Utopia (/juːˈtoʊpiə/) is an ideal community or society possessing a perfect socio-politico-legal system. The word was coined in Greek by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book Utopia, describing a fictional island in the Atlantic Ocean. The term has been used to describe both intentional communities that attempt to create an ideal society, and fictional societies portrayed in literature. It has spawned other concepts, most prominently dystopia.

The word comes from the Greek: οὐ ("not") and τόπος ("place") and means "no place". The English homophone eutopia, derived from the Greek εὖ ("good" or "well") and τόπος ("place"), means "good place". This, due to the identical pronunciation of "utopia" and "eutopia", gives rise to a double meaning.

Varieties[link]

This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (January 2012)

Left panel (The Earthly Paradise – Garden of Eden) from Hieronymus Bosch's The Garden of Earthly Delights.

Chronologically, the first recorded utopian proposal is Plato's Republic.^[1] Part conversation, part fictional depiction, and part policy proposal, it proposes a categorization of citizens into a rigid class structure of "golden," "silver," "bronze" and "iron" socioeconomic classes. The golden citizens are trained in a rigorous 50-year long educational program to be benign oligarchs, the "philosopher-kings." The wisdom of these rulers will supposedly eliminate poverty and deprivation through fairly distributed resources, though the details on how to do this are unclear. The educational program for the rulers is the central notion of the proposal. There is a general pacifism or pacifist attitude. However, the people of the Republic are all ready to defend themselves or to compete militarily for resources (such as land) if necessary. It has few laws, no lawyers and rarely sends its citizens to war, but hires mercenaries from among its war-prone neighbors (these mercenaries were deliberately sent into dangerous situations in the hope that the more warlike populations of all surrounding countries will be weeded out, leaving peaceful peoples).

In the sixteenth century, Thomas More's book Utopia proposed an ideal society of the same name. Some readers, including utopian socialists, have chosen to accept this imaginary society as the realistic blueprint for a working nation, while others have postulated that More intended nothing of the sort. Some^[who?] maintain the position that More's Utopia functions only on the level of a satire, a work intended to reveal more about the England of his time than about an idealistic society. This interpretation is bolstered by the title of the book and nation, and its apparent confusion between the Greek for "no place" and "good place": "utopia" is a compound of the syllable ou-, meaning "no", and topos, meaning place. But the homophonic prefix eu-, meaning "good," also resonates in the word, with the implication that the perfectly "good place" is really "no place."

Ecology[link]

Ecological utopian society describes new ways in which society should relate to nature. They react to a perceived widening gap between the modern Western way of living that destroys nature^{[citation needed]} and the traditional way of living^{[clarification needed]} that is thought^[who?] to be more in harmony with nature. According to the Dutch philosopher Marius de Geus, ecological utopias could be sources of inspiration for green political movements.^[2]

In the novelette Rumfuddle (1973), Jack Vance presents a novel twist on the ecological utopia. His hero invents paratime travel and becomes effectively the ruler of earth by giving everyone their own alternate-earth wilderness worlds as vacation retreats/suburbs without neighbors. However, he requires them to work during the week cleaning up the original Earth and restoring its pristineness. A typical job is driving a bulldozer that shoves the detritus of industrial civilization through a portal into the oceans of a paratime garbage world.

Economics[link]

Economic utopias are based on economics. Most intentional communities attempting to create an economic utopia were formed in response to the harsh economic conditions of the 19th century.^{[dubious – discuss]}

Particularly in the early 19th century, several utopian ideas arose, often in response to their belief that social disruption was created and caused by the development of commercialism and capitalism. These are often grouped in a greater "utopian socialist" movement, due to their shared characteristics: an egalitarian distribution of goods, frequently with the total abolition of money, and citizens only doing work which they enjoy and which is for the common good, leaving them with ample time for the cultivation of the arts and sciences. One classic example of such a utopia was Edward Bellamy's Looking Backward. Another socialist utopia is William Morris' News from Nowhere, written partially in response to the top-down (bureaucratic) nature of Bellamy's utopia, which Morris criticized. However, as the socialist movement developed it moved away from utopianism; Marx in particular became a harsh critic of earlier socialism he described as utopian. (For more information see the History of Socialism article.) Also consider Eric Frank Russell's book The Great Explosion (1963) whose last section details an economic and social utopia. This forms the first mention of the idea of Local Exchange Trading Systems (LETS).^{[citation needed]}

Utopias have also been imagined by the opposite side of the political spectrum. For example, Robert A. Heinlein's The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress portrays an individualistic and libertarian utopia. Capitalist utopias of this sort are generally based on free market economies, in which the presupposition is that private enterprise and personal initiative without an institution of coercion, government, provides the greatest opportunity for achievement and progress of both the individual and society as a whole.^{[citation needed]}

Another view that capitalist utopias do not address is the issue of market failure, any more than socialist utopias address the issue of planning failure. Thus a blend of socialism and capitalism is seen by some as the type of economy in a utopia. For example, one such idea is to have small, community-owned enterprises working under a market-based model of economy. Such a model of market-based Communism itself was in theory supposed to create a "classless utopia", but no nation has ever reached that point.^{[citation needed]}

Politics and history[link]

A global utopia of world peace is often seen as one of the possible endings of history. Within the localized political structures or spheres it presents, "polyculturalism" is the model-based adaptation of possible interactions between different cultures and identities in accordance with the principles of participatory society.^[3]

The Soviet writer Ivan Efremov produced during the "Thaw" period the science-fiction utopia Andromeda (1957) in which a united humanity communicates with a galaxy-wide Great Circle and develops its technology and culture within a social framework characterized by vigorous competition between alternative philosophies.

Religious utopia[link]

New Harmony, a utopian attempt; depicted as proposed by Robert Owen

Religious utopias can be intra-religious or inter-religious. The inter-religious utopia borders on a concept like Polyculturalism and is not deemed possible in the near future or the near-far future. Fledgling theories are generally canceled as impossible, but the ideology of God and Religion used in inter-religious utopia is commonly stated by many people as their view of God. Inter-religious utopia is a condition where the leaders of different religions accept science as a part of human-living and agree to abolish all baseless superstitious beliefs. In more extended theories it goes up to the level of different religious leaders setting-aside their differences and accepting harmony, peace and understanding to unite all religions within one another, thereby forming a utopian religion or a religion of Humans with God being defined as science or the (supposed) supernatural force that reigned before the birth of the universe. Religion and God being used as a self-motivating factor for people to believe in and raise themselves out of difficult situations.

