EL, El or el may refer to:

El (deity), a Semitic word for "God"; also a senior god mentioned in the Ugarit and Ebla texts found in ancient Syria.

El (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic alphabet

EL (Rapper) a famous Ghanaian Rapper and Sound Engineer

El (letter), the letter L

''El'' (hentai), an h game by ELF Corporation

''Él'' (film), a 1953 film by Luis Buñuel

''El'' (album), an album by Lucero

El, family name of Kal-El (Superman) and his father Jor-El in ''Superman''

Acura EL, an automobile

El (crater), a crater on Ganymede

El (Shugo Chara!), a character from the manga series ''Shugo Chara!'' by Peach-Pit

el (street art), a street artist working internationally on major campaigns using stickers, photography, silkscreen, sewing, and literary techniques.

Abbreviations[link]

Sports[link]

UEFA Europa League, (formerly the UEFA Cup) is a competition for eligible European football clubs.

Euroleague Basketball, highest level tier and most important professional club basketball competition in Europe.

Eastern League (U.S. baseball), a Class AA League in Minor League Baseball

Fiction[link]

El rune, a rune in the video game ''Diablo II: Lord of Destruction''

Eternal Lands, an MMORPG video game

El, the main character of Robert Rodriguiez's ''Mariachi Trilogy''

Elfen Lied, an Anime series

Electronics[link]

Electroluminescence (EL)

Electroluminescent display, a display made with electroluminescent material

Computing[link]

Expression Language, a feature of the JavaServer Pages software technology

Enciclopedia Libre, a spin-off project of the Spanish Wikipedia

.el, a computer file extension used for Emacs Lisp source code

Transportation[link]

Air Nippon's IATA code

Erie Lackawanna Railway's reporting mark

El, nickname of elevated rapid transit systems:

* Market-Frankford Line, in Philadelphia

* Chicago 'L' rapid transit system (part of the system is elevated)

Other[link]

Electrum (El), an alloy of gold and silver

Equilibrium level, the height in the atmosphere where unstable air becomes stable

European Left, a political party at European level

Everyman's Library, a series of reprinted classic literature

Greek language's ISO 639 language code

EL, an abbreviation for Tablespoon in German (:de:Esslöffel)

See also[link]

El Gordo (disambiguation)

Ell (disambiguation)

Elle (disambiguation)

Elf (disambiguation)

bg:Ел (пояснение) cs:EL da:El de:EL el:EL es:El (desambiguación) eo:El fr:EL ko:EL it:EL sw:EL lt:EL nl:El ja:EL no:EL pt:EL ro:EL sk:El fi:El sv:EL tl:El

name	Amy Grant
background	solo_singer
birth name	Amy Lee Grant
birth date	November 25, 1960
birth place	Augusta, Georgia,
origin	Nashville, Tennessee
occupation	Singer-songwriter, musician, author, actress
genre	Contemporary Christian, pop rock, soft rock
years active	1976–present
instrument	Vocals, guitar, piano/keyboard
label	Myrrh, A&M;, Word, Sparrow
website
associated acts	Vince Gill, Gary Chapman, Michael W. Smith }}

Amy Lee Grant (born November 25, 1960) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, author, media personality and actress, best known for her Christian music. She has been referred to as "The Queen of Christian Pop". As of 2009, Grant remains the best-selling contemporary Christian music singer ever, having sold over 30 million units worldwide.

Grant made her debut as a teenager, and gained fame in Christian music during the 1980s with such hits as "Father's Eyes," "El Shaddai", and "Angels". In 1986, she scored her first Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 song in a duet with Peter Cetera The Next Time I Fall. During the 1980s and 1990s, she became one of the first gospel artists to cross over into mainstream pop on the heels of her successful albums ''Unguarded'' and ''Heart in Motion'', the latter of which included the No. 1 single "Baby Baby."

Grant has won six Grammy Awards, 25 Gospel Music Association Dove Awards, and had the first Christian album ever to go Platinum. ''Heart in Motion'' is her highest-selling album, with over five million copies sold in the United States alone. She was honored with a star on Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2005 for her contributions to the entertainment industry.

Biography[link]

Early years[link]

Grant (born in Augusta, Georgia) is the youngest of four sisters. She and her family settled in Nashville, Tennessee in 1967.

During 1976, Grant wrote her first song ("Mountain Man"), performed in public for the first time—at Harpeth Hall School—the all-girls school she attended, recorded a demo tape for her parents with church youth-leader Brown Bannister, then later when Bannister was dubbing a copy of the tape, Chris Christian, the owner of the recording studio, heard the demo and called Word Records. He played it over the phone, and she was offered a recording contract, five weeks before her 16th birthday. In 1977, she recorded her first album titled ''Amy Grant'', produced by Brown Bannister (who would also produce her next 11 albums). It was released in the Spring of 1978, one month before her high school graduation. That fall she performed her first ticketed concert—in Fort Worth, Texas—after beginning her freshman year at Furman University. In May 1979, while at the album release party for her second album, ''My Father's Eyes'', Grant met Gary Chapman, writer of the title track (and future husband). Grant & Chapman toured together the summer of 1979. In the fall of 1980, she transferred to Vanderbilt University, where she was a member of the sorority Kappa Alpha Theta. Grant then made a few more albums before dropping out of college to pursue a career in music—''Never Alone'', followed by a pair of live albums in 1981 (''In Concert'' and ''In Concert Volume Two''), both backed by an augmented edition of the DeGarmo & Key band. It was during these early shows that Grant also established one of her concert trademarks: performing barefoot. To date, Grant continues to take off her shoes midway through performances, as she has said "it is just more comfortable."

1982 saw the release of her breakthrough album ''Age to Age''. The album contains the signature track, "El Shaddai" (written by Michael Card) and the Grant-Chapman penned song, "In a Little While". "El Shaddai" was later awarded one of the "Songs of the Century" by the RIAA in 2001. Grant received her first Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Gospel Performance, as well as two GMA Dove Awards for Gospel Artist of the Year and Pop/Contemporary Album of the Year. ''Age to Age'' became the first Christian album by a solo artist to be certified gold (1983) and the first Christian album to be certified platinum (1985).

In the mid-1980s, Grant began touring and recording with young up-and-coming songwriter Michael W. Smith. Grant and Smith continue to have a strong friendship and creative relationship, often writing songs for or contributing vocals to each other's albums. During the 1980s, Grant was also a backup singer for Bill Gaither.

Grant followed up this album with the first of her Christmas albums—albums that later would be the basis for her holiday shows. In 1984, she released another pop-oriented Christian hit, ''Straight Ahead'', earning Grant her first appearance at the Grammy Awards show in 1985. The head of NBC took notice of Grant's performance and called her manager to book her for her own Christmas special.

Widening audience[link]

Hardly had Grant established herself as the "Queen of Christian Pop" when she changed directions to widen her fan base (and hence her musical message). Her goal was to become the first Christian singer-songwriter who was also successful as a contemporary pop singer. ''Unguarded'' (1985) surprised some fans for its very mainstream sound (and Grant's leopard-print jacket, in four poses for four different covers). "Find a Way", from ''Unguarded'', became the first Christian song to hit Billboard's Top 40 list, also reaching No. 7 on the Adult Contemporary chart. Amy Grant scored her first Billboard No. 1 song in 1986 with "The Next Time I Fall", a duet with former Chicago singer/bassist Peter Cetera. That year, she also recorded a duet with singer Randy Stonehill for his ''Love Beyond Reason'' album, entitled "I Could Never Say Goodbye", and recorded ''The Animals' Christmas'' with Art Garfunkel.

''Lead Me On'' (1988) contained many songs that were about Christianity and love relationships, but some interpreted it as not being an obviously "Christian" record. Years later, ''Lead Me On'' would be chosen as the greatest Contemporary Christian album of all time by ''CCM Magazine''. The mainstream song "Saved by Love" was a minor hit, receiving airplay on radio stations featuring the newly emerging Adult Contemporary format. The album's title song received some pop radio airplay and crossed over to No. 96 on the Billboard Hot 100, and "1974 (We Were Young)" and "Saved By Love" also charted as Adult Contemporary songs. In 1989 she appeared in a Target ad campaign, performing songs off the album.

