A recording, Record, Records or The Record may mean:

An item or collection of data:

Gramophone record (also called "phonograph record"), mechanical analog audio storage medium

Sound recording and reproduction

Record (computer science), a data structure

* Storage record, a basic input/output structure

* Record (database), a set of fields in a database related to one entity

* Boot record, record used to start an operating system

Document for administrative use

* Business record of economic transactions

* Medical record of a person's medical history and treatments

* Service record, usually associated with military service

* Minutes, a summary of the proceedings at a meeting

* Public records, information that has been filed or recorded by public agencies

* Docket (court), the summary of proceedings in a court (US)

* A transcript is a verbatim record of some proceedings, in particular a court transcript is a record of a law court case or similar procedure

* Recording (real estate), the act of documenting real estate transactions

* Criminal record, a list of a person's criminal convictions.

* Anything which is recorded in writing or otherwise for future reference

World record, an unsurpassed accomplishment or statistic

Win–loss record (pitching), the number of wins and losses a baseball pitcher has accumulated

Archaeological record, the body of archaeological evidence

Entertainment:

The Records, an English power pop band

''Records'' (album), a 1982 album by rock band Foreigner

''The Record'' (album), a 1982 punk rock album by the band Fear

''The Record'' (film), a South Korean film directed by Ki-Hun Kim

Software:

Record (software), a music recording program

Periodicals:

In the United States:

* ''The Yale Record'', the country's oldest college humor magazine, operated out of New Haven, Connecticut

* ''The Record'' (Bergen County), a newspaper in Bergen County, New Jersey

* ''The Record'' (Stockton), a newspaper in Stockton, California

* ''The Record'' (Troy), a newspaper in Troy, New York

* ''The Philadelphia Record'', a newspaper in Philadelphia published 1877–1947

In Canada:

* ''The Record'' (Waterloo Region), a newspaper in Waterloo Region, Ontario

* ''The Record'' (Sherbrooke), a newspaper in Quebec

* ''The Record'' (magazine), a former trade magazine of the Canadian music industry

Elsewhere:

* ''Record'' (newspaper), a Portuguese sports newspaper

* ''The Record Music Magazine'', an Indian publication featuring music personalities

* ''Récord'', a Mexican sports newspaper

* ''Record'' (magazine), the official church paper of the South Pacific Division of Seventh-day Adventists

Broadcasting:

Rede Record, a Brazilian TV network

Record News, the Rede Record's news channel 1

People:

Max Records, American child actor

Brand names:

Record (agricultural vehicles), a Greek vehicle manufacturer

de:Record es:Récord fr:Record ko:레코드 it:Record ms:Rekod nl:Record ja:レコード (曖昧さ回避) pt:Record ru:Рекорд (значения) simple:Record

name	Mike Posner
background	solo_singer
birth name	Michael Robert Posner
birth date	February 12, 1988
birth place	Southfield, Michigan, U.S.
origin	Detroit, Michigan, United States
genre	R&B;, dance, electronic, hip hop
occupation	Singer, songwriter
years active	2007–present
label	J, RCA
associated acts	Big Sean, Lil Wayne, Cher Lloyd, Your Favorite Martian, Justin Bieber
website	}}

Michael Robert "Mike" Posner (born February 12, 1988) is an American singer, songwriter, and producer. Posner released his debut album, ''31 Minutes to Takeoff'', on August 10, 2010. The album includes the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 Top 10 single "Cooler Than Me," his second single, "Please Don't Go," as well as his third single, "Bow Chicka Wow Wow".

Early life and education

Posner was born and raised in Southfield, Michigan. His father, a Wayne County Prosecutor, is Jewish, and his mother is Catholic. Posner attended and graduated from Groves High School, where he ran varsity track, and went on to attend Duke University. While in high school, Posner wrote one of his love songs about then crush Alyssa Jacobs. There, Posner went Sigma Nu and graduated in 2010 with a degree in sociology and a certificate in markets and management, with an overall GPA of 3.59.

