incorporation of classical piano riffs contributed to her breakout success. ''Jet'' magazine states she "thrives" by touching her fans with "piano mastery, words and melodious voice". ''The Independent'' described her style as consisting of "crawling blues coupled with a hip-hop backbeat", noting that her lyrics "rarely stray from matters of the heart". ''Blender'' magazine referred to her as "the first new pop artist of the millennium who was capable of changing music."

Keys has a vocal range of a contralto, which spans three octaves. She can sing from B flat over an octave below middle C (B₂) to B below soprano C (B₅). Often referred to as the "Princess of Soul", Keys has been commended as having a strong, raw and impassioned voice; others feel that her voice is "emotionally manufactured" at times and that she pushes her voice out of its natural range. Keys' songwriting is often criticized for lack of depth, which has led to her writing abilities being called limited. Her lyrics have been called generic, clichéd and that her songs revolve around generalities. Greg Kot of the ''Chicago Tribune'' feels that she "[pokes] around for multi-format hits rather than trying to project any sort of artistic vision". Diversely, Jon Pareles of ''Blender'' magazine stated that the musical composition of her songs makes up for their lyrical weakness, while Gregory Stephen Tate of ''The Village Voice'' compared Keys' writing and production to 1970s music.

Joanna Hunkin of ''The New Zealand Herald'' reviewed one of Keys' performances, where Kylie Minogue also attended. She described Minogue's reaction to Keys' performance, saying "it was obvious she was just as much of a fan as the 10,000 other people at Vector Arena". She went on to say that Minogue was "the original pop princess bowing down to the modern-day queen of soul". Hunkin characterized Keys' opening performance as a "headbanging, hip-gyrating performance" and her energy as "high-octane energy most bands save for their closing finale". At the end of her two-hour performance, fans "screamed, stomped and begged for a second encore". Hillary Crosley and Mariel Concepcion of ''Billboard'' magazine noted that her shows are "extremely coordinated" with the audience's attention span "consistently maintained". The show ended with a standing ovation and Keys "proved that a dynamic performance mixed with superior musicianship always wins". Throughout her career, Keys has won numerous awards and is listed on the Recording Industry Association of America's best-selling artists in the United States, with 15 million certified albums. She has sold over 30 million albums worldwide and has established herself as one of the best-selling artists of her time.

Philanthropy

Keys is the co-founder and Global Ambassador of Keep a Child Alive, a non-profit organization that provides medicine to families with HIV and AIDS in Africa. Keys and U2 lead singer Bono recorded a cover version of Peter Gabriel and Kate Bush's "Don't Give Up", in recognition of World AIDS Day 2005. Keys and Bono's version of the song was retitled "Don't Give Up (Africa)" to reflect the nature of the charity it was benefiting. She visited African countries such as Uganda, Kenya and South Africa to promote care for children affected by AIDS. Her work in Africa was documented in the documentary ''Alicia in Africa: Journey to the Motherland'' and was available in April 2008.

Keys has also donated to Frum tha Ground Up, a non-profit organization that aids children and teenagers with scholarships. She performed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, as part of the worldwide Live 8 concerts to raise awareness of the poverty in Africa and to pressure the G8 leaders to take action. In 2005, Keys performed on ''ReAct Now: Music & Relief'' and ''Shelter from the Storm: A Concert for the Gulf Coast'', two benefit programs that raised money for those affected by Hurricane Katrina. In July 2007, Keys and Keith Urban performed The Rolling Stones' 1969 song "Gimme Shelter" at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey at the American leg of the Live Earth concerts.

Keys performed Donny Hathaway's 1973 song "Someday We'll All Be Free" at the ''America: A Tribute to Heroes'' televised benefit concert following the September 11 attacks. She participated in the Nobel Peace Prize Concert which took place at the Oslo Spektrum in Oslo, Norway, on December 11, 2007, along with other various artists. She recorded a theme song for Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama. She joined Joss Stone and Jay-Z on the effort, which served as a theme song for Obama's campaign. For her work, Keys was honored at the 2009 BET Awards with the Humanitarian Award. Keys performed the song "Prelude to a Kiss", retitled "Send Me an Angel", from her 2007 album ''As I Am'' for the "Hope for Haiti Now: A Global Benefit for Earthquake Relief" telethon in response to the 2010 Haiti earthquake.