In the mainstream[link]

When ''Heart in Motion'' was released in 1991, many fans were surprised that the album was so clearly one of contemporary pop music. Grant's desire to widen her audience was frowned upon by the confines of the popular definitions of ministry at the time. The track "Baby Baby" (written for Grant's newborn daughter, Millie, whose "six-week-old face was my inspiration,") became a pop hit (hitting No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100), and Grant was established as a name in the mainstream music world. "Baby Baby" received Grammy nominations for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance, and Record and Song of the Year (although it failed to win in any of those categories). Four other hits from the album made the Pop top 20: "Every Heartbeat" (No. 2), "That's What Love Is For" (No. 7), "Good For Me" (No. 8), and "I Will Remember You" (No. 20). On the Adult Contemporary chart, all five songs were top 10 hits, with two of the five ("Baby Baby" and "That's What Love Is For") reaching No. 1. Many Christian fans remained loyal, putting the album atop Billboard's Contemporary Christian Chart for 32 weeks. ''Heart in Motion'' is Grant's best-selling album, having sold over 5 million copies according to the RIAA. Grant followed the album with her second Christmas album, ''Home For Christmas'' in 1992, which included the song "Breath of Heaven (Mary's Song)", written by Chris Eaton and Grant, and would later be covered by many artists, including Donna Summer, Jessica Simpson (who acknowledged Grant as one of her favorite artists), Vince Gill, Sara Groves, Point of Grace, and Broadway star Barbara Cook.

''House of Love'' in 1994 continued in the same vein, boasting catchy pop songs mingled with spiritual lyrics. The album was a multi-platinum success and produced the pop hit "Lucky One" (No. 18 pop and No. 2 AC; No. 1 on Radio & Records) as well as the title track (a duet with country music star and future husband Vince Gill) (No. 37 pop) and a cover of Joni Mitchell's frequently covered "Big Yellow Taxi" (No. 67 pop) (in which she changed the line "And they charged the people ''a dollar and a half'' just to see em" to "And then they charged the people ''25 bucks'' just to see em").

Grant participated in Lifetime's 1st Annual "Girls & Guitars" benefit, singing numerous songs, including a duet with Melissa Etheridge on "You Can Sleep While I Drive".

After she covered the 10cc song "The Things We Do For Love" for the ''Mr. Wrong'' soundtrack, ''Behind the Eyes'' was released in September 1997. The album struck a much darker note, leaning more towards downtempo, acoustic soft-rock songs, with more mature (yet still optimistic) lyrics. She called it her "razor blades and Prozac" album. Although "Takes A Little Time" was a moderate hit single, the album failed to sell like the previous two albums, which had both gone multi-platinum. ''Behind The Eyes'' was eventually certified Gold by the RIAA. The video for "Takes A Little Time" was a new direction for Grant; with a blue light filter, acoustic guitar, the streets and characters of New York City, and a plot, Grant was re-cast as an adult light rocker. She followed up "Behind The Eyes" with ''A Christmas To Remember'', her third Christmas album, in 1999. The album was certified Gold in 2000.

In 2001, Grant sang God Bless America in front of a sellout crowd at the Owen County Fair Grounds in Spencer, Indiana. She dedicated her performance to the victims of 9/11, and officially started the Demolition Derby. Following the 9/11 attacks, Grant's "I Will Remember You" saw a resurgence in popularity as many radio DJs mixed a special tribute version of the song. That same year, Grant won $125,000 for charity on the "Rock Star Edition" of "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire".

Return to gospel[link]

Grant returned to her gospel music roots with the 2002 release of ''Legacy... Hymns and Faith''. The album featured a Vince Gill-influenced mix of bluegrass and gospel and marked Grant's 25th anniversary in the music industry. Grant followed this up with the pop release ''Simple Things'' in 2003. The album did not have the success of her previous pop or gospel efforts. However, soon after ''Simple Things'', Grant and Interscope/A&M; parted ways. The same year, Grant was inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame by the Gospel Music Association, an industry trade organization of which she is a longstanding member, in her first year of eligibility. Grant released a sequel to her hymns collection in 2005 titled ''Rock of Ages... Hymns & Faith''.

Looking ahead[link]

Although neither of her latest hymn releases have captured the popularity of her previous gospel career, Grant still remains a popular concert draw and enjoys popularity amongst both fan bases. For years in the 1990s and early 2000s, she toured in November and December for her Christmas and holiday tours. Often her husband and many special guests performed along with her on stage.

Grant joined the reality television phenomenon by hosting ''Three Wishes'', a show in which she and a team of helpers make wishes come true for small-town residents. The show debuted on NBC in the fall of 2005 and was canceled at the end of its first season because of high production costs. After ''Three Wishes'' was canceled, Grant won her 6th Grammy Award for ''Rock of Ages... Hymns & Faith''. In a February 2006 webchat, Amy stated she believes her "best music is still ahead".

In April 2006, a live CD/DVD entitled ''Time Again...Amy Grant Live'' was recorded in Fort Worth, Texas, at Bass Performance Hall. (Grant's first paid public performance was at the Will Rogers Auditorium in Fort Worth, TX.) The concert was released on September 26, 2006. In addition to receiving a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, media appearances included write-ups in ''CCM Magazine'', and a performance on The View.

In a February 2007 web chat on her web site, Amy discussed a book she was working on entitled ''Mosaic: Pieces of My Life So Far'': "It's not an autobiography, but more a collection of memories, song lyrics, poetry and a few pictures." The book was released on October 16, 2007. In November, it debuted at No. 35 on the New York Times Best Seller list. In the same web chat, Amy noted that she is "anxious to get back in the studio after the book is finished, and reinvent myself as an almost-50 performing woman."

2007 was Grant's 30th year in music. She left Word/Warner, and contracted with EMI CMG who re-released her regular studio albums as remastered versions on August 14, 2007. Marking the start of Grant's new contract is a career-spanning greatest hits album, with all the songs digitally remastered. The album was released as both a single-disc CD edition, and a 2-Disc CD/DVD Special Edition, the DVD featuring music videos and interviews.

Grant appeared with Gill on ''The Oprah Winfrey Show'' for a holiday special in December 2007. Grant has plans to appear on CMT, a Food Network special, the Gospel Music Channel, and The Hour of Power.

In February 2008, Grant joined the writing team from Compassionart as a guest vocalist at the Abbey Road studios, London, to record a song called "Highly Favoured", which was included on the album ''CompassionArt''.

On June 24, 2008, Grant re-released her 1988 album, ''Lead Me On'', in honor of its 20th anniversary. The two-disc release includes the original album and a second disc with new acoustic recordings, live performances from 1989, and interviews with Amy. Grant recreated the ''Lead Me On'' tour in the fall of 2008.

On June 27, 2008, Grant surprised everyone at the Creation Northeast Festival by being the special guest. She performed "Lead Me On" and a few other songs backed with the Hawk Nelson band. At the end of the concert, Grant returned to the stage and sang "Thy Word". She appeared on the 2008 album ''Anne Murray Duets: Friends & Legends'' singing "Could I Have This Dance".

In May 2009 for Mother's Day, Amy released an EP on iTunes containing two new songs, "She Colors My Day," and "Unafraid," as well as the older songs "Baby Baby" and "Oh How The Years Go By."

During Disney's D23 Expo in September 2009, Imagineer Steven Davison announced Amy Grant as the "signature voice" for the ''World of Color'' hydrotechnic show at Disney's California Adventure theme park.

In 2010, Grant released ''Somewhere Down the Road'', featuring the hit single "Better Than a Hallelujah", which peaked at No. 8 on Billboard's Top Christian Songs chart. When asked about the new album during an interview with CBN.com, Grant says, "...my hope is just for those songs to provide companionship, remind myself and whoever else is listening what’s important. I feel like songs have the ability to connect us to ourselves and to each other, and to our faith, to the love of Jesus, in a way that conversation doesn’t do. Songs kind of slip in and move you before you realize it."

Personal life[link]

Grant married fellow Christian musician Gary Chapman on June 19, 1982. Their marriage produced three children: Matthew Garrison Chapman (born 1987), Gloria Mills Chapman (called "Millie", born 1989), and Sarah Cannon Chapman (born 1992), who was named after country legend Minnie Pearl, a family friend. (Pearl's real name was Sarah Ophelia Colley Cannon.) Citing "irreconcilable differences", Grant filed for divorce from Chapman in March 1999, and the divorce was final in June 1999.