Career

2008–2009: Musical beginnings

Manager Daniel Weisman of Elitaste Inc. first heard about Mike Posner in 2008 when Jared Evan manager Saytum passed on some tracks Posner had created for Weisman's then client Wale. Weisman got in touch with Posner and, impressed by songs including "Cooler Than Me", began an informal mentoring relationship with the artist over iChat. The association was made official in early 2009 after Posner's second mixtape, ''A Matter of Time'' (the first mixtape being Reflections of a Lost Teen) started attracting industry attention. Working with Don Cannon and DJ Benzi, the mixtape was released from his dorm room at Duke University in March 2009 under the name, "Mike Posner & the Brain Trust," the Brain Trust referring to Posner's supporters. The release was unusual for being distributed for free through iTunes U, a channel designed for educational audio content. Although Posner was not the only artist to take advantage of this loophole, his release was the most organised and high profile, and attracted the largest response, immediately reaching the number one position on the iTunes U chart, thanks to his manager Saytum.

In July 2009, Posner signed a deal with J Records (RCA/Sony). He chose to return to Duke after signing his record deal, and toured on the weekends while at the same time recording for his debut album. Posner's third mixtape ''One Foot Out the Door'', hosted by Clinton Sparks, was released on October 27, 2009. The mixtape was accompanied by a web series also entitled ''One Foot Out the Door'' which aired bi-weekly from September 30, 2009 until December 2009.

2010: ''31 Minutes to Takeoff''

''31 Minutes to Takeoff'', his debut album was released on August 10, 2010. The first single from the album, "Cooler Than Me," produced by Gigamesh, climbed the Billboard Hot 100 to reach No. 6 before going on to attain global success. He performed at Bonnaroo and the 2010 Warped Tour where he was a crowd favorite. A second single, "Please Don't Go," was issued on July 20, 2010. He is also featured in Cher Lloyd's "With Ur Love" which was released as a single on October 30, 2011.

Posner performed on national television for the first time on the talk show ''Last Call with Carson Daly'' on Tuesday, 27 October, 2009. He also performed his song "Cooler Than Me" on ''America's Got Talent'' on July 28, 2010. He performed on ''Live with Regis and Kelly'' on August 3, and on ''Late Night with Jimmy Fallon'' on August 4. He performed "Cooler Than Me" on ''The Wendy Williams Show'' on August 5, 2010, and on ''The Tonight Show with Jay Leno'' on August 9, 2010. Mike Posner has collaborated with artists Lil Wayne, Bruno Mars, Wale, Big Sean, Bun B, We The Kings, Saigon, One Be Lo, Eric Holljes, Cher Lloyd, and 3OH!3. On February 1, 2011 Posner released a radio mix of "Bow Chicka Wow Wow" which included a new verse from Lil Wayne. He performed his song Bow Chicka Wow Wow live on The Ellen Show on April 19, 2011.

He has also covered many popular songs, including Beyoncé's "Halo," Adele's "Rolling in the Deep," Coldplay's "The Scientist" and Kanye West's Heartless.

Posner was nominated for a 2010 American Music Award (T-Mobile Breakthrough Artist), a 2010 MTV Europe Music Award (Push Artist) and won a 2011 ASCAP Award ("Cooler Than Me").

2011–present: Second album

On October 7, 2011, RCA Music Group announced it was disbanding J Records along with Arista Records and Jive Records. With the shutdown, Posner (and all other artists previously signed to these three labels) will release his future material on the RCA Records brand.

On January 18, 2012, Posner collaborated with Your Favorite Martian on the YouTube video, ''She Looks Like Sex'', a remix of his song "Looks Like Sex"

It was revealed on March 1, 2012 that Posner had collaborated with Justin Bieber to write the first single from Bieber's upcoming album ''Believe''. The single is called "Boyfriend" and was released on March 26, 2012.

Discography

''31 Minutes to Takeoff'' (2010)

''Sky High'' (2012)

References

External links

Recording Institute of Detroit Home Page

Category:1988 births Category:American dance musicians Category:American hip hop musicians Category:American male singers Category:American people of Jewish descent Category:Duke University alumni Category:English-language singers Category:Hip hop singers Category:Blue-eyed soul singers Category:Living people Category:Musicians from Detroit, Michigan Category:People from Southfield, Michigan Category:J Records artists Category:RCA Records artists

da:Mike Posner es:Mike Posner de:Mike Posner et:Mike Posner fa:مایک پوزنر (نوازنده) fr:Mike Posner it:Mike Posner he:מייק פוזנר hu:Mike Posner nl:Mike Posner pl:Mike Posner pt:Mike Posner ru:Познер, Майк simple:Mike Posner th:ไมก์ พอสเนอร์ zh:麥克·波斯納

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

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

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

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

Life and career

1981–2001: Early life and Career Beginnings

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

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

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

2001–2002: ''Songs in A Minor''

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

2006–2008: Film debut and ''As I Am''

