Andrew Kenny was the main singer/songwriter of the American indie/lo-fi band American Analog Set. In 2004 he released a split EP in the Home Series (Vol. V) with Benjamin Gibbard. Andrew Kenny toured briefly with Broken Social Scene in 2007 and with Ola Podrida in 2008 before moving back home to Austin to work on his own recordings. In 2008 Kenny wrote and performed the entire score for the short film Pickup and Return which was written and directed by award winning writer/director Alex Johnson. Andrew Kenny is currently in The Wooden Birds which released the LP Magnolia in May 2009.

Discography

Home Series (Vol. V): 2004
The Wooden Birds (Magnolia): 2009

References

Category:American male singers Category:American songwriters Category:Living people Category:Year of birth missing (living people)

Name	Nicole Scherzinger
Background	solo_singer
Birth name	Nicole Prescovia Elikolani Valiente Scherzinger
Born	June 29, 1978Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.
Genre	Pop, R&B;
Occupation	Singer, songwriter, dancer, model
Years active	1999–present
Label	Interscope
Associated acts	Pussycat Dolls, Eden's Crush
Url

Nicole Prescovia Elikolani Valiente Scherzinger (born June 29, 1978) is an American singer, songwriter, dancer and occasional actress who is best known as the lead singer of the Pussycat Dolls.

Previously, Scherzinger was a backing vocalist for the late-1990s rock group Days of the New, then she was part of reality TV girl group Eden's Crush. After the disbandment of the group she joined the Pussycat Dolls and became the lead vocalist during the transition to a popular music group. So far, the Pussycat Dolls have released two albums, PCD and Doll Domination, with two supporting tours. More recently, in early 2010, Scherzinger became the winner of the tenth season of Dancing with the Stars.

Early life

Nicole Scherzinger was born on June 29, 1978, in Honolulu, Hawaii. Her father, Alfonso Valiente, is of Filipino descent, and her mother, Rosemary, is of Hawaiian and Russian descent. In an interview, Scherzinger said: "I’m Filipino-Russian-Hawaiian, but people think I’m from Pakistan". Her mother Rosemary was eighteen at the time of Scherzinger's birth and lived in an inner city neighborhood. with her sister Ke'ala and her German American stepfather Gary Scherzinger. She first attended Meyzeek Middle School as an adolescent. Growing up, Scherzinger states that she didn't have a lot of money and the singer thanks her mom for all the support she gave her to become what she is today. Scherzinger began performing in Louisville, attending the Youth Performing Arts School at duPont Manual High School and performing with Actors Theatre of Louisville. but put her studies on hold in 1999 to sing backing vocals for the rock band Days of the New.

Music career

2001–03: Eden's Crush and Pre:Pussycat Dolls

In 2001, Scherzinger competed in the premiere season of The WB's television show Popstars, on which she earned a spot in the all-girl pop group Eden's Crush. She became one of the main vocalists for the group. Their 2001 US single "Get Over Yourself (Goodbye)" peaked at number one in sales and hit the top ten on Billboard Hot 100. They toured in support of both *NSync and Jessica Simpson. Later however, their record company, London-Sire Records, folded and the group eventually disbanded. In November 2007, Scherzinger spoke of her time in Eden's Crush: It was hell. [...] I was in a band with five other girls and every day was torture for me. We were on TV all the time and the atmosphere was awful. [...] Every day I was in that band I cried my eyes out. The band was meant to be fun and frivolous but the reality was that it was miserable. [...] I was too sensitive back then, but I got toughened up. I couldn't have gone into the Dolls without my experience in Crush. Scherzinger later worked with Yoshiki of Japanese rock band X Japan on his Violet UK project. She sang the English version of "I'll Be Your Love" live with the Tokyo Symphonic Orchestra. The track also appeared on the 2003 Various Artists album Exposition of Global Harmony.

2003–06: The Pussycat Dolls and PCD

In May 2003, Scherzinger joined the Pussycat Dolls burlesque troupe, who were being re-cast as recording artists. She had first seen them performing on The Late Show with David Letterman in November 2002, where Carmen Electra sang "Big Spender" from the Bob Fosse musical Sweet Charity. In 2006, Scherzinger said "It caught my eye because I’d played Velma Kelly in [Fosse's] Chicago in college."

The success of PCD brought Scherzinger into the media spotlight and she went on to record a series of duets/guest vocals with a wide array of male vocalists. In 2005, she appeared on recordings by Shaggy, Vittorio Grigolo and Will Smith. In 2006 she sang co-lead vocals with Avant on his single "Lie About Us" , and Diddy's hit "Come to Me" (which she also co-wrote). Other appearances are listed in discography. In the biography section of her official website she says that everyone recognises her from the Pussycat Dolls's debut single "Dont Cha" which although amazing doesn't fulfill her musical desires. When asked what she intended to achieve with her solo career she commented "Some people only have their glasses half full, but there was never a limit to mine." The purpose of the album was to appeal to younger audiences, show them "the heart of Nicole" and show that she is "not always strong and fearless". She told MTV "I've always said that in the Pussycat Dolls, I kind of feel like Superwoman. But that's just one of my alter egos. I've got the vulnerable, lovesick side of me amongst others which all appear on my record."

The album saw Scherzinger work with a wide roster of producers and song writers some of whom had worked with Scherzinger for albums with the Pussycat Dolls. Sean Garrett and Polow da Don worked on "Whatever U Like" (featuring T.I.) which was released as the album's lead single on July 24, 2007 but deemed unsuccessful reaching just 57 in Canada. "Baby Love" was the second single released on September 10, 2007. Although well received and compared to the Pussycat Dolls' song "Stickwitu" In 2010 during an interview with X magazine she also revealed that "I Hate This Part", a song which became a top-ten hit in Europe for the Pussycat Dolls, was also intended for her own solo album. Christopher "Tricky Stewart" and The-Dream were also working with Scherzinger and produced, wrote and recorded at least two songs for the album. Both of the known recordings, "Punch You In Your Sleep" and "I'm a Cheat" were re-allocated to The-Dream's ex-wife Christina Milian who has recorded them for her fourth studio album Elope due in 2010. Furthermore it was revealed that Keri Hilson (a writer who has been heavily involved in writing for the Pussycat Dolls) had written a song called "Alienated" for Scherzinger, however when the album was delayed and shelved Hilson reclaimed the song and instead recorded the song with producer Cory Bold for her own debut studio album In a Perfect World… Reviews later went on to give the song critical acclaim for its "electro-blips and whispery raps that are alluring." In September 2009 it was confirmed that the teary ballad, "Just Say Yes" was reclaimed by Gary Lightbody who has since re-tooled and reworked the song. It was released as the lead single from his band, Snow Patrol's compilation album Up to Now, on November 2, 2009.

Addressing the delayed release of her solo album, in September 2008 Scherzinger said, "Despite what other people might write, it was my decision, ultimately. I actually put some of my solo songs on the Pussycat Dolls' new album Doll Domination. Everything is all about timing. I believe it will come out next year, and it will be able to coexist wonderfully with the Dolls' album. It's completely separate from what you've heard with "Baby Love" and "Whatever U Like," and I'm still working on it — that's what happens when you're a perfectionist." She was interviewed by Billboard magazine in April 2009 regarding her own career plans as well as what The Dolls were up to. She said "the current incarnation of the album is just in talks and in the writing process. I haven't started recording yet." She plans to enter the studio again after the Pussycat Dolls have finished their World Domination Tour. Speaking about the project Scherzinger said she will be working again with Will.i.am, Timbaland as well as with new associates Lady Gaga and A.R. Rahman.