Intra-Religious utopias are based on religious ideals, and are to date those most commonly found in human society. Their members are usually required to follow and believe in the particular religious tradition that established the utopia. Some permit non-believers or non-adherents to take up residence within them; others (such as the Community at Qumran) do not.

The Islamic, Jewish, and Christian ideas of the Garden of Eden and Heaven may be interpreted as forms of utopianism, especially in their folk-religious forms. Such religious utopias are often described as "gardens of delight", implying an existence free from worry in a state of bliss or enlightenment. They postulate freedom from sin, pain, poverty, and death, and often assume communion with beings such as angels or the houri. In a similar sense the Hindu concept of Moksha and the Buddhist concept of Nirvana may be thought of as a kind of utopia. In Hinduism or Buddhism, however, Utopia is not a place but a state of mind. A belief that if we are able to practice meditation without continuous stream of thoughts, we are able to reach enlightenment. This enlightenment promises exit from the cycle of life and death, relating back to the concept of utopia.

In the United States and Europe during the Second Great Awakening of the 19th century and thereafter, many radical religious groups formed utopian societies in which all aspects of people's lives could be governed by their faith. Among the best-known of these utopian societies were the Shakers, which originated in England in the 18th century but moved to America shortly afterward. A number of religious utopian societies from Europe came to the United States from the 18th century throughout the 19th century, including the Society of the Woman in the Wilderness (led by Johannes Kelpius), the Ephrata Cloister, and the Harmony Society, among others. The Harmony Society was a Christian theosophy and pietist group founded in Iptingen, Germany, in 1785. Due to religious persecution by the Lutheran Church and the government in Württemberg,^[4] the society moved to the United States on October 7, 1803, settled in Pennsylvania, and on February 15, 1805, they, together with about 400 followers, formally organized the Harmony Society, placing all their goods in common. The group lasted until 1905, making it one of the longest-running financially successful communes in American history. The Oneida Community, founded by John Humphrey Noyes in Oneida, New York, was a utopian religious commune that lasted from 1848 to 1881. Although this utopian experiment is better known today for its manufacture of Oneida silverware, it was one of the longest-running communes in American history. The Amana Colonies were communal settlements in Iowa, started by radical German pietists, which lasted from 1855 to 1932. The Amana Corporation, manufacturer of refrigerators and household appliances, was originally started by the group. Other examples are Fountain Grove, Riker's Holy City and other Californian utopian colonies between 1855 and 1955 (Hine), as well as Sointula^[5] in British Columbia, Canada.

Science and technology[link]

Utopian flying machines, France, 1890-1900 (chromolithograph trading card).

Scientific and technological utopias are set in the future, when it is believed that advanced science and technology will allow utopian living standards; for example, the absence of death and suffering; changes in human nature and the human condition. Technology has affected the way humans have lived to such an extent that normal functions, like sleep, eating or even reproduction, have been replaced by artificial means. Other examples include a society where humans have struck a balance with technology and it is merely used to enhance the human living condition (e.g. Star Trek). In place of the static perfection of a utopia, libertarian transhumanists envision an "extropia", an open, evolving society allowing individuals and voluntary groupings to form the institutions and social forms they prefer.

Buckminster Fuller presented a theoretical basis for technological utopianism and set out to develop a variety of technologies ranging from maps to designs for cars and houses which might lead to the development of such a utopia.

One notable example of a technological and libertarian socialist utopia is Scottish author Iain Banks' Culture.

Opposing this optimism is the prediction that advanced science and technology will, through deliberate misuse or accident, cause environmental damage or even humanity's extinction. Critics, such as Jacques Ellul and Timothy Mitchell advocate precautions against the premature embrace of new technologies, raising questions on responsibility and freedom brought by division of labour. Authors such as John Zerzan and Derrick Jensen consider that modern technology is progressively depriving humans of their autonomy, and advocate the collapse of the industrial civilization, in favor of small-scale organization, as a necessary path to avoid the threat of technology on human freedom and sustainability.

There are many examples of techno-dystopias portrayed in mainstream culture, such as the classics Brave New World and Nineteen Eighty-Four, which have explored some of these topics.

Feminism[link]

Utopias have been used to explore the ramification of gender being either a societal construct, or a hard-wired imperative.^[6] The fictional aliens in Mary Gentle's Golden Witchbreed start out as gender-neutral children and do not develop into men and women until puberty, and gender has no bearing on social roles. In contrast, Doris Lessing's The Marriages Between Zones Three, Four and Five (1980) suggests that men's and women's values are inherent to the sexes and cannot be changed, making a compromise between them essential. In My Own Utopia (1961) by Elizabeth Mann Borghese, gender exists but is dependent upon age rather than sex — genderless children mature into women, some of whom eventually become men.^[6]

Utopic single-gender worlds or single-sex societies have long been one of the primary ways to explore implications of gender and gender-differences.^[7] In speculative fiction, female-only worlds have been imagined to come about by the action of disease that wipes out men, along with the development of technological or mystical method that allow female parthenogenic reproduction. The resulting society is often shown to be utopian by feminist writers. Many influential feminist utopias of this sort were written in the 1970s;^[7][8][9] the most often studied examples include Joanna Russ's The Female Man and Suzy McKee Charnas's Walk to the End of the World and Motherlines.^[9] Utopias imagined by male authors have generally included equality between sexes, rather than separation.^[10] Such worlds have been portrayed most often by lesbian or feminist authors; their use of female-only worlds allows the exploration of female independence and freedom from patriarchy. The societies may not necessarily be lesbian, or sexual at all — a famous early sexless example being Herland (1915) by Charlotte Perkins Gilman.^[8] Charlene Ball writes in Women's studies encyclopedia that use of speculative fiction to explore gender roles in future societies has been more common in the United States compared to Europe and elsewhere.^[6]

Utopianism[link]

The Golden Age by Lucas Cranach the Elder.

In many cultures, societies, and religions, there is some myth or memory of a distant past when humankind lived in a primitive and simple state, but at the same time one of perfect happiness and fulfillment. In those days, the various myths tell us, there was an instinctive harmony between man and nature. Men's needs were few and their desires limited. Both were easily satisfied by the abundance provided by nature. Accordingly, there were no motives whatsoever for war or oppression. Nor was there any need for hard and painful work. Humans were simple and pious, and felt themselves close to the gods. According to one anthropological theory, hunter-gatherers were the original affluent society.

These mythical or religious archetypes are inscribed in all the cultures and resurge with special vitality when people are in difficult and critical times. However, the projection of the myth does not take place towards the remote past, but either towards the future or towards distant and fictional places, imagining that at some time of the future, at some point of the space or beyond the death must exist the possibility of living happily.