Discography

''Songs in A Minor'' (2001)

''The Diary of Alicia Keys'' (2003)

''As I Am'' (2007)

''The Element of Freedom'' (2009)

''TBA'' (2012)

;Live albums

''Unplugged'' (2005)

Tours

{|class="wikitable" ! style="background:darkGrey;"| Year !! style="background:darkGrey;"| Title !! style="background:darkGrey;"| Number ofperformances |- style="background:#dcdcdc;" | style="text-align:center; width:5px;;"| 2001/2002 || style="background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center;"| ''Songs in A Minor Tour'' || style="background:#dcdcdc;"| 58 |- style="background:#dcdcdc;" | style="text-align:center; width:5px;;"| 2004|| style="background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center;"| ''Verizon Ladies First Tour'' || style="background:#dcdcdc;"| 25 |- style="background:#dcdcdc;" | style="text-align:center; width:5px;;"| 2005 || style="background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center;"| ''The Diary Tour'' || style="background:#dcdcdc;"| 36 |- style="background:#dcdcdc;" | style="text-align:center; width:5px;;"| 2008 || style="background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center;"| ''As I Am Tour'' || style="background:#dcdcdc;"| 94 |- style="background:#dcdcdc;" | style="text-align:center; width:5px;;"| 2010 || style="background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center;"| ''The Freedom Tour'' || style="background:#dcdcdc;"| 50 |- style="background:#dcdcdc;" | style="text-align:center; width:5px;;"| 2011 || style="background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center;"| ''Piano & I: A One Night Only Event With Alicia Keys'' || style="background:#dcdcdc;"| 5 |}

Filmography

Television
!Year	!Title	!Role	!Notes
1985	''The Cosby Show''	Maria
2001	''Charmed''	P3 VIP Patron (uncredited)
	''American Dreams''	Fontella Bass	"Rescue Me" (season 2, episode 6)
''The Proud Family''	Herself (voice)
2005	''Sesame Street''	Herself	Season 36
2006	''The Backyardigans''	Mommy Martian (voice)
		Herself	"One Man Is an Island" (season 1, episode 7)
''Elmo's Christmas Countdown''	Herself	Christmas television special
2008		Alex	Starred in all five episodes
2010	American Idol (season 9)	Herself	Mentor
Film
!Year	!Title	!Role	!Notes
	''Smokin' Aces''	Georgia Sykes	Debut filmMain role
	Lynette	Support role
2008		June Boatwright	Main role
Director
!Year	!Title	!Type	!Notes
	2004		Music video	MTV Video Music Award for Best R&B; Video
2011	''Project 5''	Short film/Documentary

See also

List of artists who reached number one in the United States

List of awards and nominations received by Alicia Keys

List of honorific titles in popular music

References

Further reading

External links

Alicia Keys at Billboard.com

Alicia Keys at Discogs

Alicia Keys at Metacritic

Category:1981 births Category:Living people Category:Actors from New York City Category:African American composers Category:African American female singer-songwriters Category:African American film actors Category:African American pianists Category:African American poets Category:African American record producers Category:American contraltos Category:American hip hop musicians Category:American multi-instrumentalists Category:American music arrangers Category:American music video directors Category:American musicians of Irish descent Category:American people of Italian descent Category:American people of Scottish descent Category:American philanthropists Category:American pop singer-songwriters Category:American rhythm and blues keyboardists Category:American rhythm and blues singer-songwriters Category:American soul keyboardists Category:American soul singers Category:American television actors Category:Echo winners Category:Grammy Award winners Category:Hip hop singers Category:Neo soul singers Category:People from Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan Category:J Records artists Category:RCA Records artists Category:Rhythm and blues pianists Category:Singers from New York City Category:Songwriters from New York Category:World Music Awards winners

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#REDIRECTBruno Mars

:''Not to be confused with film director Andrew Lau.''