In April 2008, Scherzinger recorded a cover version of "Rio" by Duran Duran for an advertising campaign for Unilever's Caress brand of body wash. A commercial video was released, and the single was released via download only, after May 2008. In 2008, in support of Barack Obama, she was one of many musicians to contribute to a track by will.i.am called "Yes We Can". Also on September 5, 2008, Scherzinger joined an all-star cast to perform the charity song "Just Stand Up" on live TV.

The Pussycat Dolls returned to the Music scene on May 27, 2008 with the new single "When I Grow Up" which reached number nine on the U.S. Hot 100 and number one on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play. The song topped several European charts and became a worldwide top ten hit. The follow-up single "Whatcha Think About That" with Missy Elliott failed to enter the U.S. charts but managed to reach top 20 in several other countries including the UK with a limited release.

After a slight delay and with two singles released the album, Doll Domination was finally released as a standard and deluxe edition. The latter featured a disc with a solo song by each of the girls. The album debuted at number four on the Billboard 200, with 79,000 copies sold in its first week beating their debut album by one chart position but selling 20,000 less copies. It only spent seven weeks in the top 100, compared with their debut album which sat in the top 100 for nearly one year. In January 2009 it re-entered the top 100 following several more successful singles. The album in original form spawned two other singles, worldwide top 20 hit "I Hate This Part" and the number-one club song "Bottle Pop" which only received a limited release in the US and Oceania. On January 2009 they embarked their second world tour called Doll Domination Tour to support their sophomore Doll Domination. Lady Gaga opened for them in Europe and Australia, while Ne-Yo supported the Pussycat Dolls in the UK leg. In mid-2009 they opened for Britney Spears' tour The Circus Starring Britney Spears on the first leg in North America. In April 2009 Scherzinger confirmed to Billboard that the album would be re-released to give more people a chance to get their music. In Europe the album was re-released with three or four new songs. In Australia a compilation called Doll Domination 2.0 was released with six songs from the original version plus four new songs whereas the UK received a six-song EP called Doll Domination: The Mini Collection released on April 27, 2009 featuring four of the original songs plus a remix and a new song. In August 2009 the album was repackaged once more, this time as Doll Domination 3.0 to include all of the previously released bonus songs on one CD with the original album. Its release was limited to Europe and the UK where the group's singles had all reached top 20.

The repackaged versions spawned two more singles: the worldwide number one "Jai Ho! (You Are My Destiny)" (featured on the soundtrack for Slumdog Millionaire) and euro-pop remix of "Hush Hush" (retitled "Hush Hush; Hush Hush")

Scherzinger performed "America the Beautiful" at WWE's WrestleMania XXV in Houston, Texas at the Reliant Stadium on April 5, 2009. Nicole Scherzinger performed with guitarist Slash on October 2 in Las Vegas.

2010–present: Untitled debut album

Scherzinger confirmed that she has done one song with Slash for his solo album Slash released in April 2010. On February 1, 2010 along with other artists Scherzinger had re-recorded "We are the World", a charity single for the victims of the 2010 Haiti earthquake. The song debuted during NBC's coverage of the opening ceremonies of the 2010 Winter Olympics. It was released as a single on iTunes on February 12, 2010 accompanied by the music video.

Reports of a second attempt at a solo album surfaced in January 2010 when Contactmusic reported that singersongwriter Ne-Yo is working with Scherzinger on new material. Ne-Yo had previously given two songs he wrote, "Save Me From Myself" and "Happily Never After", to Scherzinger for Her Name Is Nicole. Of the new collaborations he said,"she is putting all her energy into her work". He was also quoted as saying }}

On January 26, 2010, it was revealed that Jay Sean and Scherzinger were both working on something in the studio together. The video was originally posted to twitter but has been uploaded to the general internet too and shows the pair having a good time at Hit Factory (Criteria) record studios in Miami, Florida. In the video Scherzinger reveals she has been recording in the studio which Mariah Carey created some of her best known material as well as 'Studio F' where Sean recorded "Down" with Lil Wayne and where Scherzinger previously laid down vocals for Timbaland's hit single "Scream" with Keri Hilson. The pair also made note to T-Pain and Lil Wayne who were present at the studio. It is unknown whether the pair achieved any musical success e.g. recorded any usable songs and it is unknown if the records are for an upcoming single for Jay Sean, the upcoming third album from the Pussycat Dolls or Scherzinger's own heavily delayed studio album which is also due for release in 2010. Separately it was reported that she was working with Chuck Harmony whose previous credits include Rihanna's top-ten hit "Russian Roulette" (2009) as well as multiple credits on Ne-Yo's Year of the Gentleman (2008) and Mary J. Blige's Growing Pains (2007). "My music that I’m working on now for my album might have a little more rock, funk, soul edge, but it’s basically in the genre of popular music and it’s just honest music, fun music".

Rap Up first reported her intention to release a new song on May 23, 2010 stating that "The single ["Nobody Can Change Me"] is an empowering song, so it’s very much like Pussycat Dolls, but it’s just [Nicole] singing the same thing". Scherzinger herself described the single as "uplifting and powerful song with a deep meaning" During one radio interview she the song was recorded at night whilst she was competing on season ten of U.S. reality competition ,Dancing with the Stars. It was mastered on May 23, 2010 ready for its premiere on Ryan Seacrest's KIIS FM radio show the following day. Amongst the first to review the song was Beck Bain of Idolator. She was not impressed, "after listening to the treacly pop tune, we think she has a better shot at becoming a full-time sailor than reviving her solo career anytime soon. ... Her voice sounds a little bit higher/squeakier than usual, and the overproduction of the track certainly doesn’t help—we know this girl can saaang, and this generic pop song about empowerment or independence or some other vague 'let me be me' message does nothing to utilize her vocal range. ... And if Nicole wants to win the public back, it’s probably in her best interest to release a thumping dance track with sex appeal than an uninspired, uninteresting message song." However Amos Barshad of New York magazine actually liked the song stating that "there’s none of the Pussycat Doll’s forced sexiness here; instead, it sounds like something that could have just missed the final cut on a Kelly Clarkson album (that is sort of supposed to be a compliment, yeah)."

Then in August 2010 Moroccan electropop producer RedOne was interviewed by the BBC. In the interview he revealed he had been working on Scherzinger's album. "I just finished her album. Her last one never came out because it was collecting hamburgers, like fast food. One from McDonalds, one from Burger King, and so on. It tasted good, but it wasn't consistent. Her new record - people are really going to go crazy about it because it's the real her." Scherzinger confirmed these reports in a September 2010 interview with X magazine. In reference to Her Name is Nicole she said "It was actually my decision not to put it out, not the label's". Then she said "I've been working with RedOne, which is an honour. He's an unbelievable producer and musician. He had made some amazing songs with Lady Gaga. Now, there is someone with the 'x factor'. I can't touch GaGa or RedOne in that space, but I know that we've created something unique of our own." It is due for release on November 29, 2010. A picture from the video shoot was revealed by MTV, showing Scherzinger dressed provocatively. On November 18, 2010, she joined Prince on-stage during his concert in Abu Dhabi. While working with RedOne she has also recorded vocals for songs which will be included on Mohombi's debut album. Mohombi is the first signee to RedOne's record label. Scherzinger will appear at the Jingle Bell Ball at London's O2 Arena on December 4, 2010. She will also appear on the Cosmo Love Show in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia on December 7, 2010.