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

2011–present: Other ventures and upcoming album

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

on September 23, she performed at ''iHeart Music Festival'' and sang her new song "A Place Of My Own", which is present in her fifth studio album. On October 7, RCA Music Group announced it was disbanding J Records along with Arista Records and Jive Records. With the shutdown, Keys (and all other artists previously signed to these three labels) will release her future material on RCA Records. On Saturday February 18, 2012, Alicia performed "Send Me an Angel" at Whitney Houston's memorial at the New Hope Baptist Church in Newark, New Jersey.On April 26, 2012, Alicia Keys Performed a new song "Not Even a King", gracing the stage of MTV Up Front, the music network’s showcase of its summer television lineup. Accompanied only by a piano, Keys hit the keys and sang her heart out, treating the audience to the brand-new song from her upcoming (and as yet untitled) new album.

Artistry

Musical style

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

Songwriting, voice and achievments

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

Throughout her career, Keys has won numerous awards and is listed on the Recording Industry Association of America's best-selling artists in the United States, with 15 million certified albums. She has sold over 30 million albums worldwide and has established herself as one of the best-selling artists of her time.

Philanthropy

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

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

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

Discography

''Songs in A Minor'' (2001)

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

''As I Am'' (2007)

''The Element of Freedom'' (2009)

;Live albums

''Unplugged'' (2005)

Tours

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

Filmography

+ List of television and films credits
! Year	! Title	! Role	Notes
1985	''The Cosby Show''	Maria
2001	''Charmed''	P3 VIP Patron (uncredited)
2001—2010	''Saturday Night Live''	Herself / Musical Guest	"Reese Witherspoon/Alicia Keys" (Season 27, Episode 1)"Charles Barkley/Alicia Keys" (Season 35, Episode 11)
	''American Dreams''	Fontella Bass	"Rescue Me" (Season 2, Episode 6)
	''The Proud Family''	Herself (voice)
2005	''Sesame Street''	Herself	Episode #36.26 (Season 36, Episode 26)
2006	''The Backyardigans''	Mommy Martian (voice)
		Herself	"One Man Is an Island" (Season 1, Episode 7)
	''Elmo's Christmas Countdown''	Herself	Christmas television special
	''Smokin' Aces''	Georgia Sykes	Debut film
		Lynette
		Alex	Lead role
		June Boatwright	Nominated - NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture
	''Five''	Director	Nominated - Directors Guild of America Award
	''Firelight''	Executive Producer

See also

List of artists who reached number one in the United States

List of awards and nominations received by Alicia Keys

List of honorific titles in popular music

References

Further reading

External links

Alicia Keys at Billboard.com

Alicia Keys at Discogs

Alicia Keys at Metacritic

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

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Name	Gavin DeGraw|background solo_singer
Birth name	Gavin Shane DeGraw
Birth date	February 04, 1977
Height	5' 11" (1.80 m)
Birth place	South Fallsburg, New York, United States
Genre	Blue-eyed soul, pop rock, rock
Instrument	Vocals, piano, guitar
Occupation	Musician and singer-songwriter
Years active	2000–Present
Label	RCA Records
Website	gavindegraw.com }}

Gavin Shane DeGraw (born February 4, 1977) is an American musician and singer-songwriter. He is known for his songs "Chariot", "Follow Through", "I Don't Want to Be" (which has been featured as the theme song for the television drama series, ''One Tree Hill'' since 2003), "In Love with a Girl", and "Not Over You".

Early life

DeGraw grew up in the Catskills in South Fallsburg, New York. His mother, Lynne (Krieger), was a detox specialist, and his father, Wayne DeGraw, was a prison guard; he referenced his father's occupation in the song "I Don't Want to Be". His father is of Irish descent and his mother's family was of Russian. DeGraw began singing and playing piano at the age of eight. He also has two siblings, both older, named Neeka and Joey (born August 1973). It was at his brother's advice that he began writing his own songs. Joey DeGraw is a musician as well, currently touring to promote his own music.

Career

DeGraw rose to fame in 2003 when "I Don't Want to Be" was chosen as the theme song for teen drama ''One Tree Hill''. The song has also been performed on ''American Idol'' and ''Idol Sweden'' by various contestants during different seasons.