These myths of the earliest stage of humankind have been referred to by various cultures, societies, and religions:

Golden Age The Greek poet Hesiod, around the 8th century BCE, in his compilation of the mythological tradition (the poem Works and Days), explained that, prior to the present era, there were other four progressively more perfect ones, the oldest of which was the Golden Age.

Plutarch, the Greek historian and biographer of the 1st century, dealt with the blissful and mythic past of the humanity.

Arcadia, e.g. in Sir Philip Sidney's prose romance The Old Arcadia (1580). Originally a region in the Peloponnesus, Arcadia became a synonym for any rural area that serves as a pastoral setting, as a locus amoenus ("delightful place"):

The Biblical Garden of Eden The Biblical Garden of Eden as depicted in Genesis 2 (Authorized Version of 1611):

"And the Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed. And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil. [...]

And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. [...]

And the Lord God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; [...] And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof; and the rib, which the Lord God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man."

The Land of Cockaigne

The Land of Cockaigne (also Cockaygne, Cokaygne), was

an imaginary land of idleness and luxury, famous in medieval story, and the subject of more than one poem, one of which, an early translation of a 13th-century French work, is given in Ellis's Specimens of Early English Poets. In this, "the houses were made of barley sugar and cakes, the streets were paved with pastry, and the shops supplied goods for nothing." London has been so called (see Cockney), but Boileau applies the same to Paris.^[11]

The Peach Blossom Spring, a prose written by Tao Yuanming, describes a utopian place.^[12][13] The narrative goes that a fisherman from Wuling sailed upstream a river and came across a beautiful blossoming peach grove and lush green fields covered with blossom petals.^[14] Entranced by the beauty, he continued upstream.^[14] When he reached the end of the river, he stumbled onto a small grotto.^[14] Though narrow at first, he was able to squeeze through the passage and discovered an ethereal utopia, where the people led an ideal existence in harmony with nature.^[15] He saw a vast expanse of fertile lands, clear ponds, mulberry trees, bamboo groves, and the like with a community of people of all ages and houses in neat rows.^[15] The people wore a style of clothing unlike anything he saw before. They explained that their ancestors escaped to this place during the civil unrest of the Qin Dynasty and they themselves had not left since or had contact with anyone from the outside.^[16] They had not even heard of the later dynasties of bygone times or the then-current Jin Dynasty. In the story, the community was secluded and unaffected by the troubles of the outside world.^[16] The sense of timelessness was also predominant in the story as a perfect utopian community remains unchanged, that is, it had no decline nor the need to improve.^[16] Eventually, the Chinese term Peach Blossom Spring (桃花源) came to be synonymous for the concept of utopia.^[17]

Schlaraffenland is an analogous German tradition. (See in German Wikipedia.)

These myths also express some hope that the idyllic state of affairs they describe is not irretrievably and irrevocably lost to mankind, that it can be regained in some way or other.

One way might be a quest for an "earthly paradise"—a place like Shangri-La, hidden in the Tibetan mountains and described by James Hilton in his utopian novel Lost Horizon (1933). Christopher Columbus followed directly in this tradition in his belief that he had found the Garden of Eden when, towards the end of the 15th century, he first encountered the New World and its indigenous inhabitants.

List of utopian literature[link]

Pre-20th century[link]

• The Republic (written around 380 BCE) by Plato is one of the earliest conceptions of a utopia.
• Panchaea, (In 'Sacred History' ("Hiera Anagraphê") of Euhemerus, around 3rd c BCE), described as a rational island paradise located just after the Red sea and around the Arabian Peninsula.
• The City of God (written 413–426 CE) by Augustine of Hippo, describes an ideal city, the "eternal" Jerusalem, the archetype of all Christian utopias.
• Tao Hua Yuan, (421 CE) is a utopia for Chinese intellects.
• Al-Madina al-Fadila, written by Al-Farabi (874 CE-950 CE), where he theorized an ideal state as in Plato's The Republic. Al-Farabi represented religion as a symbolic rendering of truth, and, like Plato, saw it as the duty of the philosopher to provide guidance to the state.
• Utopia (1516 CE) by Thomas More.
• Christianopolis (1619 CE) by Johann Valentin Andreæ, describes a Christian utopia inhabited by a community of scholar-artisans and run as a democracy.
• The City of the Sun (1623 CE) by Tommaso Campanella depicts a theocratic and egalitarian society.
• New Atlantis (1627 CE) by Francis Bacon.
• The Law of Freedom in a Platform (1652 CE), by Gerrard Winstanley.
• Gulliver's Travels (1726 CE), Book IV, satire.
• Erewhon (1872 CE) by Samuel Butler, constitute a satiric romp through a hidden utopia (with dystopian elements) in the mountains of New Zealand.
• News from Nowhere by William Morris (1892 CE), Shows "Nowhere", a place without politics, a future society based on common ownership and democratic control of the means of production.^[18]
• Looking Backward (1888 CE) by Edward Bellamy.
• Gloriana, or the Revolution of 1900 (1890 CE) by Lady Florence Dixie. The female protagonist poses as a man, Hector l'Estrange, is elected to the House of Commons, and wins women the vote. The book ends in the year 1999 CE, with a description of a prosperous and peaceful Britain governed by women.^[19]

20th century[link]