Other ventures

Scherzinger has made minor appearances as an actress. She appeared in the TV comedy, Half & Half, My Wife and Kids and the 2003 film Love Don't Cost a Thing. She also had a role in 2001 as one of the "Pop Stars" in the episode "Finally!" of the show Sabrina, the Teenage Witch, in Wanda at Large, Chasing Papi, Be Cool and Cane. She provided the voice of Dora Maddingly, a ghost that is a cinderella like princess that can transform into a dragon in the episode 'Beauty Marked' of the tv show Danny Phantom Scherzinger was supposed to cast in one of the lead roles in the upcoming movie with the Filipino Boxing Champion Manny Pacquiao together with professional wrestler Dave Batista. She was about to play the leading lady of the Filipino Champ but it was cancelled and her role went to the filipina actress Ruffa Mae Quinto. She also made an appearance in the Nickelodeon's Big Time Rush show as herself.

In 2006, she made a "Bench Body" brand underwear commercial in the Philippines and in October 2008, she promoted Clear Shampoo and Conditioner. Both commercials were reportedly aired throughout Southeast Asia. She appeared in a Nike shoe commercial with basketball player LeBron James. In 2010 she made a commercial for the C&A; campaign. In late 2009, it was reported that Scherzinger is working closely with Andrew Lloyd Webber on the Phantom of the Opera sequel, Love Never Dies.

In December 2009, Scherzinger served as a celebrity judge on NBC's reality singing competition, The Sing-Off, along with singer-songwriter Ben Folds and Boyz II Men bandmember Shawn Stockman. The show was hosted by singer Nick Lachey. Scherzinger's role was to critique performances of the competitors and vote on eliminations in all but the final round, which was determined by audience vote. In the show finale, Scherzinger performed "You Don't Own Me" with competition finalists the Beelzebubs of Tufts University. She returned to her role as judge for a second season of The Sing-Off in December 2010.

On March 1, 2010, it was announced that Scherzinger would be a celebrity contestant on Dancing with the Stars for the tenth season and would be partnered with Season 7 Champion Derek Hough. On May 25, 2010 Nicole won Dancing with the Stars season 10. On June 4, 2010, it was announced that Nicole would take on the role of Maureen in the Hollywood Bowl production of the rock musical Rent, directed by Neil Patrick Harris. She played the role from August 6–8, 2010.

On July 1, 2010, MTV reported the media mogal Simon Cowell had hired Scherzinger as a guest judge for season seven of the UK reality TV series The X Factor after regular judge Danni Minogue went on maternity leave. Fellow judge Cheryl Cole had previously said that "Scherzinger doesn't stand out". Then on July 9, 2010, as planned, Scherzinger appeared at the Manchester auditions. According to The Daily Mail she is one of several celebrities being considered for a role on the U.S. version of The X Factor and so the role on the UK version served as an important screen test and opportunity to impress the producers. Following praise from the show's producers, Scherzinger was asked to return as a guest judge after it was discovered that permanent judge Cole had contracted maleria and was unable to film the 'bootcamp' stages of the competition. Scherzinger was the guest judge who was asked to return to fill the week-long role. One of her fellow judges and permanent panel member Louis Walsh praised Scherzinger saying "My favourite though was Nicole who I had never met before. This girl has the X Factor in every way. She just got it, was incredibly impressive and ticked every box." The host of the show, Dermot O'Leary also praised Scherzinger saying she was his favourite guest judge. "She was brilliant, tailor-made for it and hilarious too. We were all stunned by her beauty." Scherzinger left her mark on the competition after she persuaded producers to change the ages of the judging categories. An X Factor spokesman told the media that "At Nicole's suggestion, and agreed by Simon and Louis, the boys' and girls' category age limit has been increased to 28. The judges believe this will strengthen the competition and talent." Additionally it was reported that Scherzinger will be asked to help Cowell or Walsh during the "judges' houses" stages of the competition where each judge is given a category of acts to mentor and then, with the help of other celebrities and musicians, they choose three acts to take through the live finals.

She makes a appearance in the sitcom How I Met Your Mother in the 9th episode of the 6th season as the ex-best-friend of Robin.

She has also recorded a remake of the theme song "GoldenEye", for the 2010 GoldenEye 007 video game. The song plays during the introduction of the video game.

Personal life

She dated actor Talan Torriero from 2005 to 2007. and in 2010 landed at number twenty-four.

Scherzinger has also frequently appeared in FHM Magazine's 100 Sexiest Women poll, ranking at #73 in 2010, #60 in 2009, #49 in 2008, #22 in 2007 and #49 in 2006.

Discography

As a Main artist

{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;" |+ List of singles, with selected chart positions and certifications, showing year released and album name ! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="width:20em;"| Title ! scope="col" rowspan="2"| Year ! scope="col" colspan="9"| Peak chart positions ! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="width:10em;"| Album |- ! scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:90%;"|US ! scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:90%;"|UK ! scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:90%;"|IRE |- ! scope="row"| "Whatever U Like" (featuring T.I.) | rowspan="4"| 2007 | — || — || 57 || — || — || — || — || — || — | rowspan="4"|Her Name Is Nicole | 2011 | — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — |- |colspan="14" | "—" denotes songs which did not chart or were not released in the region. |}

As a featured artist

{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;" |+ List of singles, with selected chart positions and certifications, showing year released and album name ! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="width:20em;"| Title ! scope="col" rowspan="2"| Year ! scope="col" colspan="10"| Peak chart positions ! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="width:12em;" | Certifications ! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="width:10em;"| Album |- ! scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:90%;"|US ! scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:90%;"|UK ! scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:90%;"|CAN ! scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:90%;"|GER ! scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:90%;"|AUT ! scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:90%;"|SWI ! scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:90%;"|NZ ! scope="col" style="width:3em;font-size:90%;"|SWE |- !scope="row"| "Lie About Us"(Avant featuring Nicole Scherzinger) | rowspan="2"|2006 | — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — | — |Director |- !scope="row"| "You Are My Miracle" (Vittorio featuring Nicole Scherzinger) | — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — | — |Vittorio |- !scope="row"| "Come to Me" (Diddy featuring Nicole Scherzinger) | rowspan="2"|2007 | 9 || 4 || — || 11 || 6 || 3 || 8 || 3 || 25 || 44 | — |Press Play |- !scope="row"| "Scream" (Timbaland featuring Keri Hilson & Nicole Scherzinger) | — || 12 || 41 || 20 || 9 || 10 || 18 || 45 || 9 || 8 | — |Shock Value |- !scope="row"| "We Are the World 25 for Haiti" (with Artists for Haiti) | rowspan="2"|2010 | 2 || 50 || 7 || 18 || — || 9 || — || — || 8 || 17 | — | Charity single |- !scope="row"| "Heartbeat" (Enrique Iglesias featuring Nicole Scherzinger) | — || 8 || 72 || 5 || — || 24 || — || — || 9 || 52 | AUS: Platinum |Euphoria |- |colspan="14" | "—" denotes songs which did not chart or were not released in the region. |}