DeGraw released his debut album, ''Chariot'' on July 22, 2003 under J Records. ''Chariot'' was recorded at Los Angeles' music studios, ''Sunset Sound'' and produced by Mark Endert. Chariot sold over a million copies and earned platinum certification. The album also featured three of DeGraw's singles: "I Don’t Want To Be", "Follow Through" and "Chariot". He then went on to release an acoustic version of the album called ''Chariot Stripped'' in 2004. ''Chariot Stripped'' contains a cover version of Sam Cooke's "A Change Is Gonna Come".

DeGraw's second album, self-titled ''Gavin DeGraw'' was released on May 6, 2008. The first single, "In Love with a Girl" was released on February 12, 2008. The second U.S. single "Cheated On Me" was released in the US on September 30, 2008. This was followed by the ''Live From Soho'' album, released on Nov 7 2008, featuring mostly tracks from ''Gavin DeGraw''. ''Gavin DeGraw'' debuted at No. 1 on the digital sales chart and ranked at No. 7 on Billboard’s Top 200 album chart.

Gavin Degraw's third album, ''Free'' was released March 31, 2009. DeGraw made ''Free'' in less than two weeks at the Brooklyn studio of his producer Camus Celli. DeGraw included some songs on the album that he wrote very early in his career and that have evolved over time, songs such as "Dancing Shoes" and "Glass". The debut single from the album, "Stay", was released on March 11, 2009. FREE has been described as "''recorded versions of his live favourites''".

DeGraw's fourth, and most recent album, ''Sweeter'' was set to release on August 9, 2011 but got pushed back to September 20, 2011. The album features many tracks co-written with other artists. The first single "Not Over You" was released on iTunes in June. The track was co-written and produced by Ryan Tedder and was said to be inspired by Kyle Craig. "Not Over You" is his first song to reach the top spot on the Adult Pop Songs. ''Sweeter'' contains collaborations from producers including Butch Walker, Eric Rosse, and Ron Aniello; alongside another co-written title track, "''Sweeter''" with ''Andrew Frampton''. The album was recorded in many locations including ''Blackbird Studios'' in Nashville, ''Walker’s Space'' in Venice and the Henson Recording Studios.

''Sweeter'' is DeGraw's first album released under RCA Records, all three of his previous albums were released under J Records. DeGraw went on to release an acoustic album based mostly on songs from ''Sweeter''. The ''iTunes Session'' album features seven tracks and a 30 minute interview.

Appearances

Alongside DeGraw's musical career he has also performed on multiple TV shows and his songs can be heard across TV and film.

TV appearances

DeGraw made his first TV appearance on ''Real Magic TV''. He then went on to appear on: ''The Sharon Osbourne Show'', ''Late Night with Conan O'Brien'', ''American Dreams'', ''Total Request Live'' and ''Rove Live''. During Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in 2004, DeGraw is credited as a performer. After this, he was seen on ''What I Like About You'' alongside Dutch TV shows ''Barend & Van Dorp'' and ''Clement Behrendt Kjersgaard''. DeGraw performed "I Don't Want to Be" during the 2005 Radio Music Awards. He was also a musical guest on ''The VIP'', ''Jensen!'', ''New York 360º'' and ''Entertainment Tonight''. DeGraw has appeared on multiple episodes of ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show'', the ''Late Show with David Letterman'', ''The Tonight Show with Jay Leno'', ''Live! with Kelly'', ''Jimmy Kimmel Live!'' and ''Last Call with Carson Daly'', performing tracks from whichever album he was promoting. DeGraw is credited as a presenter for the 2011 American Music Awards and can mostly be seen presenting footage from backstage. Recently he appeared during an episode of ''Conan'', the episode was aired on the 9 January 2012. On the 4 April 2012 DeGraw performed on the final episode of ''One Tree Hill'' following his heavy connection with the show throughout it's nine seasons.

DeGraw was a contestant on ABC's season 14 of "Dancing With the Stars" which premiered on Monday March 19, 2012. DeGraw and his partner ''Karina Smirnoff'' were eliminated from the competition during week 5, following a Dance Duel with cast-mate Jaleel White and his partner Kym Johnson.

Soundtrack credits

DeGraw's songs have been played on twelve different titles across both TV and film.

"Follow Through" was part of the soundtrack for 2004 film ''Laws of Attraction'' and an episode of ''Scrubs'' called ''My Self-Examination'', aired on 27 April 2004. The song has also been featured on ''One Tree Hill'' and on British and Italian TV advertisements for Carte D'or.