On March 10, 2000, Grant married Vince Gill, who had been previously married to country singer Janis Oliver of Sweethearts of the Rodeo. Grant and Gill have a daughter together, Corinna Grant Gill, born March 12, 2001.

In the December 1999 ''Baptist Standard'', Grant explained why she left Chapman and married Gill:

"I didn't get a divorce because I had a great marriage and then along came Vince Gill. Gary and I had a rocky road from day one. I think what was so hard—and this is (what) one of our counselors said—sometimes an innocent party can come into a situation, and they're like a big spotlight. What they do is reveal, by comparison, the painful dynamics that are already in existence."

Public views and perception[link]

Among praise for her contributions to the Contemporary Christian genre, Amy Grant has also generated controversy within the Christian community, from "complaints that she was too worldly and too sexy" to a "barrage of condemnation" following her divorce and remarriage.

In an interview early in her career, Grant stated, "I have a healthy sense of right and wrong, but sometimes, for example, using foul, exclamation-point words among friends can be good for a laugh." Within the same article, Grant expressed an opinion that those most opposed to premarital sex and rock music often base their views in part on having experienced emotional distress. "'It seems to me,' she says as an after-thought, 'that people who are most adamantly against premarital sex have experienced some kind of pain in their own lives. Like the people who say absolutely no to rock 'n' roll. Chances are it has something to do with a past sadness."

Discography[link]

Studio Albums[link]

1977: ''Amy Grant''

1979: ''My Father's Eyes''

1980: ''Never Alone''

1982: ''Age to Age''

1984: ''Straight Ahead''

1985: ''Unguarded''

1988: ''Lead Me On''

1991: ''Heart in Motion''

1994: ''House of Love''

1997: ''Behind the Eyes''

2002: ''Legacy...Hymns and Faith''

2003: ''Simple Things''

2005: ''Rock of Ages...Hymns and Faith''

2010: ''Somewhere Down The Road''

Holiday Albums[link]

1983: ''A Christmas Album''

1992: ''Home for Christmas''

1999: ''A Christmas to Remember''

2008: ''The Christmas Collection''

Bibliography[link]

Grant is the author of several books, including a memoir, ''Mosaic: Pieces of My Life So Far'', and a book based on the popular Christmas song ''Breath of Heaven (Mary's Song).''

Awards and achievements[link]

Grammy Awards[link]

Wins[link]

1982: Best Gospel Performance, Contemporary or Inspirational – ''Age to Age''

1983: Best Gospel Performance, Female – "Ageless Medley"

1984: Best Gospel Performance, Female – "Angels"

1985: Best Gospel Performance, Female – ''Unguarded''

1988: Best Gospel Performance, Female – ''Lead Me On''

2006: Best Southern, Country, or Bluegrass Gospel Album – '' Rock of Ages…Hymns & Faith''

Nominations[link]

1979: Best Gospel Performance, Contemporary or Inspirational – ''My Father's Eyes''

1980: Best Gospel Performance, Contemporary or Inspirational – ''Never Alone''

1981: Best Gospel Performance, Contemporary or Inspirational – ''Amy Grant In Concert''

1990: Best Gospel Vocal Performance, Female – "'Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus"

1992: Album of the Year – ''Heart in Motion'' (lost to ''Unforgettable... with Love'' by Natalie Cole) 1992: Song of the Year – "Baby Baby" 1992: Record of the Year – "Baby Baby" (both lost to "Unforgettable" by Natalie Cole with Nat King Cole) 1992: Pop Performance Female – "Baby Baby" (lost to "Something to Talk About" by Bonnie Raitt) 1994: Children Spoken Word – ''Lion & the Lamb'' 2011: Best Gospel Song – "Better Than a Hallelujah" 2012: Best Country Song – "Threaten Me with Heaven"

GMA Dove Awards[link]

*Inducted into the GMA Gospel Music Hall of Fame in 2003

1983: Artist of the Year

1983: Pop/Contemporary Album of the Year – ''Age to Age''

1983: Recorded Music Packaging – ''Age to Age''

1984: Recorded Music Packaging – ''A Christmas Album''

1985: Pop/Contemporary Album of the Year – ''Straight Ahead''

1986: Artist of the Year

1986: Recorded Music Packaging – ''Unguarded''

1988: Short Form Music Video of the Year – "Stay For a While"

1989: Artist of the Year

1989: Pop/Contemporary Album of the Year – ''Lead Me On''

1989: Short Form Music Video of the Year – "Lead Me On"

1990: Country Song of the Year – "Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus"

1992: Song of the Year – "Place in This World"

1992: Artist of the Year

1994: Praise and Worship Album of the Year – ''Songs from the Loft''

1996: Special Event Album of the Year – ''My Utmost for His Highest''

1998: Pop/Contemporary Album of the Year – ''Behind the Eyes''

2000: Special Event Album of the Year – ''Streams''

2003: Inspirational Album of the Year – ''Legacy...Hymns & Faith''

2003: Song of the Year – "The River's Gonna Keep On Rolling"

2006: Inspirational Album of the Year – ''Rock of Ages...Hymns & Faith''

2007: Long Form Music Video of the Year – ''Time Again...Amy Grant Live''

Special awards and recognitions[link]

1992: Junior Chamber of Commerce Young Tennessean of the Year

1994: St. John University Pax Christi Award

1994: Nashville Symphony Harmony Award

1996: Sarah Cannon Humanitarian Award – TNN Awards

1996: Minnie Pearl Humanitarian Award – Columbia Hospital

1996: Voice of America Award – ASCAP

1996: Academy of Achievement Golden Plate Award

1999: “An Evening with the Arts” Honor – The Nashville Chamber of Commerce, Nashville Symphony and Tennessee Performing Arts Center

1999: The Amy Grant Room for Music and Entertainment – The Target House at St. Jude's Children's Hospital

2001: Easter Seals Nashvillian of the Year Award

2003: Summit Award – Seminar in the Rockies

2005: Hollywood walk of fame induction

2006: Amy Grant Performance Platform – Nashville Schermerhorn Symphony Center

2007: Charter member of Tiffany Circle – Red Cross

2007: Inducted into the Christian Music Hall of Fame

2012: Honorary Doctorate Degree of Music and Performance – Grand Canyon University

References[link]

External links[link]

Official Amy Grant website

Amy Grant Media Gallery

Amy Grant Partners with Compassion International

Amy Grant, "Somewhere Down the Road" by Billboard

Category:1960 births Category:Living people Category:American child singers Category:American Christians Category:American female singers Category:American members of the Churches of Christ Category:American mezzo-sopranos Category:American performers of Christian music Category:American pop singers Category:A&M; Records artists Category:Christian religion-related songwriters Category:Contemporary Christian music Category:Furman University alumni Category:Gospel Music Hall of Fame inductees Category:Grammy Award winners Category:Musicians from Georgia (U.S. state) Category:People from Augusta, Georgia Category:People from Nashville, Tennessee Category:Sparrow Records artists Category:Vanderbilt University alumni

da:Amy Grant pdc:Amy Grant de:Amy Grant es:Amy Grant fr:Amy Grant ko:에이미 그랜트 it:Amy Grant he:איימי גרנט hu:Amy Grant mr:एमी ग्रँट nl:Amy Grant ja:エイミー・グラント no:Amy Grant nn:Amy Grant pl:Amy Grant pt:Amy Grant simple:Amy Grant sk:Amy Grant fi:Amy Grant sv:Amy Grant tl:Amy Grant th:เอมี แกรนต์ tr:Amy Grant

Name	Marty Robbins
Background	solo_singer
Birth name	Martin David Robinson
Birth date	September 26, 1925
Birth place	Glendale, Arizona, United States
Death date	December 08, 1982
Death place	Nashville, Tennessee, United States
Instrument	Guitar, piano, dobrovocals
Genre	country, gospel, pop, rock and roll, rockabilly
Occupation	Musician, songwriter, actor, NASCAR driver
Years active	1948–1982
Label	Columbia, Decca
Notable instruments	}}

Martin David Robinson (September 26, 1925 – December 8, 1982), known professionally as Marty Robbins, was an American singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. One of the most popular and successful country and Western singers of his era, for most of his nearly four-decade career, Robbins was rarely far from the country music charts, and several of his songs also became pop hits.