Music videos

{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;" |+ List of music videos with their respective directors ! scope="col" style="width:20em;"| Title ! scope="col"| Year ! scope="col" style="width:12em;"| Director |- !scope="row"| "Lie About Us" (Avant featuring Nicole Scherzinger) | 2006 |Benny Boom |- !scope="row"| "Come to Me" (Diddy featuring Nicole Scherzinger) | rowspan="3"|2007 |Chris Robinson |- !scope="row"| "Whatever U Like" (featuring T.I.) |Ray Kay |- !scope="row"| "Baby Love" (featuring will.i.am) |Francis Lawrence |- !scope="row"| "Scream" (Timbaland featuring Keri Hilson & Nicole Scherzinger) | 2008 |Justin Francis |- !scope="row"| "We Are the World 25 for Haiti" (with Artists for Haiti) | rowspan="3"|2010 |Paul Haggis |- !scope="row"| "Heartbeat"(Enrique Iglesias featuring Nicole Scherzinger) |Hiro Murai |- !scope="row"| "Poison" |Joseph Kahn |}

Album appearances

{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;" |+ List of appearances as a featured artist on album songs ! scope="col" style="width:20em;"| Title ! scope="col"| Year ! scope="col" style="width:20em;"| Album |- ! scope="row"| "Breakfast in Bed" (Listed/Credited as Nicole Kea) | 2004 |50 First Dates Official Soundtrack |- ! scope="row"| "Don't Ask Her That" (Shaggy featuring Nicole Scherzinger) |- ! scope="row"| "Fire" (50 Cent feat. Young Buck & Nicole Scherzinger) | 2007 |Curtis |- ! scope="row"| "Until U Love U" |rowspan="2"|2009 |Doll Domination |- ! scope="row"| Hotel Room Service (Remix) (Pitbull feat. Nicole Scherzinger) |Rebelution |- ! scope="row"| "Baby Can't Drive" (Slash feat. Alice Cooper & Nicole Scherzinger) | 2010 |Slash |}

Awards and nominations

References

;Notes

;References

External links

Category:1978 births Category:1990s singers Category:2000s singers Category:2010s singers Category:Actors from Hawaii Category:Actors from Kentucky Category:American dance musicians Category:American dancers Category:American female singers Category:American film actors Category:American pop singers Category:American rhythm and blues singers Category:American Roman Catholics Category:Dancing with the Stars (US TV series) participants Category:American musicians of Filipino descent Category:American musicians of Russian descent Category:Living people Category:Musicians from Hawaii Category:Native Hawaiian people Category:Participants in American reality television series Category:People from Honolulu, Hawaii Category:People from Louisville, Kentucky Category:People of Native Hawaiian descent Category:Pussycat Dolls members Category:Reality show winners Category:The X Factor judges Category:Wright State University alumni Category:The X Factor (UK)

Name	Martina Topley Bird
Background	solo_singer
Born	May 07, 1975 in Bristol, England
Instrument	Vocals, keyboards
Genre	Pop, trip hop
Label	IndependienteHonest Jon's
Associated acts	TrickyMassive Attack
Url

, Brick Lane, London (photo July 2010)]] Martina Topley Bird (born 7 May 1975) is a British vocalist and songwriter who first gained fame as the featured female vocalist on trip hop pioneer Tricky's debut album Maxinquaye (a printing error credited her as "Martine"). She worked with him on his follow-up albums and, in 2003, released her own solo album Quixotic.

Biography

Topley Bird was educated at Clifton College where she sang in the choir. It was while she was a teenager at the school that she met trip hop pioneer Tricky, who she worked with on his first album Maxinquaye. She continued her collaboration with Tricky on his follow-up albums Nearly God, Pre-Millennium Tension and Angels with Dirty Faces.

Following a falling-out of their professional and personal relationship in 1998, she began pursuing a solo career. It was not until 2003 that she released her debut album, Quixotic (Independiente Records), mainly produced by Topley Bird and production team AMP9 (Alex McGowan, Steve Crittall, Nick Bird) at Space Eko Recording Studios London. Upon its release, it received positive reviews from critics and was a finalist for the 2003 Mercury Music Prize. The song "Sandpaper Kisses" from the album was featured in the video game, Fahrenheit (released in North America as Indigo Prophecy).

The album finally saw a release, of sorts, in the United States in July 2004 when the Palm Pictures label released a re-designed and re-sequenced version with a new title (Anything), a trimmed-down tracklisting and all-new cover art.

The following year she appeared on the Starbucks compilation album, , which features contemporary musicians covering classic love songs. She sang "I Only Have Eyes for You", a song originally by composer Harry Warren and lyricist Al Dubin.

Her second solo album, The Blue God, was released in May 2008. The track "Carnies" was released as the first single on 3 March 2008 and reached No.20 on the UK Indie Charts. "Poison" was released as the second single and reached No.9 on the Indie Charts.

In 2010, Topley Bird appeared on the album Heligoland by Massive Attack, lending her voice on the tracks "Psyche" and "Babel". She also toured with Massive Attack as their support act and providing guest vocals. Topley Bird's third album, Some Place Simple, was released in July 2010. It contains stripped-down versions of songs from her first two releases, along with four new songs.

Discography

Albums

Quixotic (2003, Independiente)

The Blue God (2008, Independiente)

Some Place Simple (2010, Honest Jon's)

Singles

2003 "Need One" — UK #76

2003 "Anything" — UK #95

2003 "I Still Feel"

2004 "Soul Food"

2008 "Carnies"

2008 "Poison"

2008 "Baby Blue"

Collaborations

Topley Bird is credited as a vocalist on "Conversing Among Misfits", a song from 1998 debut (self-titled) album by Earthlings?. Her performance is hard to hear in the final mix however.

In 1999, she contributed vocals to "Dirty Drowning Man" and "Coattails of a Dead Man" on Primus's album Antipop.

In 2000, Topley Bird appeared on David Holmes's album Bow Down to the Exit Sign.

In 2004, Topley Bird appeared on "Into the Sun", a track from Diplo's album Florida.

In 2004, Topley Bird contributed vocals to "Spoiled", on the Blues Explosion's album Damage.

In 2005, she made a guest appearance (alongside Roots Manuva) on the Gorillaz track "All Alone", on the album Demon Days. She also was featured in the unreleased Gorillaz song, "Snakes and Ladders", also with Roots Manuva.

In 2005/2006, Topley Bird sang vocals for "Can't Be Serious" from A Mountain of One's debut 12" EP, later included on the group's 2007 Collected Works compilation.

In 2006, Topley Bird appeared on the song "Devil Take My Soul" on the Son of Dave record 02.

Topley Bird appears on the songs "Why Should I?" and "Deflect" on Leila's 2008 album, Blood, Looms and Blooms. "Deflect" was also the lead track on the pre-album EP Deflect.

She contributes vocals on the Saturnalia album by The Gutter Twins ("The Body") (2008)

In 2008, on her single "Poison", she collaborates again with Roots Manuva and Gorillaz on the B-side track "Soldier Boy".

She makes an appearance on rapper Common's album Universal Mind Control, on a song entitled "Everywhere".

In 2009, she sang and co-wrote "Psyche" and "Babel" by Massive Attack, for their 2010 album Heligoland

Song appearances

"Need One" was used in a television advertisement for Toyota's Corolla Verso in 2004.

"Sandpaper Kisses" appears on the soundtrack of the 2005 videogame Fahrenheit.