"Chariot" features as an uncredited part of the soundtrack for the American-Canadian TV series ''Dead Like Me''. The song features in a 2004 episode called ''Always'' and is portrayed by DeGraw. DeGraw plays a non-recurring small role as street singer, Pete Anderson. The song also features on the TV series ''Boston Legal'' in a 2006 episode named ''Helping Hands'', it is played during Denise and Daniel's dinner. The song can also be heard during a 2007 episode of ''Cold Case'' called ''Knuckle Up''.

His song "We Belong Together" was also featured in the 2006 film ''Tristan and Isolde''.

DeGraw has performed a cover of Smokey Robinson's love ballad, "The Tracks of My Tears", which is played during ''Chaos Theory'', an episode of ''The Cleaner'' aired on August 5 2008.

During a Christmas special of TV series ''House'' called "Joy to the World", a cover of The Christmas Song performed by DeGraw was played.

TV dance competition and reality show ''So You Think You Can Dance'' utilised three of DeGraw's tracks across four shows and also features a cover performed by DeGraw. "Belief", "More Then Anyone" and "We Belong Together" are used as background tracks across the 2006, 2008 and 2009 series respectively. During the first part of the 2007 finale, a cover of "We Are the Champions", performed by DeGraw, is used.

DeGraw's songs are contained in the soundtracks of eleven episodes of ''One Tree Hill''. Throughout he is uncredited. However, tracks such as "Belief", "More Than Anyone", "Chariot", "We Belong Together" and "Jealous Guy" all feature in the show. During the second season of the show, an unreleased live version of "Chariot" is played during the episode ''"Something I Can Never Have"''.

During a special of the TV show ''The Bachelor'' called The Bachelor: Jason & Molly's Wedding, DeGraw's song "Follow Through" is played.

Acting credits

He has appeared in an on-screen role in three ''One Tree Hill'' episodes. His first appearance was in 2004, during '' You Gotta Go There to Come Back''; he was seen singing "I Don't Want to Be" and "Chariot" at Karen's Cafe. His second appearance was at the beginning of 2008 episode, ''What Comes After the Blues'' where he was seen singing "I Don't Want to Be" with Jackson Brundage and performs in the series final episode.

Other

DeGraw has released a number of music videos as well, including "I Don't Want to Be", "Follow Through" and "Chariot". The latter was directed by Zach Braff, who also directed music videos for Joshua Radin.

DeGraw's song "More Than Anyone" was selected by fans of ''One Tree Hill'' through a Cingular Wireless contest as the first wedding dance song for Nathan & Haley in the 3rd season finale ''"The Show Must Go On."''

He and his brother opened The National Underground in December 2007, a New York City music venue that is a roots rock Americana music bar located in Manhattan's Lower East Side, at 159 East Houston Street between Allen Street and Eldridge Street. The venue offers music, food, and drink. The idea for the venue came about because the brothers wanted a place where they could hang out on a regular basis, and where other musicians could come in and listen and learn. "We were picky about the quality of musicians that played there," Gavin DeGraw says. "We wanted a place where the players were so good, other musicians were like, 'Wow! I really respect what they're doing.'"

Personal life

On August 8, 2011, DeGraw was hospitalized after being assaulted by several people in New York City. Police said a group of men attacked DeGraw early Sunday morning at 6th Street and First Avenue in the East Village, near The National Underground. He suffered a broken nose, a concussion, two black eyes and lacerations to his face. Only minutes after the attack, DeGraw was then struck by a taxi. He was admitted to Manhattan's Bellevue Hospital Center for treatment. He had to cancel his scheduled August 9 performance at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center, located in Saratoga, New York.

DeGraw has said that his ultimate goal is "to leave this world a better person, and for me to not be the only one who knows it."

Band members

Current

Billy Norris – guitar, background vocals (since 2009)

Ian O'Neill – drums, background vocals (since 2011)

Tony Tino – bass (since 2009)

Jimmy Wallace – keyboards, acoustic guitar, vocals (2007–2008, since 2011)