Coordinates	28°36′36″N77°13′48″N
Name	Andy Lau
Tradchinesename	劉德華
Simpchinesename	刘德华
Pinyinchinesename	Liú Déhuá
Jyutpingchinesename	Lau4 Dak1waa4
Birth name	劉福榮
Ancestry	Xinhui, Guangdong
Birth date	September 27, 1961
Birth place	Tai Po, Hong Kong
Othername	Wah Zai (華仔), Lau Wah (劉華), Ngau Wah (牛華；牛bull),Lau Fook-Wing (劉福榮)
Occupation	Singer, actor, film producer, and presenter
Genre	Cantopop, Mandopop
Instrument	Vocal
Label	Capital Artist(1985) EMI(1986-1989, 2002-2004) Polygram(1990-1993) Warner Music(1993-1995) Music Impact(1995-2000) Multi-Talent(2000-2002) Ever Song (2004-2005) Focus Music (2005-2007) East Asia Music(2007-present)
Yearsactive	1981 - present
Associatedact	Five Tiger Generals
Fiancee	朱丽僐
Website	www.andylau.com
Hongkongfilmwards	Best Film1998 ''Made in Hong Kong'' Best Actor2000 ''Running Out of Time''2004 ''Running on Karma'' Best Supporting Actor2008 ''Protégé'' Best Original Film Song2003 ''Infernal Affairs''
Goldenbauhiniaawards	Best Actor2001 ''A Fighter's Blues''
Hkfcsawards	Best Actor2003 ''Running on Karma''
Goldenhorseawards	Best Actor2003 ''Infernal Affairs III''
Goldenroosterawards	Best Media Rooster for 2009
Tvbanniversaryawards	My Most Memorable Male Leading Role1999 ''The Return of the Condor Heroes''
Awards	Panasonic Awards 20071st Asian Film Awards2007 Box Office Star of Asia Award }}

Andy Lau MH, JP (born 27 September 1961) is a Hong Kong Cantopop singer, actor, and film producer. Lau has been one of Hong Kong's most commercially successful film actors since the mid-1980s, performing in more than 160 films while maintaining a successful singing career at the same time. In the 1990s, Lau was branded by the media as one of the Four Heavenly Kings of Cantopop (四大天王) along with Aaron Kwok, Jacky Cheung and Leon Lai.

Biography

As a young boy Lau had to fetch water for his family up to eight times a day because their house was not equipped with plumbing. He later graduated from a Band One Secondary School, Ho Lap College in San Po Kong, Kowloon. He also practices Chinese calligraphy.

Career

Dramatic acting

In 1981, Lau signed up for the artist training program offered by TVB, which is where his acting career began. The lead role which led his initial popularity was in the 1982 TVB series ''The Emissary''. In 1983, Lau's role as ''"Yang Guo"'' in the TVB series ''The Return of the Condor Heroes'' further increased his popularity. From then on, he would take on many of the lead roles in many of the TVB series.

In September 1983, TVB was looking to increase their ratings in competition with Korea and Japan for the best variety show. The station then created the show ''TVB All-star challenge'' (星光熠熠勁爭輝) featuring almost the entire lineup of the most popular actors and singers at the time. Lau along with Tony Leung, Michael Miu, Felix Wong, and Kent Tong were branded as "TVB's Five Tigers" (無線五虎將) due to their popularity on the show.

In the late 80s, Lau left TVB due to contract problems. TVB wanted to bind him to an exclusive five-year contract which Lau refused to sign, so TVB blacklisted him. He then focused on his film career.

Film acting

In 1981, Lau made a guest appearance in one of Susanna Kwan's music video and caught the eye of the manager Teddy Robin. Teddy Robin then gave Lau a chance to play a small role in the movie ''Once Upon a Rainbow''. This was the first step in Lau's film acting career. He was then given a role in Ann Hui's 1982 film, ''Boat People.'' Later in 1983 he had his first leading role in a Shaw Brothers film called ''On the Wrong Track''.

One of his early leading roles included the more serious 1988 film ''The Truth'' (法內情). However, Lau is best known in movies for his (often) recurring roles as a "Heroic Gangster" such as Wong Kar-wai's 1988 film, ''As Tears Go By'' and Johnnie To's 1990 film, ''A Moment of Romance''.