• A Modern Utopia (1905) by H.G. Wells.
• A Crystal Age (1906), by W.H. Hudson. First published anonymously, in 1887. An amateur ornithologist and botanist falls down a crevice, and wakes up centuries later, in a world where humans live in families, in harmony with each other and animals; but, where reproduction, emotions, and secondary sexual characteristics are repressed, except for the Alpha males and females; and, the human species is gradually dying out.
• Men Like Gods (1923) by H.G. Wells, men and women in an alternative universe live without world government in a perfected state of anarchy; "Our education is our government," a Utopian named Lion says;^[20] sectarian religion, like politics, has died away, and advanced scientific research flourishes; life is governed by "the Five Principles of Liberty," which are privacy, free movement, unlimited knowledge, truthfulness, and free discussion and criticism.
• Islandia (1942), by Austin Tappan Wright, an imaginary island in the Southern Hemisphere, a utopia containing many Arcadian elements, including a policy of isolation from the outside world and a rejection of industrialism. (In three sequels by Mark Saxton, including The Islar (1969), below.)
• In the film Road to Utopia (1943), it was suggested (comically) that a personal Utopia could be obtained from the wealth of gold mines in Alaska, USA.
• Walden Two (1948) by B. F. Skinner, a community in which every aspect of living is put to rigorous scientific testing. A professor and his colleagues question the effectiveness of the community started by an eccentric man named T.E. Frazier.
• Childhood's End (1954) by Arthur C. Clarke, alien beings guide humanity towards a more economically productive and technologically advanced society, allowing humans to broaden their mental capacities.
• Big Planet (1957), by Jack Vance, depicts a world in which attempts by utopian misfits to set up new societies have gone haywire after many revert to savagery and violence. But one city, Kirstendale, sets up a successful order in which citizens constantly shift their status, titles and duties (from servant to aristocrat and back again) according to an elaborate schedule.
• Island (1962) by Aldous Huxley follows the story of Will Farnaby, a cynical journalist, who shipwrecks on the fictional island of Pala and experiences their unique culture and traditions which create a utopian society.
• The Islar (1969), the Islandians develop a modern air force to fend off hostile communist-allied neighbors, and debate whether to join the UN.
• The Lathe of Heaven (1971), by Ursula K. Le Guin, a man is able to "effectively" dream, changing waking reality. A psychologist to whom he goes for treatment tries to use the man's talent to improve society but finds that each of his "solutions" has disastrous unintended consequences.
• The Dispossessed (1974), by Ursula K. Le Guin, the story of two planets, one very much like the capitalist, materialistic, profligate United States and the other a "nonpropertarian" society in which private ownership is unknown and people merely use as much natural resources or finished goods as they need. The two worlds are walled off (as were the capitalist and Communist world at the time of its writing). A physicist named Shevek travels between the two worlds and compares them in a literary structure much like that of Tolstoy's War and Peace.
• Ecotopia: The Notebooks and Reports of William Weston (1975) by Ernest Callenbach, ecological utopia in which the Pacific Northwest has seceded from the union to set up a new society.
• Woman on the Edge of Time (1976) by Marge Piercy, the story of a middle-aged Hispanic woman who has visions of two alternative futures, one utopian and the other dystopian.
• The Probability Broach (1980), by L. Neil Smith, presents both utopian and dystopian views of present day North America, through alternative outcomes of the American War for Independence.
• Always Coming Home (1985), by Ursula K. Le Guin, a combination of fiction and fictional anthropology about a society in California in the distant future.
• The Fifth Sacred Thing (1993), by Starhawk, a post-apocalyptic novel depicting two societies, one a sustainable economy based on social justice, and its neighbor, a militaristic and intolerant theocracy.
• The Giver (1993), a Young Adult novel by Lois Lowry

21st Century[link]

• Aria (2001-2008), by Kozue Amano, is a manga and anime series set on terraformed version of the planet Mars in the 24th century. The main character, Akari, is a trainee gondolier working in the city of Neo-Venezia, based on modern day Venice.

See also[link]

Notes[link]

References[link]

• Swirski, Peter (2011) American Utopia and Social Engineering in Literature, Social Thought, and Political History. New York, Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-89192-9
• Patricia Vieira & Michael Marder, editors (2011) Existential Utopia: New Perspectives on Utopian Thought (London & New York: Continuum) ISBN 1-4411-6921-0
• Kumar, Krishan (1991) Utopianism (Milton Keynes: Open University Press) ISBN 0-335-15361-5
• Manuel, Frank & Manuel, Fritzie (1979) Utopian Thought in the Western World (Oxford: Blackwell) ISBN 0-674-93185-8
• Hine, Robert V. (1983) California's Utopian Colonies (University of California Press) ISBN 0-520-04885-7
• Kumar, K (1987) Utopia and Anti-utopia in Modern Times (Oxford: Blackwell) ISBN 0-631-16714-5
• Shadurski, Maxim I. (2007) Literary Utopias from More to Huxley: The Issues of Genre Poetics and Semiosphere. Finding an Island (Moscow: URSS) ISBN 978-5-382-00362-7

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Utopia

Wikisource has the text of the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia article Utopia.

• The Utopian - Magazine about contemporary politics, art and culture that takes from utopian thought a spirit of free inquiry and open-mindedness
• Utopia - The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition, 2001
• Society for Utopian Studies - an international, interdisciplinary association devoted to the study of utopianism, with a particular emphasis on literary and experimental utopias.
• History of 15 Finnish utopian settlements in Africa, the Americas, Asia, Australia and Europe.
• Towards Another Utopia of The City Institute of Urban Design, Bremen, Germany
• Utopias - a learning resource from the British Library
• Utopia and Utopianism - an academic journal
• Utopia of the GOOD An essay on Utopias and their nature.
• Review of Ehud Ben ZVI, Ed. (2006). Utopia and Dystopia in Prophetic Literature. Helsinki: The Finish Exegetical Society. A collection of articles on the issue of utopia and dystopia.

Tom Dice
Tom Dice in Oslo (2010)
Background information
Birth name	Tom Eeckhout
Born	(1989-11-25) 25 November 1989 (age 22)
Origin	Eeklo, Belgium
Genres	Pop, Acoustic
Occupations	Singer-songwriter
Instruments	Guitar
Years active	2008–present
Labels	SonicAngel
Associated acts	The Dice
Website	Tom Dice

Tom Dice (born Tom Eeckhout in Eeklo on 25 November 1989) is a Belgian singer-songwriter, who finished second in the Flemish version of The X Factor in 2008. Dice represented Belgium in the Eurovision Song Contest 2010 final on 29 May in Oslo. Tom Dice ended up in sixth, one of Flanders best placements ever in the contest. Dice was also the first Belgian act to qualify for the final since the introduction of the semifinals in Eurovision.

[edit] Youth and X Factor

Dice learned to play the guitar as a child, began songwriting in his early teens and at the age of 15 joined band The Dice, using Tom Eeckhout Dice as his stage name.^[1] In 2008 he entered the Flemish X Factor and, with Maurice Engelen as his vocal coach, finished runner-up to Dirk De Smet.