In 2007, her song "Da Da Da Da" was used in the film Virgin Territory.

"Need One" was featured in an advertisement for H&M; on Swedish and Dutch television during autumn of 2008.

"Ilya" was used in "Lap Dance", an episode from The L Word's second season.

References

External links

Moon Palace (German fansite)

"Girl interrupted" from The Observer Magazine, 25 May 2003

Anything @ Palm Pictures

Category:Trip hop musicians Category:Living people Category:1975 births Category:Old Cliftonians Category:British pop singers Category:British female singers

Name	Mandy Moore
Alt	Moore smiling faintly at a 2009 concert promoted by Gain Detergent. She wears a dark blazer and a black and white striped blouse, and the word "Gain" is visible in the background.
Background	solo_singer
Birth name	Amanda Leigh Moore
Born	April 10, 1984Nashua, New Hampshire, U.S.
Origin	Orlando, Florida, U.S.
Spouse	Ryan Adams (since 2009)
Genre	Folk, Pop
Occupation	Singer-songwriter, actress, model, fashion designer
Years active	1999–present
Label	Epic, Sire, The Firm Music, EMI, Storefront Recordings, RED Distribution
Url	Official site

Amanda Leigh "Mandy" Moore (born April 10, 1984) is an American singer-songwriter, actress and fashion designer.

Moore became famous as a teenager in the late 1990s, after the release of her teen-oriented pop albums So Real, I Wanna Be with You, and Mandy Moore. Moore subsequently branched out into film, starring in 2002's A Walk to Remember and later in other movies, such as Chasing Liberty, also aimed at teenage audiences. Two of Moore's later films, American Dreamz and Saved!, were satires. Her most recent album, Amanda Leigh, was released on May 26, 2009.

Her private life, including her relationships with tennis player Andy Roddick and with actors Wilmer Valderrama and Zach Braff as well as her marriage to singer Ryan Adams, became the subject of media coverage.

Early life

Moore was born in Nashua, New Hampshire. Her mother, Stacy (née Friedman), is a former news reporter who once worked for the Orlando Sentinel, and her father, Donald "Don" Moore, is a pilot for American Airlines. Moore's father is of Irish and Cherokee descent, and her mother is of half English and half Jewish ancestry. Moore, who has two brothers, Scott and Kyle, grew up in Longwood, Florida, outside of Orlando, where the family moved shortly after her birth because of her father's job as an airline pilot. She was raised Catholic (though she is no longer practicing), and attended Bishop Moore High School, a Catholic school in Orlando, as well as Lake Brantley High School in Altamonte Springs.

Moore's interest in singing grew after seeing the musical Oklahoma! She was also encouraged to perform by her maternal grandmother, who was her inspiration.

Music career

1999–2002

So Real

Moore toured with the Backstreet Boys throughout 1999. Unfortunately for her image, at the time of the album's release, reviewers considered Moore the latest in a series of heavily-marketed female teen singers described as "pop princesses," akin to Christina Aguilera, Britney Spears, and Jessica Simpson. Entertainment Weekly Magazine's review of So Real, written by Elizabeth Vincentelli, accused Moore's songs of revolving around "not-yet-experienced love," of having been performed with "suffocating professionalism," and called the album's ballads "nauseating."

Moore reached mainstream radio later, and at a younger age, than Simpson, Aguilera and Spears had, and she was initially not as successful as they were, although So Real was certified platinum in the U.S. in early 2000 and sold nearly one million copies. Moore's debut teen-oriented pop hit single "Candy," which Yahoo! Movies described as "strangely provocative," charts, and was certified gold.

I Wanna Be With You

Moore released I Wanna Be with You in May 2000. The album, which was mostly completed with synthesizers, bass, guitar, and drums comprised new songs alongside tracks and remixes from So Real. Several reviewers criticized it on the basis that it was a remix album and not a true follow-up, with Allmusic accusing its style of being "trashier, flashier, gaudier, and altogether more disposable" than that of So Real. It peaked at #21 on the Billboard 200, was certified gold in the U.S., selling nearly 1,000,000 copies.

Mandy Moore

In June 2001, Moore released her second full-length album, her third overall, the self-titled album Mandy Moore. She promoted the album with her first headlining concert, "Mandy Moore Live@ShoutBack." The album contained uptempo tracks and influences from Eastern music, and Allmusic was kinder, describing it as a "lush, layered production." It received mixed reviews from other critics. The album debuted at #35 on the Billboard 200, and was later certified gold in the U.S., selling 443,000 copies. The album's follow-up single was titled "Crush." The early 2002 release of the final single, "Cry", tied in with the film A Walk to Remember, Moore's debut as a lead actress.

In 2006, Moore commented on her early albums with ill feelings, noting that although she believed that her first album was appropriate for her age at the time when she released it, she felt it "sucked" and that her first albums were "just awful." during a radio interview in April 2006, the show's co-host—who had seen her comments—asked her for a refund on the first album, a request that Moore fulfilled. which Allmusic characterized as a "leap to musical maturity" and which Entertainment Weekly called an "effort to shed her bubblegum-blond image". The album peaked at #14 on the Billboard 200 (her highest ranking to date);

Due to creative differences between Moore and her label, a split was announced. The company released the hits compilation album The Best of Mandy Moore, which reached #148 on the Billboard 200 in November 2004 as a final obligation to Moore's contract. Another compilation, Candy, followed in 2005. During this time period, the only music Moore had recorded was a song demo, "Hey!", written by James Renald, and a cover version of Lori McKenna's "Beautiful Man".

2007–2009

In early 2006, Moore stated that she missed her music career and that singing is what she was the "most passionate about." and adding that she left Sire Records because she did not want to "follow the mainstream," but rather have "complete control and freedom" over her work. Moore's new album, Wild Hope, was released on June 19, 2007, and includes collaborations with artists Chantal Kreviazuk, Rachael Yamagata, Lori McKenna and The Weepies. Moore stayed alone in a house in Woodstock in Upstate New York while recording the album in late 2006. She performed new material from Wild Hope at the Sundance Film Festival; her first single, "Extraordinary," premiered on her MySpace profile on January 29, 2007. Moore performed the song at the Brick Awards on April 12, 2007 and launched a tour in the summer of 2007.

The album was released in the USA in June 2007 to positive reviews. It fared moderately well on the charts, debuting at number thirty on the Billboard 200 (Moore's third highest charting album in the U.S.), and at number 84 in Canada. In August 2007, Moore toured with Paula Cole, and Rachael Yamagata, playing at mid-size venues in the United States and Canada. Wild Hope was placed at number 10 on Entertainment Weekly's "The Must List" and also named Reader's Choice for that August 10 issue, two months after its release. Moore surprised many with a free concert in Boston on July 18, 2007.

On February 23, 2008, Moore released Wild Hope in Australia, and subsequently toured with Ben Lee and the West Australian Symphony Orchestra in Western Australia, supporting Kelly Clarkson on her tour. In October 2008, Moore posted on her website blog live videos of three new songs she's been working on, along with singer-songwriter, pianist and guitarist Mike Viola. It was at first expected to a be a duo album between the two, but then in January 2009, it was revealed it would be a solo album with a collaboration with him, slated for release in April 2009.

It was announced in February 2009 that the new album was to be released in May 2009, named Amanda Leigh, and be released on a new label called Storefront Recordings. This new label was founded by Moore's long time manager John Leshay. On June 2009, Moore performed 5 tracks of her new Amanda Leigh album, including “Nothing Everything” and “Love To Love Me Back,” at the Walmart Soundcheck show.