Though a respectable actor, Lau in the early days was known more for his good looks. The people he works with say he is an idol, but he has claimed to be an artist. Lau has proved his acting skills in many of his movies. His first major acting prize came with ''A Fighter's Blues'', which was his first Golden Bauhinia Award for Best Actor. He would win the Hong Kong Film Award for Best Actor award that year for ''Running out of Time''. In 2004, he won the prestigious Golden Horse Award for his performance in ''Infernal Affairs III'', the sequel to the popular ''Infernal Affairs''. Western audiences may also be familiar with his performance in the ''House of Flying Daggers''.

In 2005, Lau was awarded "No.1 Box Office Actor 1985-2005" of Hong Kong, yielding a total box office of HKD 1,733,275,816 for shooting 108 films in the past 20 years. The aforementioned figure is as compared to the first runner-up Stephen Chow's (HKD 1,317,452,311) and second runner-up Jackie Chan's (HKD 894,090,962). "I've never imagine that it would be as much as 1.7 billion!" he told the reporters. For his contributions, a wax figure of Lau was unveiled on June 1, 2005 at the Madame Tussauds Hong Kong. In 2007, Lau was also awarded the "Nielsen Box Office Star of Asia" by the Nielsen Company (ACNielsen).

Film producer

In 1991 Lau has set up his own film production company called Teamwork Motion Pictures Limited, which in 2002 was renamed to Focus Group Holdings Limited. His contributions in the film industry as well as his involvement in nurturing new talents in the Asian film industry led him to being awarded the "Asian Filmmaker of the Year" in the Pusan International Film Festival in 2006. Some of the films he produced include the award-winning ''Made in Hong Kong'' and the mainland digital film ''Crazy Stone''.

Musical career

Lau released his first album ''"Only Know that I Still Love You"'' (只知道此刻愛你) under Capital Artists in 1985. However, his first album was not a big hit. Despite having a voice not traditionally associated with popular music, his hard work and perseverance resulted in him being one of the most successful singers. His singing career reached stellar status in 1990 with the release of the album entitled ''"Would It Be Possible"'' (可不可以), and his subsequent releases only solidified his status as a marketable singer. For that song, he would win his first 1990 RTHK Top 10 Gold Songs Awards. He would then win at least one RTHK award category every year consecutively until the year 2007.

From Jade Solid Gold Top 10 Awards, he has won the “Most Popular Hong Kong Male Artist” award 7 times and the “Asia Pacific Most Popular Hong Kong Male Artist” award 15 times. He also entered into Guinness World Records for "Most Awards Won By A Cantopop Male Artist". By April 2000, he had already won a total unprecedented 292 awards.

Many of his songs quickly topped the music charts, not only in Hong Kong, but also in Taiwan, Mainland China, and in many different parts of Asia. Some of the most notable hits by Lau include ''"The Days We Spent Together"'' (一起走過的日子), ''"If You Are My Legend"'' (如果你是我的傳說), ''"The Tide"'' (潮水), ''"Forget Love Potion"'' (忘情水), ''"True Forever"'' (真永遠), ''"Chinese people"'' (中國人), ''"Love You Forever"'' (愛你一萬年), ''"You Are My Woman"'' (你是我的女人), ''"Secret Admiration"'' (暗裡著迷). Besides singing in Cantonese and Mandarin, he also sang in other languages, such as English, Japanese, Malay, and Taiwanese. One example of a Hokkien song was (世界第一等).

Since the early 1990s, Lau, along with Jacky Cheung, Aaron Kwok and Leon Lai have been referred by the Chinese media as the Cantopop Four Heavenly Kings (四大天王).

Lau sang alongside Jackie Chan during a part of the 2008 Summer Olympics closing ceremony on August 24, 2008. In addition Lau, who has been supporting the disabled athletes in Hong Kong for more than a decade, was appointed as the Goodwill ambassador for the 2008 Summer Paralympics. He led other performers in singing and performing the song ''"Everyone is No.1"'' at the Beijing National Stadium just a few hours before the 2008 Paralympics opening ceremony began to show his support for the disabled athletes. He also sang the theme song ''"Flying with the Dream"'' with Han Hong during the Paralympics opening ceremony on September 6, 2008.