Following X Factor, Dice became the first signing to new label SonicAngel, and in June 2009, now under the name of Tom Dice, released his first single, an acoustic cover of Leona Lewis' Bleeding Love.^[2] The single went on to reach number 7 on the Flemish singles chart during a 14-week chart run.^[3] Dice received a nomination in the 2009 TMF Awards in the category "Best New Artist", losing out to Jasper Erkens.^[4]

In May 2009, Dice began working, again with Engelen, on his debut album, which was originally scheduled for an October 2009 release, but was delayed until April 2010.^[5]

Eurovision Song Contest 2010[link]

Tom Dice performing at the Eurovision Song Contest 2010

On 25 November 2009, Dice was chosen by the Flemish broadcaster Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroep (VRT) to represent Belgium at the Eurovision Song Contest 2010 in Oslo, Norway. His distinctive voice and TV experience were cited among the factors behind his selection.^[6] Reaction in Belgium to the announcement that Dice had been chosen by internal means was mixed, with some feeling that an open and public selection involving different artists would have been preferable.^[7]

The chosen song "Me and My Guitar" was unveiled on 7 March 2010, and was co-written by Ashley Hicklin, Jeroen Swinnen and Dice himself.^[8] The song went to number 1 in Belgium, both on the iTunes chart and on the official Flemish and Walloon charts; it also reached number 7 in Luxembourg. Dice performed the song in the first semi-final in Oslo on 25 May 2010 and qualified for the final, in first place,^[9] making him the first Belgian act to do so in 6 years. Tom Dice finished in sixth place, one of Belgium's best placements in the contest.

Discography[link]

Albums[link]

Singles[link]

As featured artist[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Tom Dice

• Official website (Dutch)
• Recordlabel SonicAngel
• The Dice Myspace page

Alanis Morissette
Alanis Morissette signing autographs for fans after concert
Background information
Birth name	Alanis Nadine Morissette
Born	(1974-06-01) June 1, 1974 (age 38)
Origin	Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
Genres	Alternative rock, pop rock, electronica, post-grunge
Occupations	Singer, songwriter, actress, record producer
Instruments	Piano, guitar, flute, harmonica, bass, vocals
Years active	1987–present
Labels	MCA Canada, Maverick, Warner Bros., Epiphany Music
Associated acts	Tim Thorney
Website	alanis.com

Alanis Nadine Morissette (born June 1, 1974) is a Canadian^[1] singer-songwriter, guitarist, record producer, and actress. She has won 16 Juno Awards and seven Grammy Awards, was nominated for two Golden Globe Awards and also shortlisted for an Academy Award nomination. Morissette began her career in Canada, and as a teenager recorded two dance-pop albums, Alanis and Now Is the Time, under MCA Records Canada.

Her first international album was the rock-influenced Jagged Little Pill, released in 1995. Jagged has sold more than 33 million units globally.^[2][3][4] Her following album, Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie, was released in 1998 and was a success as well. Morissette took up producing duties for her subsequent albums, which include Under Rug Swept, So-Called Chaos and Flavors of Entanglement. Morissette has sold more than 60 million albums worldwide.^[5][6][7] Morissette is also known for her powerful and emotive mezzo-soprano voice.^[8]

Morissette acquired United States citizenship in 2005.^[9]

Early life[link]

Morissette was born June 1, 1974 in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada,^[10] the daughter of Georgia Mary Ann (née Feuerstein), a teacher of Hungarian descent,^[11][12] and Alan Richard Morissette, a French-Canadian high school principal.^[13] She has a twin brother, Wade Morissette, (also a musician) who was born 12 minutes after her.^[14] Morissette was raised Catholic.^[15] She attended Glebe Collegiate Institute (Ottawa, Canada) for high school.

Music career[link]

1987: First Demo[link]

Alanis recorded her first demo called "Fate Stay With Me" at Marigold Studios in Toronto, engineered by Rich Dodson of Canadian classic rock band, The Stampeders. ^[16]

1990–92: Early career[link]

In 1991 MCA Records Canada released Morissette's debut album, Alanis, in Canada only. Morissette co-wrote every track on the album with its producer, Leslie Howe. By the time it was released, she had dropped her stage name and was credited simply as Alanis. The dance-pop album went platinum,^[17] and its first single, "Too Hot", reached the top twenty on the RPM singles chart. Subsequent singles "Walk Away" and "Feel Your Love" reached the top 40. Morissette's popularity, style of music and appearance, particularly that of her hair, led her to become known as the Debbie Gibson of Canada;^[18] comparisons to Tiffany were also common. During the same period, she was a concert opening act for rapper Vanilla Ice.^[19] Morissette was nominated for three 1992 Juno Awards: Most Promising Female Vocalist of the Year (which she won), Single of the Year and Best Dance Recording (both for "Too Hot").^[20]

In 1992, she released her second album, Now Is the Time, a ballad-driven record that featured less glitzy production than Alanis and contained more thoughtful lyrics.^[18] Morissette wrote the songs with the album's producer, Leslie Howe, and Serge Côté. She said of the album, "people could go, 'Boo, hiss, hiss, this girl's like another Tiffany or whatever.' But the way I look at it ... people will like your next album if it's a suck-ass one."^[19] As with Alanis, Now Is the Time was released only in Canada and produced three top 40 singles—"An Emotion Away", the minor adult contemporary hit "No Apologies" and "(Change Is) Never a Waste of Time". It was a commercial failure, however, selling only a little more than half the copies of her first album.^[18][21] With her two-album deal with MCA Records Canada complete, Morissette was left without a major label contract.

[edit] 1993–97: Move to Los Angeles and Jagged Little Pill

In 1993 Morissette's publisher Leeds Levy at MCA Music Publishing introduced her to manager Scott Welch.^[22] Welch told HitQuarters he was impressed by her "spectacular voice", her character and her lyrics. At the time she was still living at home with her parents. Together they decided it would be best for her career to move to Toronto and start writing with other people.^[22] After graduating from high school, Morissette moved from Ottawa to Toronto.^[18] Her publisher funded part of her development and when she met producer and songwriter Glen Ballard, he believed in her talent enough to let her use his studio.^[18][22] The two wrote and recorded Morissette's first internationally released album, Jagged Little Pill, and by the spring of 1995, she had signed a deal with Maverick Records. According to manager Welch every label they had approached had passed on Morissette apart from Maverick.^[22]

	"Ironic" (1996) noicon The two-time Grammy Award-nominated song is considered one of Morissette's signature tunes.
Problems listening to this file? See media help.

Maverick Records released Jagged Little Pill internationally in 1995. The album was expected only to sell enough for Morissette to make a follow-up, but the situation changed quickly when KROQ-FM, an influential Los Angeles modern rock radio station, began playing "You Oughta Know", the album's first single.^[23] The song instantly garnered attention for its scathing, explicit lyrics,^[18] and a subsequent music video went into heavy rotation on MTV and MuchMusic.