Biography[link]

Robbins was born in Glendale, a suburb of Phoenix, in Maricopa County, Arizona. He was reared in a difficult family situation. His father took odd jobs to support the family of ten children. His father's drinking led to divorce in 1937. Among his warmer memories of his childhood, Robbins recalled having listened to stories of the American West told by his maternal grandfather, Texas Bob Heckle. Robbins left the troubled home at the age of 17 to serve in the United States Navy as an LCT coxswain during World War II. He was stationed in the Solomon Islands in the Pacific. To pass the time during the war, he learned to play the guitar, started writing songs, and came to love Hawaiian music.

After his discharge from the military in 1945, he began to play at local venues in Phoenix, then moved on to host his own show on KTYL. He thereafter had his own television show on KPHO-TV in Phoenix. After Little Jimmy Dickens made a guest appearance on Robbins' TV show, Dickens got Robbins a record deal with Columbia Records. Robbins became known for his appearances at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, Tennessee.

In addition to his recordings and performances, Robbins was an avid race car driver, competing in 35 career NASCAR races with six top 10 finishes, including the 1973 Firecracker 400. In 1967, Robbins played himself in the car racing film ''Hell on Wheels''. Robbins was partial to Dodges, and owned and raced Chargers and then a 1978 Dodge Magnum. His last race was in a Junior Johnson-built 1982 Buick Regal in the Atlanta Journal 500 on November 7, 1982, the month before he died. In 1983, NASCAR honored Robbins by naming the annual race at Nashville the Marty Robbins 420. He was also the driver of the 60th Indianapolis 500 Buick Century pace car in 1976.

He ran many of the big super speedway races including Talladega Superspeedway in 1972, when he stunned the competition by turning laps that were 15 mph faster than his qualifying time. Apparently, in his motel room, Robbins had knocked the NASCAR-mandated restrictors out of his carburetor. After the race, NASCAR tried to give him the Rookie of the Race award, but Robbins would not accept it, admitting he was illegal because he "just wanted to see what it was like to run up front for once."

Robbins was awarded an honorary degree by Northern Arizona University.

On September 27, 1948, Robbins married Marizona Baldwin (September 11, 1930–July 10, 2001) to whom he dedicated his song "My Woman, My Woman, My Wife". They had two children, a son Ronny (born 1949) and daughter Janet (born 1959), who also followed a singing career in Los Angeles, California.

Robbins later portrayed a musician in the 1982 Clint Eastwood film ''Honkytonk Man''. Robbins died a few weeks before the film's release in December 1982 of complications following cardiac surgery. At the time of his death, Robbins lived in Brentwood in Williamson County, outside Nashville. He was interred in Woodlawn Memorial Park in Nashville. The city of El Paso, Texas later honored Robbins by naming a park and a recreational center after him. Marty's twin sister Mamie Ellen Robinson Minotto died on March 14, 2004, when she was part way through writing a book about her brother "Some Memories: Growing up with Marty Robbins" as remembered by Mamie Minotto, as told to Andrew Means. It was published in January 2007.

Music and honors[link]

Robbins' 1957 recording of "A White Sport Coat and a Pink Carnation" sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc. His musical accomplishments include the Grammy Award for his 1959 hit and signature song "El Paso", taken from his album ''Gunfighter Ballads and Trail Songs''. "El Paso" was the first song to hit No. 1 on the pop chart in the 1960s. It was followed up, successfully, by "Don't Worry", which reached No. 3 on the pop chart in 1961, becoming his third, and last, Top 10 pop hit. "El Paso" was followed by two sequels: "Feleena" and "El Paso City", both of which continued the story featured in the original song. Also in 1961, Robbins wrote the words and music and recorded "I Told the Brook," a ballad later recorded by Billy Thorpe.

He won the Grammy Award for the Best Country & Western Recording 1961, for his follow-up album ''More Gunfighter Ballads and Trail Songs,'' and was awarded the Grammy Award for Best Country Song in 1970, for "My Woman, My Woman, My Wife". Robbins was named Artist of the Decade (1960–69) by the Academy of Country Music, was elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1982, and was given a Grammy Hall of Fame Award in 1998 for his song "El Paso".

Robbins was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1975. For his contribution to the recording industry, Robbins has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6666 Hollywood Blvd.

Robbins has been honored by many bands, including the Grateful Dead who covered "El Paso". The Who's 2006 album ''Endless Wire'' includes the song "God Speaks of Marty Robbins". The song's composer, Pete Townshend, explained that the song is about God deciding to create the universe just so he can hear some music, "and most of all, one of his best creations, Marty Robbins." The Beasts of Bourbon released a song called "The Day Marty Robbins Died" on their 1984 debut album ''The Axeman's Jazz''. Johnny Cash recorded a version of "Big Iron" as part of his American Recordings series, which is included in the ''Cash Unearthed'' box set. Both Frankie Laine and Elvis Presley, among others, recorded versions of Robbins' song "You Gave Me a Mountain", with Laine's recording reaching the pop and adult contemporary charts in 1969.

Robbins performed and recorded several songs by longtime songwriter Coleman Harwell, most notably "Thanks But No Thanks" in 1964; Robbins and his producers employed the top sessions musicians and singers including the Jordanaires to record Harwell's songs. Harwell is the nephew of former ''Nashville Tennessean'' newspaper editor Coleman Harwell.

When Robbins was recording his 1961 hit "Don't Worry", session guitarist Grady Martin accidentally created the electric guitar "fuzz" effect -- his guitar was run through a faulty channel in a mixing console. Marty decided to keep it in the final version. The song reached No. 1 on the country chart, and No. 3 on the pop chart.

Robbins' song "Big Iron", originally released on his 1959 album ''Gunfighter Ballads and Trail Songs'', gained renewed popularity following its use in the video game ''Fallout: New Vegas''.

NASCAR[link]

Name	Marty Robbins|
Birth date	September 26, 1925
Death date	December 08, 1982
Birth place	Glendale, Arizona, United States
Death cause	Heart Attack
Best cup pos	77th - 1977
Cup wins	0
Cup top tens	13
Cup poles	0
First cup race	1967 NASCAR Grand National Race|
Last cup race	1982 Atlanta Journal 500| }}

Marty loved NASCAR racing and as he had the funds to do so, he raced occasionally. His cars were built and maintained by Cotton Owens. Marty Robbins ran typically at Talladega Superspeedway, Daytona International Speedway, and many other tracks. In 1983, one year after Robbins' death, NASCAR named the Nashville Fair Grounds race the Marty Robbins 420 in honor of him. Robbins typically ran either #42 or #22. He typically ran Dodge Daytonas or Fords. His final racecar, a 1978 Dodge Magnum, was superbly restored and donated to the Talledega Museum by his family, and was displayed there from 1983 to 2008. The car is now in private hands in Southern California and raced on the Vintage NASCAR club circuit.

Discography[link]

Notes[link]

References[link]

IMDb Bio Retrieved on 2008-01-25

Pruett, Barbara J. ''"Marty Robbins: Fast Cars and Country Music"''. Lanham, MD: Scarecrow Press. 2007. ISBN 0-8108-6036-8

Diekman, Diane ''"Twentieth Century Drifter: The Life of Marty Robbins"'' (Music in American Life). 2012.

"Fallout: New Vegas" Big Iron is used on Radio New Vegas

Marty Robbins can also be heard in Silent Hill Downpour.