In May 2009, she released her latest album, Amanda Leigh, to generally positive reviews. Rolling Stone said about the album: "the title is taken from the singer's real first and middle names, the acoustic instrumentation emits a cozy campfire glow, and the album was recorded in a modest basement home studio. Message: This is real music, not computerized starlet pop." Time Magazine said that the album was "impeccably recorded."

An article on the album by Paper Magazine said, "Mandy (in the album)... shows real thoughtful and emotional depth." Paper concluded that "Moore is a far better musician than she's often given credit for."

Moore has a total of singles sales in Australia of more than 241,000 copies, and was ranked at # 281 on the 1000 artists chart of ARIA Music Decade Charts (1980–2010).

2010-present

On October 25, 2010, in a twitter dialog with WonderwallMSN, Moore stated that she is writing for her next album and hopes to be recording by early next year.

Acting career

2000–2002

During the summer of 2000, Moore hosted a half-hour MTV talk show, The Mandy Moore Show, which was renamed Mandy a year later. Moore was also a Neutrogena spokesperson, appearing in commercials and print ads for the product. and was a spokesperson for the School and Youth Programs of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Her first acting role was in the straight-to-video children's film Magic Al and the Mind Factory in which she plays the character of Brittany Foster.

In 2001, Moore appeared in a small part as the mean and popular cheerleader Lana Thomas opposite actresses Anne Hathaway and Julie Andrews in the film The Princess Diaries. During the film, Moore's character performs "Stupid Cupid," a song from the film's soundtrack. She also had a voiceover role in Dr. Dolittle 2 as the Girl Bear Cub. In 2002, Moore had her first starring role in a major feature film in A Walk to Remember, which co-starred Shane West. Based on the novel by Nicholas Sparks, the film revolved around the developing romance between a Protestant minister's daughter Jamie Sullivan (Moore) and an unruly teenager Landon Carter (West). The film was moderately successful, bringing in $41 million in the United States, and establishing Moore's status as a lead actress. Although the film received mainly negative reviews, Moore received several positive notices for her performance, with critic Roger Ebert calling her "quietly convincing". At that summer's MTV Movie Awards, Moore won an award for "Breakthrough Female Performance" for the role. The same year, she voiced the Final Fantasy VII character Aerith Gainsborough in the Square-Disney crossover video game Kingdom Hearts, was featured in the music video for Elton John's "Original Sin", and was ranked number sixty-seven in Stuff magazine's "102 Sexiest Women in the World".

2003–2005

In 2003, Moore starred in the romantic comedy film How to Deal, which failed to draw in teenage crowds in the U.S. and grossed a total of $14 million domestically. however, Ebert once again singled Moore's performances out, noting in his review of How to Deal that Moore has "an unaffected natural charm" and "almost makes the movie worth seeing," and adding in his Chasing Liberty review that she has "undeniable screen presence and inspires instant affection." Other critics described her as an "actress of limited range," though one review of Chasing Liberty noted that she was the "most painless of former pop princesses." Later in 2004, Moore appeared in a lead role in the religion satire Saved! in which she played Hilary Faye, a proper and popular girl at a Christian school. The film was positively reviewed, though it did not receive a wide release. Moore received praise for her performance, with one critic calling her a "demented delight" and another naming it her best performance to date. She sang a cover version of The Beach Boys 1966 hit "God Only Knows," with Michael Stipe, that bookended the movie.

In 2005, Moore lent her voice to the film Racing Stripes as Sandy the white horse and appeared on the television series Entourage; she was also originally scheduled to star in the films Cursed, Havoc, and The Upside of Anger, all of which were eventually released in 2005 without Moore's involvement.

Moore also appeared in the film American Dreamz, which was released in April 2006. In the film, she played a deranged contestant on a television series modeled after American Idol. Director Paul Weitz stated that he had Moore in mind for the role before she was cast, explaining that "there's something inherently sweet about Mandy; it makes it all the more interesting to see her in a villainess role". Moore has said that she enjoys playing mean-spirited characters but fears being typecast as a villain. American Dreamz opened at number nine at the U.S. box office, eventually totaling barely $7 million, and received mixed reviews; critic Owen Gleiberman of Entertainment Weekly, however, wrote that Moore and co-star Hugh Grant have a "wicked barbed chemistry" in their roles, while Variety''s Robert Koehler said Moore's role was a "pitch-perfect study of a woman for whom a reality show is reality".

Later that year, in what ComingSoon.net's review described as a "surprisingly good performance", Moore voiced Nita, the heroine of the Disney animated sequel Brother Bear 2, which was released directly-to-DVD on August 29. She was also originally cast to appear in that year's ensemble film Bobby, but was replaced by Mary Elizabeth Winstead.

Moore, citing her conservative upbringing, has expressed dissatisfaction with her appearance on a May 2006 cover of Cosmopolitan; the magazine's headline is "orgasms unlimited", which refers to an article unrelated to her. In her movie following this, Because I Said So, co-starring Gabriel Macht, Lauren Graham and Diane Keaton, Moore's character describes in detail the feeling of an orgasm to her mother. It was released on February 2, 2007 and received mixed reviews. In License to Wed, Moore portrays a young bride-to-be who has to complete a three-week prenup course before her wedding. Co-starring John Krasinski as her fiance and Robin Williams as a priest, the film was released on July 3, 2007 to mostly negative reviews. Nevertheless, Variety described Moore's performance as "appealing." In 2007, Moore returned to the small screen in an episode of How I Met Your Mother entitled "Wait for It".

2009-2010

After a break of almost two years from big screen roles, Moore filmed the romantic comedy Swinging with the Finkels in the United Kingdom in 2009; the film is due for release in 2010. She was a guest star on the sixth season finale of Grey's Anatomy on May 20, 2010, her first television role since 2007. She returned in a guest role for an episode of the show's seventh season. Also that year, Moore voiced Princess Rapunzel, the tenth Disney Princess, in the CGI animated film Tangled. As of October 2010, her movies have grossed a total of $220,701,061 domestically.

Moore will star with actor Kellan Lutz in the film, First Love, Then Marriage.

Fashion career

Moore branched into the fashion world in 2005 with her own fashion line named Mblem., a brand of contemporary knitwear and cashmere. The line was sold in over 500 specialty boutiques including Ron Herman and Lisa Kline and in some department stores such as Macy's West, Bloomingdales and Nordstrom. One of her aims was to provide clothing for taller women (Moore herself is 5'10). In February 2009, Moore announced that the line would be shutting down, but that she hoped to reenter the fashion world again under different circumstances in the future.

Philanthropy

According to a press release from her own official website, Moore was involved in teaming up with nonprofit organization PSI, and its subsidiary, Five and Alive, in fighting malaria in Africa.

According to USA Today, Moore was also involved in serving as the Honorary Chairperson of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's division on awareness for youth. She served as a spokesperson by helping young people be aware of the seriousness of leukemia and lymphoma. She also serves as the spokesperson for Cervical Cancer Awareness Month, held every January. In addition, to increase cervical cancer awareness, Moore teamed up with Dr. Yvonne Collins, The Gynecologic Cancer Foundation (GCF), and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK).

Personal life

Moore dated Philippines-born singer/actor Billy Crawford for a "few months" when she was younger.