After the success of "You Oughta Know", the album's other hit singles helped send Jagged Little Pill to the top of the charts. "All I Really Want" and "Hand In My Pocket" followed, but the fourth U.S. single, "Ironic", became Morissette's biggest hit. "You Learn" and "Head over Feet", the fifth and sixth singles, respectively, kept Jagged Little Pill in the top twenty on the Billboard 200 albums chart for more than a year. According to the RIAA, Jagged Little Pill sold more than 16 million copies in the U.S.; it sold 33 million worldwide,^[24] making it the second biggest selling album by a female artist (behind Shania Twain's Come On Over).^[25][26] Morissette's popularity grew significantly in Canada, where the album was certified twelve times platinum^[17] and produced four RPM chart-toppers: "Hand In My Pocket", "Ironic", "You Learn", and "Head over Feet". The album was also a bestseller in Australia and the United Kingdom.^[27][28]

Morissette's success with Jagged Little Pill was credited with leading to the introduction of female singers such as Shakira, Tracy Bonham, Meredith Brooks, Patti Rothberg and, in the early 2000s, Pink and fellow Canadian Avril Lavigne.^[29] She was criticized for collaborating with producer and supposed image-maker Ballard, and her previous albums also proved a hindrance for her respectability.^[18][30] Morissette and the album won six Juno Awards in 1996: Album of the Year, Single of the Year ("You Oughta Know"), Female Vocalist of the Year, Songwriter of the Year and Best Rock Album.^[31] At the 1996 Grammy Awards, she won Best Female Rock Vocal Performance, Best Rock Song (both for "You Oughta Know"), Best Rock Album and Album of the Year.^[32]

Later in 1996, Morissette embarked on an 18-month world tour in support of Jagged Little Pill, beginning in small clubs and ending in large venues. Taylor Hawkins, who later joined the Foo Fighters, was the tour's drummer. "Ironic" was nominated for two 1997 Grammy Awards—Record of the Year and Best Music Video, Short Form^[33]—and won Single of the Year at the 1997 Juno Awards, where Morissette also won Songwriter of the Year and the International Achievement Award.^[34] The video Jagged Little Pill, Live, which was co-directed by Morissette and chronicled the bulk of her tour, won a 1998 Grammy Award for Best Music Video, Long Form.^[35]

Following the stressful tour, Morissette started practicing Iyengar Yoga for balancing, and after the last December 1996 show, she headed to India for six weeks, accompanied by her mother, two aunts and two female friends.^[36]

[edit] 1998–2000: Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie and Alanis Unplugged

	"Thank U" (1998) noicon The most successful single from 1998's Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie was written after a trip to India. "That I Would Be Good" (1998) noicon A live version of this ballad was released to promote 1999's Alanis Unplugged.
Problems listening to these files? See media help.

Morissette was featured as a guest vocalist on Ringo Starr's cover of "Drift Away" on his 1998 album, Vertical Man, and on the songs "Don't Drink the Water" and "Spoon" on the Dave Matthews Band album Before These Crowded Streets. She recorded the song "Uninvited" for the soundtrack to the 1998 film City of Angels. Although the track was never commercially released as a single, it received widespread radio airplay in the U.S. At the 1999 Grammy Awards, it won in the categories of Best Rock Song and Best Female Rock Vocal Performance, and was nominated for Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media.^[37] Later in 1998, Morissette released her fourth album, Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie, which she wrote and produced with Glen Ballard.

Privately, the label hoped to sell a million copies of the album on initial release;^[38] instead, it debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 chart with first-week sales of 469,000 copies—a record, at the time, for the highest first-week sales of an album by a female artist.^[39] The wordy, personal lyrics on Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie alienated many fans, and after the album sold considerably less than Jagged Little Pill, many labelled it an example of the sophomore jinx.^[18][40] However, it received positive reviews, including a four-star review from Rolling Stone.^[41] In Canada, it won the Juno Award for Best Album and was certified four times platinum.^[17][42] "Thank U", the album's only major international hit single, was nominated for the 2000 Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance; the music video, which featured Morissette nude, generated mild controversy.^[38][43] Morissette herself directed the videos for "Unsent" and "So Pure", which won, respectively, the MuchMusic Video Award for Best Director and the Juno Award for Video of the Year.^[42][44] The "So Pure" video features actor Dash Mihok, with whom Morissette was in a relationship at the time.^[38]

Morissette contributed vocals to "Mercy", "Hope", "Innocence", and "Faith", four tracks on Jonathan Elias's project The Prayer Cycle, which was released in 1999. The same year, she released the live acoustic album Alanis Unplugged, which was recorded during her appearance on the television show MTV Unplugged. It featured tracks from her previous two albums alongside four new songs, including "King of Pain" (a cover of The Police song) and "No Pressure over Cappuccino", which Morissette wrote with her main guitar player, Nick Lashley. The recording of the Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie track "That I Would Be Good", released as a single, became a minor hit on hot adult contemporary radio in America. Also in 1999, Morissette released a live version of her song "Are You Still Mad" on the charity album Live in the X Lounge II. For her live rendition of "So Pure" at Woodstock '99, she was nominated for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance at the 2001 Grammy Awards.^[45] During summer 1999, Alanis toured with singer/songwriter Tori Amos on the 5 And A Half Weeks Tour in support of Amos' album To Venus And Back.

[edit] 2001–03: Under Rug Swept and Feast on Scraps

In 2001, Morissette was featured with Stephanie McKay on the Tricky song "Excess", which is on his album Blowback. Morissette released her fifth studio album, Under Rug Swept, in February 2002. For the first time in her career, she took on the role of sole writer and producer of an album. Her band, comprising Joel Shearer, Nick Lashley, Chris Chaney, and Gary Novak, played the majority of the instruments; additional contributions came from Eric Avery, Dean DeLeo, Flea, and Meshell Ndegeocello.

Under Rug Swept debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 chart, eventually going platinum in Canada and selling one million copies in the U.S.^[17][46] It produced the hit single "Hands Clean", which topped the Canadian Singles Chart and received substantial radio play; for her work on "Hands Clean" and "So Unsexy", Morissette won a Juno Award for Producer of the Year.^[47] A second single, "Precious Illusions", was released, but it did not garner significant success outside Canada or U.S. hot AC radio.

Later in 2002, Morissette released the combination package Feast on Scraps, which includes a DVD of live concert and backstage documentary footage directed by her and a CD containing eight previously unreleased songs from the Under Rug Swept recording sessions. Preceded by the single "Simple Together", it sold roughly 70,000 copies in the U.S. and was nominated for a Juno Award for Music DVD of the Year.^[46][48]

[edit] 2004–05: So-Called Chaos, Jagged Little Pill Acoustic and The Collection

Alanis Morissette, 2004

	"Everything" (2004) noicon The first single from So Called Chaos showcased a more relaxed and self-evaluating Morissette and was a moderate success.
Problems listening to this file? See media help.