External links[link]

Official Marty Robbins Web site

Robbins page at Country Music Hall of Fame

Robbins page at Western Music Association

Robbins page at Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame

Robbins bio by Hank Davis at ''Allmusic''

Robbins page by Gaylen Duskey at NASCAR

Category:1925 births Category:1982 deaths Category:American country guitarists Category:American country singer-songwriters Category:American country singers Category:American male singers Category:American military personnel of World War II Category:American racing drivers Category:Burials in Tennessee Category:Columbia Records artists Category:Country Music Hall of Fame inductees Category:Country musicians from Arizona Category:Deaths from surgical complications Category:Grammy Award winners Category:Grand Ole Opry members Category:NASCAR drivers Category:People from Glendale, Arizona Category:People from Nashville, Tennessee Category:Racing drivers from Arizona Category:United States Navy sailors

ar:مارتي روبينز bg:Марти Робинс cs:Marty Robbins de:Marty Robbins fr:Marty Robbins no:Marty Robbins ru:Марти Роббинс simple:Marty Robbins sh:Marty Robbins sv:Marty Robbins

Name	Jenni Rivera
Background	solo_singer
Birth name	Dolores Janney Rivera Saavedra
Birth date	July 02, 1969
Origin	Long Beach, California
Label	Fonovisa, Universal
Associated acts	Lupillo Rivera
Website	Jenni Rivera }}

Dolores "Jenni" Rivera (born July 2, 1969) is a Mexican-American singer, better known for her work within the banda and norteña music genres. She's been active in the music scene since 1992 and her recordings include many topical songs and material dealing with social issues, infidelity, and relationships. Her tenth studio album, ''Jenni'' in 2008, became her first number-one album in the ''Billboard'' Top Latin Albums chart in the United States.

Jenni Rivera plans to record her first Pop song in early 2012 which will feature music produced by Manny and Gil THE LATIN. The new material will be recorded in English and target the general market.

Early Life and Career[link]

Rivera was born Dolores Janney Rivera in Long Beach, CA. Her parents were Mexican immigrants who raised Jenni and her four brothers and sister (including Lupillo Rivera) in a tight-knit musical household. While still in high school she became pregnant with the first of her five children, and eventually married the child's father, José Trinidad Marín. When she first started singing she was Jenni Rivera. In 1996 she released her first album ''Chacalosa'', on the Capitol/EMI label, which became popular in Mexico and the American Southwest.

Family[link]

Jenni Rivera currently lives in Encino, California with her 5 children, husband and grand-daughter. Her 5 children are Janney Marin(Chiquis), Jacquie Marin, Michael Marin(Trinidad), Jenicka Lopez and Johnny Lopez. Her grand-daughter's name is Jaylah Hope Yanez, who's mom is Jacquie. Jenni Riveras is married to Major League Baseball Player Esteban Loaiza

Achievements[link]

Jenni Rivera is a Mexican-American singer/songwriter raised in Long Beach, has sold over 20 million albums worldwide. Rivera was nominated at the 2003, 2008 and 2010 Latin Grammys. A successful Regional-Mexican artist and entrepreneur, including Divina Realty, Divina Cosmetics, Jenni Rivera Fragrance, Jenni Jeans, Divine Music and The Jenni Rivera Love Foundation. Jenni Rivera became the first female Banda artist to sell-out a concert at the world famous Gibson Amphitheatre in Universal City, CA and most recently became the first artist up-to-date to sell-out two back-to-back nights at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles, California on August 6, 2010 and August 7, 2010. On August 6, 2010, Jenni Rivera was named spokeswomen for the National Coalition against battered women and domestic violence in Los Angeles. A proclamation was given "officially naming" August 6 “Jenni Rivera Day” by the LA City Council for all her charity work and involvement in the community. Jenni Rivera was also the producer to her oldest daughter's (Janney Marin) reality TV show on the cable network MUN2, "Chiquis & Raq-C",and is all around the world, and now stars in her sequel/spin-off show called I Love Jenni.

Discography[link]

Studio Albums[link]

2003 Homenaje A Las Grandes

2004: Simplemente La Mejor

2005: Parrandera, Rebelde y Atrevida

2006: En Vivo Desde Hollywood

2006: Besos y Copas Desde Hollywood

2007: Mi Vida Loca

2007: La DIva En Vivo

2008: Jenni

2009: Jenni: Super Deluxe

2009: La Gran Señora

2010: La Gran Señora En Vivo

2011: Joyas Prestadas (Banda)

2011: Joyas Prestadas (Pop)

References [link]

2006- En Vivo Desde Hollywood

External links[link]

Category:1969 births Category:Living people Category:American musicians of Mexican descent Category:Banda Category:American people of Mexican descent Category:People from Long Beach, California

es:Jenni Rivera

name	Nancy Ajram
birth name	Nancy Nabil Ajram
background	solo_singer
birth date	May 16, 1983
origin	Beirut, Lebanon, Arabia
genre	Arabic Pop, World, pop
occupation	singer
years active	1998–present
label	EMI Arabia (1998) Megastar (2001–2005) In2Musica (2008–present)
website	Official website }}

Nancy Nabil Ajram (), (born May 16, 1983) is a multi-platinum recording artist and Goodwill Ambassador for UNICEF. With the support of her father, Nancy began performing as a child and released her first studio album by the age of 15. Her breakthrough occurred with the start of her collaboration with well-known producer Jiji Lamara, when she released her smash-hit "Akhasmak Ah" and 3rd studio album, Ya Salam. In 2004, she released her second international best-seller "Ah w Noss", which spawned several smash-hits, "Ah w Noss", "Lawn Ouyounak", and "Inta Eih" at which point Nancy had established pop icon status in the Middle East.

Her 2008 album "Bitfakkar Fi Eih" spawned seven singles and won Nancy's first World Music Award as Best-selling Middle Eastern Artist, the youngest Arab WMA winner to date. She has released seven studio albums to date and numerous other chart-topping singles such as "Sehr Ouyouno", "Atabtab", "Moegaba", "Ehsas Jdeed", "El Donya Helwa", "Mashi Haddi", and "Fi Hagat".

Nancy Ajram is the first and only female sponsor and spokesperson of Coca-Cola in the Middle East and Arab world. Considered by many as an Arabic music icon of the decade, Nancy was described on the Oprah Winfrey Show as one of the most influential personalities of the Middle East. Nancy has made the list of Most Powerful Arabs on Arabian Business several times, and was similarly listed by Newsweek as one of the most influential Arabs. Nancy's official Facebook page is the most subscribed Arabic artist page on the social-networking site and the first to reach 3 million subscribers, and her music video for "Fi Hagat" was an Internet phenomenon and is currently the most viewed Arabic music video on the Internet, on Youtube with over 26.3 million views to date.

Early life and beginnings [link]

Nancy Ajram was born into an Orthodox Christian family on May 16, 1983 in Achrafieh, a district in Beirut, Lebanon.

In 1995, at the age of twelve, Nancy Ajram took part in a variety show, ''Noujoum Al-Moustakbal'', ("Stars of the Future"), a Lebanese reality television competition, which finds new solo musical talent. Ajram won a gold medal in the Tarab category after singing a song by Umm Kulthum.

Ajram studied music with renowned Lebanese musicians and despite being less than 18 years old at the time, the syndicate of professional artists in Lebanon accepted her as a member. Her first singles were titled "Hobbak Allam Albi elGheere" by Abdo Mounzer, and "Oulha Kelma Ala Shani". At the age of 15, she released her first album, ''Mihtagalak'' ("I Need You') in 1998. It was followed by ''Sheel Oyoonak Anni'' ("Stop Staring") in 2000, which achieved more success.

Music career [link]

2002-2004: ''Akhasmak Ah'' [link]

Ajram's breakthrough was when she began working with Jiji Lamara, an experienced producer and manager. In early 2003, Ajram rose to instant fame with the success of the lead single "Akhasmak Ah" and the release of her third studio album, ''Ya Salam'' ("Oh Wow") which was a best-seller. The music video of "Akhasmak Ah" caused a controversy; reminiscent of older Arabic films, Nancy appeared as a cafe manager who dances and flirts with its customers. The release of the next music videos, "Ya Salam" and "Sehr Ouyouno" quietened down criticism as they better introduced Nancy's vocal abilities and style to the public.