Moore dated actor Wilmer Valderrama for eighteen months between 2000 and 2002. In 2006, Valderrama appeared on The Howard Stern Show and detailed that he and Moore were each other's "first loves" Moore later referred to Valderrama as a "good guy" and a "gentleman"

In early 2007, media reports linked Moore to Adam Goldstein, known professionally as "DJ AM" though the two were reported to have ended their relationship in March 2007.

Also in 2007, she briefly dated actor/singer Greg Laswell.

Moore got engaged to singer-songwriter and New York resident Ryan Adams, formerly of the alt-country band Whiskeytown; they announced their engagement on February 11, 2009 and married on March 10, 2009, in Savannah, Georgia. The couple share a Terrier-mix dog named Joni (named after Moore's favourite singer Joni Mitchell) whom Moore adopted from an animal shelter in 2008.

Moore's favorite musicians include Elton John, Switchfoot, Weezer, and Bette Midler;

Moore has also become a fan of mixed martial arts, often attending UFC events and being noted as one of the mainstream celebrities on hand. When shown at UFC 83, from Montreal, Quebec, color commentator Joe Rogan jokingly referred to her as a "UFC groupie". She was next seen at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on May 24, 2008 for UFC 84, with play-by-play announcer Mike Goldberg observing that "She's becoming a UFC regular." She appeared at the Mandalay Bay Events Center on July 6, 2008 for UFC 86, cheering for light heavyweight contender Forrest Griffin and most recently at on July 19, 2008.

As to her religious beliefs, Moore considers herself spiritual, and has said that she does not think of herself as Christian.

Discography

Studio albums

So Real (1999)

I Wanna Be with You (2000)

Mandy Moore (2001)

Coverage (2003)

Wild Hope (2007)

Amanda Leigh (2009)

Compilations

The Best of Mandy Moore (2004)

Candy (2005)

Super Hits (2008)

DVDs

Mandy Moore - The Real Story (2001)

Coverage Bonus DVD (2003)

The Best of Mandy Moore (2004)

Filmography

References

External links

Category:1984 births Category:Living people Category:Actors from Florida Category:Actors from New Hampshire Category:American child actors Category:American child singers Category:American female singers Category:American film actors Category:American folk singers Category:American musicians of Irish descent Category:American musicians of English descent Category:American people of Cherokee descent Category:American actors of English descent Category:American people of Irish descent Category:American people of Jewish descent Category:American pop singers Category:American singer-songwriters Category:American voice actors Category:Christians of Jewish descent Category:Native American actors Category:Native American musicians Category:People from Nashua, New Hampshire Category:People from Orlando, Florida

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

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

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

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

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

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

Music career

2005–07: Alright, Still

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

2008–09: It's Not Me, It's You

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

2010–present: Musical hiatus

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

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

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

Collaborations and other music

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

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

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

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

Touring

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

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

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

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

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

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

Other work

Acting career

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

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

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

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

Fashion career

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

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

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

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

Philanthropy

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

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

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

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

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

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

Image and personal life

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

Allen supports Fulham Football Club.

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

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

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

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

Relationships

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

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

Reception

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

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

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

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

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

Discography

Alright, Still (2006)

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

See also

List of awards and nominations received by Lily Allen

References

External links

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

Name	Jakob Dylan
Background	solo_singer
Born	December 09, 1969
Origin	New York City, New York, United States
Instrument	Guitar, piano
Genre	Alternative rock
Occupation	Singer-songwriter
Years active	1987–present
Label	Columbia
Url

Jakob Luke Dylan (born December 9, 1969 in New York City) is the lead singer and songwriter of the rock band The Wallflowers and is a son of singer-songwriter Bob Dylan. He has also recorded two solo albums.

Personal life

Dylan is the youngest of four children born to singer-songwriter Bob Dylan and ex-wife Sara Dylan. He married his childhood sweetheart, Nicole Paige Denny (now former actress Paige Dylan), in a ceremony at Sara Dylan's house in 1992. Dylan and his family reside in Los Angeles; they have four sons. Jakob is very private about his personal life and has never revealed his children's names in an interview or released pictures of them.

The Wallflowers

The Wallflowers started out playing alongside other aspiring rockers at Canter's delicatessen in the Fairfax District of Los Angeles in 1989. The band signed to Virgin Records and made a self-titled album, the cover of which had a picture of all the band members' feet, and drummer Peter Yanowitz's dog.

The debut sold poorly however, and after they were released from Virgin Records, the band regrouped. They toured with 10,000 Maniacs, Toad The Wet Sprocket, Cracker, and The Spin Doctors, and gained and lost several band members along the way. With the help of their manager Andrew Slater, the band secured a new major label record deal with Interscope Records.

Their 1996 album Bringing Down the Horse, recorded with producer T-Bone Burnett (and including collaborations with Michael Penn, Adam Duritz, Mike Campbell, Don Heffington of Lone Justice, and Sam Phillips), yielded several singles, including "6th Avenue Heartache" and "One Headlight". The album sold over six million copies worldwide. Burnett stated at the time: "As far as Jakob is concerned, I can't imagine having larger footsteps to follow in. But Jakob's character is clearly defined and he handles success with grace, which also says a lot about Bob as a father." Burnett went on to state that the success of Bringing Down the Horse had nothing to do with the family name: "I don't think Jakob sold a single record because he is Bob's son. I think he sold a lot of records because "One Headlight" is a very good song. I wonder how many Wallflowers fans even know who Bob Dylan is." The Wallflowers won two Grammy Awards, for Best Rock Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group and Best Rock Song. "One Headlight" also won the VH-1 Video of the Year for 1997.

As of 2007, The Wallflowers have recorded five albums.

In the fall of 2007 The Wallflowers performed live for the first time in more than two years. They did a brief tour including dates on the East Coast in October and the mid-west in November. This tour included Jakob Dylan (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), Stuart Mathis (lead guitar), Greg Richling (Bass), and Fred Eltringham (drums). In September 2007 the band announced on their official website that band member Rami Jaffee had left the group. The band played additional dates in southern California in February 2008, some east coast shows in April 2008, and several festival shows in the summer 2008 (OC Fair, South Carolina Balloon Festival, Deadwood Jam, among others). In some of these shows, they played as a three-some, in other shows multi-instrumentalist Ben Peeler joined The Wallflowers.

Solo career

(August 2, 2008)]]

On September 20, 2006 it was announced by Billboard that Dylan had signed a new recording contract with Columbia Records. The Wallflowers' current situation has remained unknown since their recording contract with Interscope Records ended in 2005.

Dylan wrote and recorded "Here Comes Now" as the theme song for the U.S. television show Six Degrees, which premiered on September 21, 2006. His song "Stardust Universe" premiered on Jericho on October 25, 2006.

A cover of The Band's "Whispering Pines" appears on the tribute CD Endless Highway  — The music of The Band, which was released late January 2007. Dylan also contributed backing vocals to the track, "Black Haired Girl," on Jesse Malin's 2007 album, Glitter in the Gutter.

Dylan collaborated with Dhani Harrison on the John Lennon song, "Gimme Some Truth," for Lennon's tribute album, "", which was released on June 12, 2007. As of early 2007, Jakob Dylan had performed with his father only once, at a corporate gig for semiconductor company Applied Materials on November 14, 1997, although they played the same show, they did not play together.