Morissette hosted the Juno Awards of 2004 dressed in a bathrobe, which she took off to reveal a flesh-colored bodysuit, a response to the era of censorship in the U.S. caused by Janet Jackson's breast-reveal incident during the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show.^[49] Morissette released her sixth studio album, So-Called Chaos, in May 2004. She wrote the songs on her own again, and co-produced the album with Tim Thorney and pop music producer John Shanks. The album debuted at number five on the Billboard 200 chart to generally mixed critical reviews, and it became Morissette's lowest seller in the U.S.^[46] The lead single, "Everything", achieved major success on adult top 40 radio in America and was moderately popular elsewhere, particularly in Canada, although it failed to reach the top 40 on the U.S. Hot 100. Because the first line of the song includes the word asshole, American radio stations refused to play it, and the single version was changed to include the word nightmare instead.^[49] Two other singles, "Out Is Through" and "Eight Easy Steps", fared considerably worse commercially than "Everything", although a dance mix of "Eight Easy Steps" was a U.S. club hit.

Morissette embarked on a U.S. summer tour with long-time friends and fellow Canadians Barenaked Ladies, working with the non-profit environmental organization Reverb.^[50]

To commemorate the tenth anniversary of Jagged Little Pill, Morissette released a studio acoustic version, Jagged Little Pill Acoustic, in June 2005. The album was released exclusively through Starbucks' Hear Music retail concept through their coffee shops for a six-week run. The limited availability led to a dispute between Maverick Records and HMV North America, who retaliated by removing Morissette's other albums from sale for the duration of Starbucks's exclusive six-week sale.^[51][52] As of November 2010, Jagged Little Pill Acoustic had sold 372,000 copies in the U.S.,^[53] and a video for "Hand in My Pocket" received rotation on VH1 in America. The accompanying tour ran for two months in mid 2005, with Morissette playing small theatre venues. During the same period, Morissette was inducted into Canada's Walk of Fame.^[54]

Morissette opened for The Rolling Stones for a few dates of their A Bigger Bang Tour in the autumn of 2005.

Morissette released the greatest hits album Alanis Morissette: The Collection in late 2005. The lead single and only new track, a cover of Seal's "Crazy", was a U.S. adult top 40 and dance hit, but it achieved only minimal chart success elsewhere. A limited edition of The Collection features a DVD including a documentary with videos of two unreleased songs from Morissette's 1996 Can't Not Tour: "King of Intimidation" and "Can't Not". (A reworked version of "Can't Not" had also appeared on Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie.) The DVD also includes a ninety-second clip of the unreleased video for the single "Joining You". As of November 2010, The Collection had sold 373,000 copies in the U.S., according to Soundscan.^[53]

Morissette contributed the song "Wunderkind" to the soundtrack of the film The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, and it was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song.^[55]

Alanis performed two songs with Avril Lavigne: Morissette's "Ironic" and Lavigne's "Losing Grip".

[edit] 2006–10: Flavors of Entanglement and leaving Maverick Records

Alanis during a live concert in Barcelona, June 2008

2006 marked the first year in Morissette's musical career without a single concert appearance showcasing her own songs, with the exception of an appearance on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno in January when she performed "Wunderkind".

On April 1, 2007, Morissette released a tongue-in-cheek cover of The Black Eyed Peas's selection "My Humps", which she recorded in a slow, mournful voice, accompanied only by a piano. The accompanying YouTube-hosted video, in which she dances provocatively with a group of men and hits the ones who attempt to touch her "lady lumps", had received 16,465,653 views on February 15, 2009.^[56] Morissette did not take any interviews for a time to explain the song, and it was theorized that she did it as an April Fools' Day joke.^[57] Black Eyed Peas vocalist Stacy "Fergie" Ferguson responded by sending Morissette a buttocks-shaped cake with an approving note.^[58] On the verge of the release of her latest album, she finally elaborated on how the video came to be, citing that she became very much emotionally loaded while recording her new songs one after the other and one day she wished she could do a simple song like "My Humps" in a conversation with Guy Sigsworth and the joke just took a life of its own when they started working on it.^[56]

Morissette performed at a gig for The Nightwatchman, a.k.a. Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine and Audioslave fame, at the Hotel Café in Los Angeles in April 2007. The following June, she performed "The Star-Spangled Banner" and "O Canada", the American and Canadian national anthems, in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Finals between the Ottawa Senators and the Anaheim Ducks in Ottawa, Ontario.^[59] (The NHL requires arenas to perform both the American and Canadian national anthems at games involving teams from both countries.) In early 2008, Morissette participated in a tour with Matchbox Twenty and Mutemath as a special guest.

Morissette's seventh studio album, Flavors of Entanglement, which was produced by Guy Sigsworth, was released in mid 2008. She has stated that in late 2008, she would embark on a North American headlining tour, but in the meantime she would be promoting the album internationally by performing at shows and festivals and making television and radio appearances. The album's first single was "Underneath", a video for which was submitted to the 2007 Elevate Film Festival, the purpose of which festival was to create documentaries, music videos, narratives and shorts regarding subjects to raise the level of human consciousness on the earth.^[60] On October 3, 2008, Morissette released the video for her latest single, "Not as We".^[61]

Recently, Morissette has contributed to 1 Giant Leap, performing "Arrival" with Zap Mama and she has released an acoustic version of her song "Still" as part of a compilation from Music for Relief in support of the 2010 Haiti earthquake crisis. Morissette has also recorded a cover of the 1984 Willie Nelson and Julio Iglesias hit, "To All the Girls I've Loved Before", re-written as "To All the Boys I've Loved Before".^[62] Nelson played rhythm guitar on the recording.^[62]

In April 2010, Morissette released the song "I Remain", which she wrote for the Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time soundtrack.

On May 26, 2010, the season finale of American Idol, Morissette performed a duet of her song "You Oughta Know" with Runner Up Crystal Bowersox.^[63]

Morissette left Maverick Records after all promotion for Flavors was completed.

[edit] 2011–present: Havoc and Bright Lights and upcoming 2012 tour

On October 11, 2011, Morissette posted a picture of herself in a recording studio to her Facebook page. The picture included the message "back in the studio saddle....the songs have come in droves...!", indicating that Morissette had begun work on her next album. However, it was unknown if she would be still associated with Maverick Records, after the completion of her last album Flavors of Entanglement.^[64]

On November 20, 2011, Morissette appeared at the American Music Awards. When asked about the new album during a short interview, she said she had recorded thirty-one songs, and that the album would "likely be out next year, probably [in] summertime".^[65]

On December 21, 2011, Morissette performed a duet of "Uninvited" with finalist Josh Krajcik during the performance finale of the X-Factor.