2004-2006:''Ah w Noss'', Coca-Cola [link]

Her fourth album, ''Ah w Noss'' ("Yes, and a half"), was released on April 12, 2004, and it was also an important marking point in Nancy's career. The tremendous success that "Ah w Noss" achieved, stabilized Nancy's position as an A-List star in the Arab music industry. Nancy then filmed "Lawn Ouyounak" (Color of Your Eyes), which portrayed Nancy as a bride in a traditional Lebanese wedding. After the release of the album, Nancy Ajram signed-up with Coca-Cola to be their official celebrity spokesperson for the Levant, Arabia and North Africa regions. Her first Coke commercial featured her hit, "Oul Tany Kida?" (Say That Again?), which was filmed with the international Italian director Luca Tomassini. The commercial's success lead to it being filmed as a music video behind the scenes of the commercial. The 4th hit single from the album, "Inta Eih?" (What Are You?), was a slow directed by Samir Sfeir. Nadine Labaki directed another clip that featured Nancy as a wife who sees her husband cheating on her yet she hides it in torment to save their relationship. The music video received tremendous positive reviews and Nancy was greatly praised. Leading Egyptian actors and directors, like Faten Hamama praised Nancy's acting abilities and movie offers doubled for Nancy. Nancy also opened for Enrique Iglesias's first concert in Egypt in 2004.

2006-2008:''Ya Tabtab Wa Dalla'', ''Shakhbat'', ''El Donya Helwa'' [link]

Her fifth album, ''Ya Tabtab Wa Dallaa'' was released on February 15, 2006. ''Atabtab'' was considered Nancy's best album to date, with six music videos released, eight radio hits, and five songs used for commercials.

The title song's video was Nancy's last video directed by Nadine Labaki, as she then started working on her movie Caramel. Nancy then released the video of her Coca-Cola hit "Moegaba" (Admirer), as well as a video and commercial for her newly signed ''Damas Jewelry'' contract advertising their "Farfasha" set. The song used was ''Ana Yalli'' which was promoted before the album's release. Nancy then cooperated for the first time with prominent Lebanese director Said el Marouk, filming ''"Ehsas Jdeed"'' (A New Feeling) which is widely considered to be the most successful song of the album. The video, which was a salute from Said to his deaf and mute parents, depicted the story of a rich woman who falls in love with a deaf and mute man. Later in 2007, Nancy released all together the video of "Elli Kan" (All That Was) for Damas's second campaign, her Coca-Cola Side of Life commercial featuring a new single "''El Donya Helwa''" (Life is Beautiful), and a video and album directed towards children, titled ''Shakhbat Shakhabit'' (Scribbled Scribbles). "El Donya Helwa", Nancy's 7th commercial, is considered one of her most successful commercials representing her style and Coca-Cola's with colors, happiness, and music, and it led her to release a Live album featuring the single.

Ajram's sixth album was fully dedicated to children with a variety of songs aimed towards teaching children good values and morals, something she has wanted to do for a long time. The music video was her second cooperation with Said El Marouk and featured four songs from her album, the most successful of which were "Shakhbat Shakhabit" & "Shater Shater". Nancy performed these songs at several fund-raising events for children and other children's events, such as the children's TV channel MBC3, and the children's entertainment TV Show "Star Zghar". She then filmed with Fadi Haddad, the director of photography of her previous works with ElMarouk, a video for the song "''Resala Ilal Aalam''" (A Message to the World) which talks about world peace. The video was released on May 25, 2008, the day the Lebanese president General Michel Suleiman was elected ending a deadlock that lasted since November. It was the first video for Nancy that had an entirely graphical world that implied the suffering of children worldwide and the need to bring out a more colorful and happy world for them. Old rumors claimed that the video was presented to the UNICEF. In 2007, Nancy performed alongside Lionel Richie in Egypt at a launching event.

2008–2010: ''Betfakkar Fi Eih'', WMA, Oprah, UNICEF & motherhood [link]

In February and March 2008, Nancy released three Coca-Cola commercials that featured a brand new hit from her long awaited album. The song, "''Meen Gheyri Ana'' (Noss elKawn)" (Who Else?) was made by the successful ''Yey'' and ''Ana Yalli'' trio (Nizar Francis, Samir Sfeir, and Tarek Madkour). The single was an instant hit and served as a highly successful promotion 5 months before the release of the album. Nancy released her seventh studio album after several delays on July 30, 2008, which has been highly anticipated by fans for almost three years. This long awaited comeback album held lots of surprises for her fans with a huge change in her style that presented her matured vocal abilities like never before. Nancy's 7th album, Betfakkar Fi Eih?!, is considered to be one of her most successful albums so far as it won her first World Music Award in her career. The album included her first "Tarab" song called "Biteegy Sirtak" since 1998's Mihtagalak album, and in general had a wide mix of several different styles ranging from dance, beat, pop, to drama, romance, Tarab and oldies. Even though the hit video had mixed opinions, the second video of "Min Dally Nseek" was much more accepted, peaking at #1 for seven consecutive weeks in Melody Hits. The same musical trio who created "Ehsas Jdeed" did one of the instant radio-hits of the album, "''Lamset Eed''" (Touch of a Hand), which was filmed with Leila Kenaan with a high budget, and the song and music video peaked charts for months. With this album Nancy signed a celebrity endorsement deal with Sony Ericsson, as a special w595 phone was released holding Nancy's signature, and ''Wana Ben Idek'' was chosen as the commercial song.

On November 9, 2008, about a month after her marriage, Nancy Ajram won her first World Music Award for her best-selling album Betfakkar Fi Eih. In her short speech, Nancy thanked her parents, Jiji Lamara, her fans and album makers, and husband, saying "2008 has been a fantastic year - a successful album, my wedding, and now a World Music Award, what can I ask for more?"

On September 28, 2009, the Oprah Winfrey Show aired an episode titled "Fame Around the World" that talked about the most famous celebrities around the globe in brief reports. Representing the Middle East region and Arab world, Nancy Ajram appeared in a report featured on the show and was described by Oprah as "the Britney Spears of the Middle East". Nancy Ajram is the first and only Middle-Eastern artist ever mentioned on the show.

2010–2011: World Cup, ''N°7'' [link]

In the summer of 2010, Nancy was nominated by Coca-Cola Middle East to sing, along with K'naan, his international hit and song for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, "Wavin' Flag". The Arabic version, titled "Shaggaa Be Alamak" and directed to the Middle East region, had its Arabic parts written by Ayman Bahgat Amar (who previously wrote Ah w Noss, Atabtab, Eftah Albak for Nancy) and the music remastered by Tarek Madkour. The original music video was used for K'naan's parts while Nancy's parts were filmed separately in Lebanon on the same protocol under Leila Kenaan's co-direction. Both the video and song were aired heavily during the FIFA season and part of the song was particularly played during commercial breaks on Al-Jazeera channel, which exclusively aired the games to the Arab world.

On August 30, 2010, Nancy's official Facebook page posted a 16-second preview of the music video for Nancy's next single, "Fi Hagat". The preview shows Nancy wearing her makeup and getting in the car on a rainy day. Later, it was announced that Nadine Labaki directed the video, thus making her comeback to music video direction after her 4-year break. The video is also the first collaboration between Ajram and Labaki since 2006's "Atabtab." The full music video premiered on September 6, 2010 at 8:00PM on Arabica TV and MTV Lebanon. As of January 2011, Nancy became the first and most viewed Arabic music video on the Internet.

In November, 2010, Nancy's Facebook page hit one million fans, becoming the most subscribed Arabic Facebook page on the site. Nancy expressed how thankful she was and promised her followers to add news and updates to the page. Later, the page announced "Sheikh El Shabab" and "Ya Kether" as the second and third singles from ''7'', respectively. The video for the second single premiered on December 23, and received favorable reviews from Arabic media, however, it did not achieve the same explosive rate of Internet views as did the first single "Fi Hagat", with only 750,000 views in a month. The album marks a shift in Ajram's career and launches her to a more international image, and is, to date, her second fastest selling album. It earned Nancy her second World Music Award as the middle east's best selling album.

2010–2012: Second kids' album [link]

In 2012, Ajram joined social networking website Twitter, and received ten thousand followers in two days. She immediately followed fellow singer Elissa and was followed back by her. The singer took her personal account to announce the video shoot of a fourth video from her seventh album, titled "Min Ma Ando." She also announced in late February that was nearly done working on a second album dedicated for kids. Ajram is set to embark a US tour in the summer of 2012.

Personal life [link]

In September 2008, Nancy wed Dr. Fadi El Hachem in Cyprus after a three-year relationship; the wedding ceremony, in Lebanon, was attended mainly by close friends and family and was only made based on their request. Nancy continued her work during pregnancy, during which she filmed "Min Dally Nseek", "Lamset Eed" and her first Sony Ericsson commercial. She also participated in several concerts, such as Layali Febrayer and received her World Music Award.