Jakob Dylan is also featured on the Court Yard Hounds (2 members of the Dixie Chicks) album. He sings background vocals on the song “See You in the Spring.” He joined them on stage at two SXSW performances for that song. At one performance they all performed Rod Stewart's "You Wear It Well."

In May 2010, the second volume of a soundtrack for the HBO Series True Blood was released. Dylan's song, "Ain't No Invisible Man" premiered on that soundtrack.

Seeing Things

In early September 2007, The New York Times reported Dylan was working on his first solo album in a house in Hollywood Hills owned by famed record producer Rick Rubin. Rubin is also listed as the producer of the album. The album is called Seeing Things and was released on June 10, 2008. The mostly acoustic album contains 10 tracks.

In the spring of 2008 a series of tour announcements were made that Dylan would be performing with his touring band The Gold Mountain Rebels at Bonnaroo, at the new Rothbury Music Festival, in Rothbury, Michigan, Summerfest in Milwaukee, the Newport Folk Festival, and the Austin City Limits Festival. A number of tour dates in the south, east, and mid-west were also confirmed. He played on Late Show with David Letterman show in June 2008, the Tonight Show with Jay Leno in July 2008, The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson in August 2008, and Late Night with Conan O'Brien in September 2008, and taped performances for a number of folk radio programs that aired throughout the summer. On the Conan performance, Dylan performed "War Is Kind" with Norah Jones. Jakob Dylan and the Gold Mountain Rebels did a 10-day tour in Europe opening for Eric Clapton in mid-August, and some shows in August and September opening for Willie Nelson at FarmAid in the U.S. In October he did a ten day tour in Europe playing shows in Germany and the UK. On October 21, he appeared in the UK on BBC2's Later... with Jools Holland. During the show he sang "Evil Is Alive And Well" and "Something Good This Way Comes". This was the first time that Dylan performed solo on television. During the week of October 25, Dylan appeared with the Gold Mountain Rebels on PBS' Austin City Limits. On the television show NCIS, Dylan performed a song called "No Matter What" and it is featured on .

Women and Country

On January 28, 2010, Dylan announced that his second solo album, Women and Country would be released on April 6, 2010. The album, produced by T Bone Burnett, would have 11 tracks with 8 featuring background vocals from Neko Case and Kelly Hogan.

Beginning March 2010, Dylan did a series of public performances. He was accompanied by Neko Case and Kelly Hogan on background vocals and members of Case's band, musicians Paul Rigby, Jon Rauhouse, Tom Ray, and Barry Mirochnick. Case, Hogan, and the musicians took the name 'Three Legs' for the 'Women + Country' tour. On April 2, 2010, they performed a "Tiny Desk Concert" for NPR's All Songs Considered, and appeared on the April 3 episode of Weekend Edition with Scott Simon. Dylan also performed on a number of television shows during the spring and summer 2010. On April 1, he was interviewed by Tavis Smiley on his PBS show (no performance). He performed "Nothing But The Whole Wide World" on Letterman on April 21, and Craig Ferguson on May 18, and "Everybody's Hurting" on Leno on May 13. Dylan also performed on national radio shows that were broadcast on the internet including etown, Woodsongs, and Daytrotter. They recorded some songs at Rolling Stone Magazine, who archived the songs online. They performed "Nothing But The Whole Wide World, "Holy Rollers For Love," and "They've Trapped Us Boys.".

Jakob Dylan and Three Legs performed concerts in mostly eastern and midwestern states in April and May 2010. They did a second leg of the tour in June and July 2010 that included some states in the west, (Oregon, Idaho, Utah, New Mexico, Colorado) the mid-west (Illinois and Ohio) and east (Pennsylvania, Connecticut, New York). They toured the UK with stops in London, Glasgow, and Dublin in late July 2010. This second leg of the tour involved the same musicians, but Nora O'Connor replaced Case on background vocals. Dylan started singing a previously unreleased song, "Down In A Hole" in the encore of most of these shows. On July 9, Dylan and Three Legs played the Bearsville Theatre in Woodstock, New York. In the encore, Garth Hudson from The Band, joined them on stage for several songs. A video of them playing Dylan's "On Up The Mountain" (from 2008's Seeing Things) was captured by a fan.

Dylan & Three Legs performed at numerous Music Festivals during the summer and fall of 2010, including Maine's Nateva Music Festival (July 2), headlining the Main Stage at the 6th Annual Pleasantville (NY) Music Festival (July 10), Port Eliot Festival, Cornwall, UK (July 24), the Luna Lunera Festival in Spain (July 30), Quebec's Festivent (August 5), Edmonton's Folk Festival (August 8), KMTT's Music Festival in Seattle (August 14), and on Halloween weekend, Dylan is scheduled to perform at the VooDoo Experience Music Festival. On October 29, 2010, Dylan and Three Legs taped an episode of "Sun Studio Sessions" in Memphis, Tennessee, expected to air in early 2011 on PBS affiliates. A series of shows scheduled the week before the VooDoo festival included a three-night artist in residence at New York City's City Winery, a show in Atlanta, and a show in Nashville.

Discography

Studio albums

References

External links

Official The Wallflowers website

Jakob Dylan PR in Ireland

Current-

Category:1969 births Category:Living people Category:Bob Dylan Category:American rock singers Category:American male singers Category:American rock guitarists Category:American singer-songwriters Category:American singers Category:People from New York City Category:Musicians from New York Category:Grammy Award winners

Florin Stoian (b. 1979, Bucharest), better known under the stage name of Florin Salam and (previously) Florin Fermecătoru, is a Romani (Gypsy) singer of manele from Romania. He is one of the best known and appreciated manele performers.

Stoian has been singing since he was a child; his first contact with music took place at age of four. His father and uncle were well-known lăutari. He debuted in 2002 with help from bandleader Dan Bursuc. His first hit single was "Ce gagică şmecherită" (Romanian: "Such a picky chick"). He played an important part when the smash hit "Of, viaţa mea" (Romanian: "Oh, my life") was released in 2000, sung by Adrian Minune and Costi Ioniţă. In 2002 Florin Stoian changed his stage name from Fermecătoru (Romanian: "The Glamorous") to Salam (Arabian: "peace", cf. Hebrew "shalom").

In 2008 he performed a song together with pop singer Paula Seling and the Bucharest Symphonic Orchestra. The show host described their performance as a reconciliation between manele and mainstream pop music; in the same respect, the song's lyrics raised the problem of ethnic intolerance.

Florin Stoian is the vice-president of Asociaţia Artiştilor, Muzicanţilor şi Lăutarilor Romi din România (Romanian: "The association of Romani artists, musicians and lăutari from Romania".) In December 2005 he was announced the best manele performer of the year. According to the daily paper Libertatea, politician Mădălin Voicu and footballer Marius Niculae count among his fans.

Florin's parents are Maria and Robert Stoian. In September 2007 he married Ştefania Victoria, his first wife according to the Romani law; the best man was manele singer Adrian Minune. The wedding took place in the Anatolia Resort (Turkey.) The couple gave birth to two children. On April 12, 2009, Ştefania (aged 27) died from hepatic cirrhosis.

References

Florin Salam at starmania.ro

Florin Salam Bio

Salam Fermecatorul at libertatea.ro

Category:1979 births Category:Living people Category:Romanian Romani people Category:Romanian manele singers Category:Romani musicians Category:Romanian musicians Category:Lăutari and lăutărească music