Morissette is embarking on a European tour for the Summer of 2012, according to Alanis.com. In early May 2012, a new song called "Magical Child" appeared on a Starbucks compilation called Every Mother Counts.^[66]

Rolling Stone Magazine initially reported that Morissette's new album would be released in June 2012 and revealed the titles of four album tracks: "Spiral," "Guardian," "Celebrity," and "Havoc." "Spiral" and "Guardian" were performed at Guitar Center sessions.^[67] "Havoc" is a ballad, while "Celebrity" is described to be "a scathing takedown of America's obsession with fame."^[68]

On May 2, 2012, Morissette revealed through her Facebook account that her eighth studio album, entitled Havoc and Bright Lights, would be released in August 2012, on new label "Collective Sound", distributed by Sony's RED Distribution.^[69] On the same day, Billboard precised the date as August 28 and revealed the album would contain twelve tracks. The album's lead single, "Guardian", is due for release on iTunes on May 15, 2012, and will hit the radio airwaves four days prior to this.^[70]

Acting career[link]

In 1986, Morissette had her first stint as an actor: five episodes of the children's television show You Can't Do That on Television. She appeared on stage with the Orpheus Musical Theatre Society in 1985 and 1988.^[71]

In 1993, she appeared in the film Just One of the Girls starring Corey Haim, which she described as "horrible".^{[clarification needed][citation needed]}

In 1999, Morissette delved into acting again, for the first time since 1993, appearing as God in the Kevin Smith comedy Dogma and contributing the song "Still" to its soundtrack. Morissette reprised her role as God for a post-credits scene in Smith's next film, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, to literally close the book on the View Askewniverse. She also appeared in the hit HBO comedies Sex and the City and Curb Your Enthusiasm, appeared in the play The Vagina Monologues, and had a brief role in the Brazilian hit soap opera "Celebridade" (Celebrity).

In late 2003, Morissette appeared in the Off-Broadway play The Exonerated as Sunny Jacobs, a death row inmate freed after proof surfaced that she was innocent. In April 2006, MTV News reported that Morissette would reprise her role in The Exonerated in London from May 23 until May 28.^[72]

She expanded her acting credentials with the July 2004 release of the Cole Porter biographical film De-Lovely, in which she performed the song "Let's Do It (Let's Fall in Love)" and had a brief role as an anonymous stage performer. In February 2005, she made a guest appearance on the Canadian television show Degrassi: The Next Generation with Dogma co-star Jason Mewes and director Kevin Smith.

In 2006, she guest starred in an episode of Lifetime's Lovespring International as a homeless woman named Lucinda, three episodes of FX's Nip/Tuck, playing a lesbian named Poppy, and the mockumentary/documentary Pittsburgh as herself.

Morissette has appeared in eight episodes of Weeds, playing Dr. Audra Kitson, a "no-nonsense obstetrician" who treats pregnant main character Nancy Botwin.^[73] Her first episode aired in July 2009.

In early 2010 Morissette returned to the stage, performing a one night engagement in An Oak Tree, an experimental play in Los Angeles. The performance was a sell out. In April 2010 Morissette was confirmed in the cast of Weeds season six, performing again her role as Dr. Audra Kitson.^[74]

Morissette also starred in a film adaptation of Philip K. Dick's novel Radio Free Albemuth. Morissette plays Sylvia, an ordinary woman in unexpected remission from lymphoma. Morissette stated that she is "...a big fan of Philip K. Dick's poetic and expansively imaginative books" and that she "feel[s] blessed to portray Sylvia, and to be part of this story being told in film".^[75]

She appeared as Ava Alexander's Maya Rudolph former Sound LLC bandmate, Amanda in one episode of NBC's "Up All Night" ^[76] on February 16, 2012. Rudolph officiated as minister for Morissette's wedding with both performing the explicit version of their hit hip-hop song, "Back It Up (Beep Beep)".

Personal life[link]

Morissette dated actor and comedian Dave Coulier for a short time in the early 1990s.^[77] In a 2008 interview with the Calgary Herald, Coulier claimed to be the ex-boyfriend who inspired Morissette's song "You Oughta Know".^[78] Morissette, however, has maintained her silence on the subject of the song.^[79]

Morissette met Canadian actor Ryan Reynolds at Drew Barrymore's birthday party in 2002, and the couple began dating soon after.^[80] They announced their engagement in June 2004.^[78] In February 2007, representatives for Morissette and Reynolds announced they had mutually decided to end their engagement.^[81] Morissette has stated that her album Flavors of Entanglement was created out of her grief after the break-up, saying that "it was cathartic".^[82]

Morissette became an American citizen in 2005, while maintaining her Canadian citizenship.^[9]

On May 22, 2010, Morissette married rapper Mario “MC Souleye” Treadway (born May 3, 1980 in Boston, Massachusetts) in a private ceremony at their Los Angeles home.^[83] Their first child, Ever Imre Morissette-Treadway, was born on December 25, 2010.^[84]

Morissette is also a vegan, and an active environmentalist.^[85]

Discography[link]

• Alanis (1991)
• Now Is the Time (1992)
• Jagged Little Pill (1995)
• Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie (1998)
• Under Rug Swept (2002)
• So-Called Chaos (2004)
• Flavors of Entanglement (2008)
• Havoc and Bright Lights (2012)

Filmography[link]

Tours[link]

• 1991: Vanilla Ice tour (opening act)
• 1995: Jagged Little Pill/Intellectual Intercourse Tour
• 1996: Can't Not Tour
• 1998: Club Tour (Alanis Morissette tour)
• 1999: Junkie Tour
• 1999: Junkie Tour Australian Leg (with Garbage)
• 1999: 5 ½ Weeks Tour (with Tori Amos)
• 2000: One Tour
• 2001: Under Rug Swept Tour
• 2002: Toward Our Union Mended Tour
• 2003: All I Really Want/Feast on Scraps Tour
• 2004: So-Called Chaos/Au Naturale Tour (with Barenaked Ladies)
• 2005: Diamond Wink Tour
• 2008: Exile in America (with Matchbox Twenty and Mutemath)
• 2008: Flavors of Entanglement Tour
• 2009: Flavors of Entanglement South American Tour

Awards and nominations[link]

See also[link]

	Book: Alanis Morissette
Wikipedia books are collections of articles that can be downloaded or ordered in print.

• Canadian rock
• Music of Canada
• Best selling music artists
• List of diamond-certified albums in Canada
• List of best-selling albums worldwide
• List of best-selling music artists

References[link]

Further reading[link]