On May 16, 2009, Nancy gave birth to her first child, a daughter she named "Mila." Short for ''Milagrosa'' (''miraculous'' in Spanish), Mila is also a traditional, Levantine name popular in rural Lebanon and meaning a "blooming tree". However, Nancy revealed that the name was Fadi's choice inspired by the Ukraine-born US actress, Milla Jovovich. Nancy released a song for her daughter, "Ya Rab Tekbar Mila" (I Pray that Mila Grows Up) on the same day. In a survey done by ''Rotana Magazine'', Nancy was voted as the "Most Beautiful Mom" of 2009. Nancy chose not to reveal photos of her daughter Mila until they both appeared on the cover of "Prestige" magazine in an exclusive photoshoot. Mila later appeared in the set of Nancy's music video "Ya Kether" in the presence of the media who publicized her pictures.

In October 2010, a month after the release of her seventh studio album, Nancy announced that she was four months pregnant with her second child, a girl. During that period she had filmed "Sheikh El Shabab" and "Ya Kether" consecutively to be released during her pregnancy period. Nancy Ajram revealed on Mothers day special on MTV that she decided to name her daughter Ella. Ella was born on 23 April 2011.

Nancy Ajram is an Orthodox Christian.

Awards and titles [link]

1995 Nojoom Al Mustaqbal Golden Award - (Ajram's most significant pre-stardom award)

2003, 2005, 2007 Murex D'or Award - Best Female Lebanese Singer of the year, Beirut

2003, 2006 Murex D'or Award - Best Video of the Year, Beirut.

2003: Ya Salam - Nadine Labaki, 2006: Ehsas Jdeed - Said elMarouk)

2003 The Golden Lion Award, Egypt

2003, 2007 LG Music Award

2003, 2005 Zahrat elKhaleej Magazine - Best Female Arab Singer, Dubai

2004, 2010 Zahrat elKhaleej - Best Music Video of the Year, Dubai (Lawn Ouyounak, Fi hagat - respectively)

2004 Arabian Music Awards - Best Female Arab Singer of the year, Dubai

2005 Newsweek - Most Influential Arab Personalities, Kuwait

2005 - Honor from the Opera House of Egypt

2007 - Certificate from the Pope of Rome

2007 Middle East Music Awards (''Mobinil'') - Best Female Arab Singer of the year, Cairo 2007, 2009 Arabian Business - World's Most Influential Arabs, Most Influential Contemporary Female Singer in 2007, Most Powerful Arab Singers 2007 Kol elArab Survey - Best Arabic Star of the year 2007

2008 9th Annual Doha Festival - Honor Award, Doha

2008 World Music Award - World's Best-Selling Middle-Eastern Artist, 20th Annual WMA, Monaco 2008 Student Choice Award - [College Student Survey]: Best Album of the Year 2008, Beirut 2008 ''AlJumhuriya'' newspaper, ''Freedom Magazine'' - Best Female Arab Star of 2008, Egypt.. only?

2009 Regional Ambassador for the UNICEF in the Middle East & North Africa

2009 Al-Jazirah Newspaper survey : Best Female Arab singer of the Year. ''Saudi Arabia''

2010 Stars Cafe Magazine - Best selling female artist of the decade.

2010 World Travel Award - Best Female world singer of the Year .

2010 Sama Al Noujoum-Best Female Singer 2010/Fi hagat Best Music Video 2010 Panet Survey-Best Female singer 2010 Arab Sound Awards -Best Arabic Female Singer

2010 Music My Life- Fi Hagat Best Song Of 2010

2010 Best Of Lbc 2010- N 7 Best Album/Fi Hagat- Best Music Video 2010 Panorama Fm (MBC)-N 7 Best Arabic Album. 2010-2011 Jaras Scoop Awards-Best Female Singer

2010-2011 Melody Fm Awards-Best Female Singer

Stars Cafe Awards 2010:

* Best Female Artist

* Best Album : 7

* Best Song: Fi Hagat

* Best Lyrics: Fi Hagat

* Best Arrangement: Fi Hagat

* Best Music Video: Sheikh El Shabab

2011 Won two awards from "Murex D'or 2010" ceremony in Lebanon. First award as the Star of Lebanese song, and the second award for the category of best music video for the song "Sheikh El Shabab."

2011 Best Female Singer- "Woujouh Men Lebnan" awards.

2011 Arabian Business- Most Famous Celebrity in the Middle East

2011 World Music Awards World's Best-Selling Middle-Eastern Artist (Nancy 7)

Philanthropy and humanitarian work [link]

Ajram has participated in numerous charity events and concerts that she considers a priority in her music career. In the year 2006, Ajram opened an organization under the name "Jam'iyet Nancy Ajram Al-Khayria" (Nancy Ajram's Charity Organization) in Beirut, Lebanon, that works on collecting and distributing money for the poor. Nancy also released a song about peace, "Resala Ilal Aalam" (A Message to the World), in her children's album as a music video, which was rumored to be presented to the Unicef. Ajram also participated amongst over 100 other prominent Arab artists in a huge production called "ElDhameer elArabi", a 10-year sequel to "AlHelm Al Arabi" that outlines the major political events in the Arab world in the past ten years.

In June 2008, Nancy participated in The Big Ball, a charity event in Dubai which raised over Dhs 940,000 for helping underprivileged children by auctioning one of her favourite dresses and encouraging children's fund-raising events; she announced, "The Big Ball is doing a wonderful thing and I'm happy to support it. I'm coming for my love of children and because I want to help underprivileged children find a happy place in this world. Children inspired my latest album ''Shakhbat Shakhabit'' and especially the song "Resala lel3alam" (A Message to the World)." Ajram, however, continues to refuse announcing her other charitable projects to the public.

On October 22, 2009, the UNICEF chose Ajram to be the first female regional ambassador for the Middle East and North Africa, as was announced in a press conference held in Beirut. Nancy announced that she will be starting her charity projects in 2010. In late 2009 she appeared in the UNICEF's commercial marking the 20th anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, joining other influential Middle Eastern celebrities such as Kazem el-Saher, Saber el-Rebai and Karess Bashar.

Criticism and controversy [link]

Many rumors of boycotts against Ajram's concerts filled the internet, although none appeared to be true.

In October 2003, a riot broke out outside a concert by Ajram in Bahrain. Islamists from the country's main opposition parties, including Al Wefaq, attacked concert goers. Al Wefaq's leaders defended the action, as it was the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. In May 2006, Ajram returned to perform in Bahrain without any incidents.

On her official website, Nancy Ajram has apologized for anti-Iranian remarks falsely attributed to her on a website posing as her homepage.

Nancy Ajram has expressed extreme anger towards recent circulating rumors in Egypt regarding the spread of nude photos of her on mobile phones. A large number of youths around Egypt and around the Arab world have been spreading nude photos of the singer supposedly taken at a women's spa for a full body wax. Nancy, however, denies the spa visit and claims such photos are fake.

Discography [link]

Studio albums [link]

Nancy Ajram Discography

1998: ''Mihtagalak''

2001: ''Sheel Oyounak Anni''

2003: ''Ya Salam''

2004: ''Ah W Noss''

2006: ''Ya Tabtab...Wa Dallaa''

2008: ''Betfakkar Fi Eih?!''

2010: ''7''

Children's albums [link]

2007: ''Shakhbat Shakhabit''

2012: TBA

DVDs and live albums [link]

2004: ''Live at the Jarash Festival'' [DVD] - MegaStar

2005: ''Ma La Ta'arifunahu 3an Nancy Ajram'' [DVD] - MBC

2006: ''Ah w Noss: Collector's Edition'' [CD and DVD] - MegaStar

2006: ''Ya Salam: Collector's Edition'' [CD and DVD] - MegaStar

2007: ''Shakhbat Shakhabit'' [DVD]

2007: ''ElDonya Helwa - Live'' [Live CD]

2008: ''The Best of Nancy Clips'' [DVD]

2008: ''Greatest Hits'' [Compilation CD] - EMI

2009: ''Awwel Marra'' [Old Live Songs CD] - Artline Music

Non-album singles [link]

Nancy released several songs dedicated to special countries in the Arab world, starting with "Kuwait alShahama" in 2005. In early 2006, she released a single, "Ana Masry" ("I am Egyptian"), timed to coincide with Egypt's hosting and winning of the African Cup of Nations football tournament, taking it by storm. Its video showed Egyptians representing the diversity of the country lip-sync the patriotic lyrics of the song. Nancy also released a song for the rival Egyptian soccer teams "Ahly and Zamalek", being the first to do so after Sabah. Nancy released a sensual song for Lebanon called "Habib elOmr" composed by Ziad Boutrous, which preceded the 2006 Lebanese war. After the 2007 "Nahr el Bared" war, Nancy dedicated a song composed by Samir Sfeir to the Lebanese Army, called "Khalleek Bwejj elGhadab".