Appearance in other media

Lau is alleged to have been featured as a non-player character (NPC) as a random pedestrian in a sandbox-style action video game called ''PROTOTYPE''. On 6 July, the Hong Kong local newspapers Headline Daily and Sing Tao Daily reported on Lau's cameo.

Community

In 1994, Lau established the "Andy Lau Charity Foundation" which helps people in need and promotes a wide range of youth education services. In 1999, he was awarded the "Ten Outstanding Young Persons of the World", being the 3rd person from Hong Kong at that time to bestow this distinguished honor. In 2008, Lau took a main role in putting together the Artistes 512 Fund Raising Campaign for donation relief toward the victims of the 2008 Sichuan earthquake. It was one of the largest and most ambitious charity event ever assembled in the territory.

Lau has been noted for his active involvement in charity works throughout his 30 years of showbiz career and was honored "Justice of Peace" by the Hong Kong SAR government in 2008. In May 2010, he received the "World Outstanding Chinese" award and an "honorary doctorate" from the University of New Brunswick, Canada.

Incidents

Yang Li-juan fan case

Lau experienced unexpected notoriety with his encountering of a 29 year old fan from mainland China, Yang Li-juan (楊麗娟), who had idolized the star for 13 years. After her parents sold the family house to pay for a trip to Hong Kong, Yang finally met Lau on March 26, 2007. One day later, Yang's father committed suicide by throwing himself into the sea in Hong Kong, leaving a suicide note chiding Lau for not having taken his daughter more seriously.

Awards and nominations

Hong Kong Film Awards

Best New Performer Nomination for ''Boat People''

Best Actor Nomination for ''As Tears Go By''

Best Actor Nomination for ''Lee Rock''

Best Original Film Song Nomination for ''Casino Raiders II'' (Singer)

Best Original Film Song Nomination for ''Heaven and Earth'' (Singer)

Best Actor Nomination for ''Full Throttle''

Best Original Film Song Nomination for ''Full Throttle'' (Singer/Lyricist)

Best Film for ''Made in Hong Kong'' (Producer)

Best Original Film Song Nomination for ''Island of Greed'' (Singer)

Best Film Nomination for ''The Longest Summer'' (Producer)

Best Original Film Song Nomination for ''The Longest Summer'' (Singer)

Best Original Film Song Nomination for ''A True Mob Story'' (Singer/Lyricist)

Best Actor for ''Running Out of Time''

Best Actor Nomination for ''A Fighter's Blues''

Best Actor Nomination for ''Love on a Diet''

Best Original Film Song Nomination for ''Shaolin Soccer'' (Singer/Lyricist)

Best Actor Nomination for ''Infernal Affairs''

Best Original Film Song for ''Infernal Affairs'' (Singer with Tony Leung)

Best Actor for ''Running on Karma''

Best Actor Nomination for ''Wait 'Til You're Older''

Best Original Film Song Nomination for ''Wait 'Til You're Older'' (Singer/Lyricist)

Best Asian Film Nomination for ''Crazy Stone'' (Producer)

Best Actor Nomination for ''The Warlords''

Best Supporting Actor for ''Protégé''

Best Original Film Song Nomination for ''Brothers'' (Singer with Eason Chan/Lyricist)

(10 Best Actor Nominations, 10 Best Original Film Song Nominations, 2 Best Film Nominations, 1 Best Supporting Actor Nomination, 1 Best New Performer Nomination, 1 Best Asia Film Nomination)

References

External links

Andy Lau's Official Website

Andy Lau interview.

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Category:Best Actor HKFA Category:Best Supporting Actor HKFA Category:Hong Kong Buddhists Category:Hong Kong male singers Category:Cantopop singer-songwriters Category:Cantopop singers Category:Hong Kong Mandopop singers Category:1961 births Category:Living people Category:Hong Kong film producers Category:Hong Kong entrepreneurs Category:Hong Kong film presenters Category:Hong Kong people of Xinhuiese descent Category:Cantonese people

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