2005 "Kuwait Al Shahama"

2005 "Ana Masry"

2005 "Agbal" - (released in "Afdal Ma Endana" UAE compilation album)

2006 "Ahli w Zamalek"

2006 "Habib el Omr"

2007 "Bwejj el Ghadab"

2007 "El Dunya Helwa" [Coke Single] - (featured in Live performances album)

2009 "Ya Rab Tikbar Mila"

2009 "Efta7 Albak Tefra7" [Coke Single] - (released on Coke official website)

2010 "Masr el Ma7rousa"

2010 "Salemoli 3alaih"

2011 "Wahshani Ya Masr Moot"

2011 "7adri La3bek"

2011 "papa Porto"

Group works

2003 ''Il7a2ni'' (Follow Me) for the Lebanese Marathon, featuring Haifa Wehbe, Dina Hayek, Joe Ashkar, and Yuri Mrakadi.

2005 ''La Ma Khelset El Hekaya'' (It's Not Over) after the assassination of late president Rafiq elHariri, featuring Nawal elZoghbi, Haifa Wehbe, Wael Kfoury, Sabah, Maya Nasri, and many others.

2008 ''ElDhameer el 3arabi'' (The Arab Conscience) the sequel to the well-known "elHelm al3arabi" along with more than 100 artists including Wadih elSafi, Assala, Latifa, and Cheb Khaled.

Soundtracks

Ramadan 2009: ''Ibn elArandaly''

''Intro:'' "Ya Ibn el Arandaly"

''Outro:'' "Kol elHekaya"

Ramadan 2011: "Samara"

intro: "Samara"

outro: "Samara"

Global Coke slogans [link]

Coca-Cola Middle East have always incorporated International Coke slogans into pan-Arab campaigns with Nancy. In 2007, Coca-Cola released their international trademark campaign of their popular slogan "The Coke Side of Life", which focused on themes such as fun, happiness, colors, and life. A collaboration with Nancy Ajram lead to the making of the song "El Donya Helwa" (The World is Beautiful) for which a commercial was filmed with an American director on international standards and hi-tech effects. Nancy insisted on filming in Lebanon which had been hit by war a while back. "El Donya Helwa" is considered Coca-Cola Middle East's and Nancy Ajram's most successful commercial to date; the single became one of Ajram's most successful songs, leading to its release as a single track in a "Live" album with live performances from her last studio album Atabtab.

In 2009, as the campaign was sequeled internationally with "Open Happiness", Coke Middle East and Nancy released "Eftah Albak Tefrah". However, due to Nancy's pregnancy and giving birth, she was unable to participate in the print or TV campaigns that year and the song was used on the International commercial instead. A website was launched for that campaign entitled "Eftah Tefrah".

In 2010, Coca Cola released an Arabic version of Wavin' Flag originally by K'naan. The Arabic version "Wavin' Flag / Shagga' Bi Alamak Da" (In Arabic شجّع بعلمك ده) has Nancy Ajram featuring K'naan and meant for pan-Arab promotion of 2010 FIFA World Cup to be held in South Africa.

Videography [link]

"Sheel Ouyounak Anni" "Akhasmak Ah" "Ah w Noss" "Ya Tabtab Wa Dalla" rowspan="5" rowspan="4"

+ Official Music Videos
Year	Title	Album	Director
1998	"Mihtagalak"	''Mihtagalak''
2001	|	Sheel Oyoonak Anni>Sheel Ouyounak Anni''	Guy Zahlan
2002	|rowspan="3"	Ya Salam...'' ||rowspan="5"> Nadine Labaki
rowspan="2"	2003	"Ya Salam"
"Sehr Oyouno" (Yey)
	|rowspan="4"| "Ah w Noss"
"Lawn Ouyounak"
	"Oul Tany Kida"
"Inta Eih"	Nadine Labaki
rowspan="4"		2006		''Ya Tabtab..Wa Dallaa''
"Moegaba"	Harry Rankin, Mike Lipscombe
"Ana Yalli"	Pascale D'Ash
"Ehsas Jdeed"	Said elMarouk
rowspan="3"	2007	"Elli Kan"
"Mishtaga Leik"
"Shakhbat Shakhabit" (ft. Katkouta, Shater, Eid Milad)				[Children's Album]	Said elMarouk
	"Risala Ilal Aalam"
"Betfakkar Fi Eih"	''Betfakkar Fi Eih?!'' || rowspan="2"|Said elMarouk
"Min Dally Nseek"
	"Lamset Eed"
"Ibn elGiran"	Mike Harris
"Mashi Haddi"	Leila Kanaan
rowspan="3"	2010	"Shaggaa' Be Alamak" (Wavin' Flag)(with K'Naan) ||	Single	Codirector: Leila Kanaan
"Fi Hagat"	7||Nadine Labaki
"Sheikh El Shabab"	Leila Kanaan
2011	"Ya Kether"
		Commercials and Official music videos [link]	Coca-Cola and Sony Ericsson and Damas Jewelry. Nancy remained the only Arab star promoting Coke until late 2007 when Egyptian sensations Mohammed Hamaki and Tamer Hosni joined in as well, as she still remains the only female. Coca-Cola and Nancy formed a great team since five years making commercials and music videos that stood out in the Arab world, synchronising local campaigns with Nancy Ajram#Global Coke slogans>worldwide slogans.

Concert Tickle, Munroe, WinkMoegaba Coke BottleElDonya Helwa Have a CokeMeen Ghayri Ana? ''Noss elKawn''Eftah Albak TefrahShaggaa' Be Alamak (Wavin' Flag)Fi Hagat

+ Middle East Coke Campaigns
width =	Year	Coke Hit	Theme	# of Ads	Campaign
	Oul Tany Kida	|	3	TV,MV,print
Instrumental:'' Lawn Ouyounak''	|	3	TV,print
rowspan=2	2006	|	Circus	1	TV,MV,print
Ashtiki Minno	|	1	TV
rowspan=2	2007	|	The Coke Side of Life	1	TV,print
-
2008	|	Live on the Coke Side of Life	3	TV,MV,print
2009	|Open Happiness|
2010	|2010 FIFA World Cup|
2010	|

DAMAS's youth-inspired set called "Farfasha", which are gold collections from the World Gold Council said to be chosen by Nancy herself, was promoted by her in three different campaigns. Each campaign had a new collection for the set and a song, commercial, and music video, starting with "Ana Yalli", then "Elli Kan" from Atabtab, and last with "Ibn elGiran" from Betfakkar fi eih?!.

A survey by Sony Ericsson where Nancy was named the most popular Arab star led them into signing a deal with her as their celebrity spokesperson. The company co-sponsored the release of her best-selling album Bitfakkar Fi Eih. In Febrauary 2009 the W595i phone was officially released with a Nancy special edition kit that held her signature on the back of the phone, a free copy of her album and ringtones of her songs. This was accompanied by print advertising, a press conference in Dubai, as well as a commercial set in March 2009 that featured Nancy and the song "Wana Ben Idek" from her best-selling album Bitfakkar Fi Eih.

References [link]

External links [link]

Nancy Ajram Official Website

Fiascos affect Arab music awards, 17 May 2004 BBC (Ajram voted best newcomer)

Arab youth revel in pop revolution by Sebastian Usher, 21 May 2007, BBC

Category:1983 births Category:Living people Category:Lebanese Christians Category:Eastern Orthodox Christians from Lebanon Category:Lebanese female singers Category:UNICEF people Category:World Music Awards winners Category:Lebanese artists

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