Previous

Johnny "Tsunami" Andrews – guitar, background vocals

Joey DeGraw – guitar, background vocals

Brian Dennis – guitar, background vocals

Matt Flynn – drums

Jose Barrera – Guitar and musical composition

Joey "Coach" Hanna – drums, background vocals

Rodney Howard – drums

Whynot Jansveld – bass, background vocals

Alvin Moody – bass, background vocals

Casey Twist – bass, background vocals

Jimmy Wallace – organ, keyboards, background vocals

Discography

Studio

Year	Album details	Peak chart positions										! style="width:30px;"	! style="width:30px;"	! style="width:30px;"	! style="width:30px;"	! style="width:30px;"	! style="width:30px;"	! style="width:30px;"	! style="width:30px;"
		2003	style="text-align:left;"	* Release date: July 22, 2003	J">Music recording sales certification
! style="width:30px;"	! style="width:30px;"	! style="width:30px;"	! style="width:30px;"	! style="width:30px;"	! style="width:30px;"	! style="width:30px;"	! style="width:30px;"	! style="width:30px;"
2003	style="text-align:left;"	* Release date: July 22, 2003	J	56	—	1	6	23	43	48	21	2		Recording Industry Association of America>US: Platinum
2008	style="text-align:left;"	* Release date: May 6, 2008	* Label: J	7	21	3	8	36	44	23	13	35
2009	style="text-align:left;"	* Release date: March 31, 2009	* Label: J	19	—	29	76	—	—	96	—	—
2011	style="text-align:left;"	* Release date: September 20, 2011	RCA Records>RCA	8	41	6	6	—	—	19	29	25

EPs

Year	Album details	Peak chart positions
		! style="width:30px;"
2008		* Release date: 2008	167

Other albums

2001: ''Gavin Live''

Singles

style="width:3px;;" rowspan="2"	Year	Title	Chart positions												Album
! style="width:36px;"	! style="width:36px;"		! style="width:36px;"	! style="width:36px;"	! style="width:36px;"	! style="width:36px;"	! style="width:36px;"	! style="width:36px;"	! style="width:36px;"	! style="width:36px;"	! style="width:36px;"	! style="width:36px;"
	2004	"[[I Don't Want to Be">Music recording sales certification	Album
! style="width:36px;"	! style="width:36px;"	! style="width:36px;"		! style="width:36px;"	! style="width:36px;"	! style="width:36px;"	! style="width:36px;"	! style="width:36px;"	! style="width:36px;"	! style="width:36px;"	! style="width:36px;"	! style="width:36px;"
	2004	"[[I Don't Want to Be"	10	9	1	—	38	25	19	30	13	—	6	15		*US: Platinum
"Follow Through"	111	22	33	—	—	—	—	—	13	—	12	—		*US: Gold
	"Just Friends"	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	26	—	—	—
"We Belong Together"	26	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—		*US: Gold
	"In Love with a Girl"	24	5	10	32	—	—	—	—	22	—	—	73
"She Holds a Key"	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	29	—	—	—
"Cheated on Me"	—	30	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
	"I Have You to Thank"	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
"Stay"	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
"Dancing Shoes"	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
	"Not Over You"	18	1	9	23	—	—	37	8	13	—	—	—		*US: Platinum	Recording Industry Association of New Zealand>NZ: Gold	Australian Recording Industry Association>AUS: Gold
"Soldier"	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	14	—	—	—
"Sweeter"	—	26	—	—	—	—	—	—	25	—	—	—

Awards and nominations

Year !! Award
2005	Billboard Music Award nomination for Top Soundtrack Single of the Year ("I Don't Want to Be")
2005	Radio Music Award nomination for Song of the Year/Mainstream Top 40 Radio ("I Don't Want to Be")

See also

List of Berklee College of Music alumni

List of Ithaca College alumni

List of people from New York

List of singer-songwriters

References

Billboard Artist Chart History – retrieved March 15, 2009.

External links

gavindegraw.com, DeGraw's official website

Gavin DeGraw collection at the Internet Archive's live music archive

Music videos at AOL Video

Exclusive Gavin DeGraw Interviews at OurStage.com

Category:1977 births Category:20th-century singers Category:21st-century musicians Category:American male singer-songwriters Category:American musicians of Irish descent Category:American musicians of Russian descent Category:American rock guitarists Category:American rock pianists Category:American rock singer-songwriters Category:Berklee College of Music alumni Category:Ithaca College alumni Category:J Records artists Category:Living people Category:Musicians from New York Category:Participants in American reality television series Category:People from the Catskills Category:People from Fallsburg, New York

da:Gavin DeGraw de:Gavin DeGraw es:Gavin DeGraw fr:Gavin DeGraw is:Gavin DeGraw it:Gavin DeGraw ka:გევინ დეგრუ nl:Gavin DeGraw no:Gavin DeGraw nn:Gavin DeGraw pl:Gavin DeGraw pt:Gavin DeGraw ru:Дегро, Гевин simple:Gavin Degraw sr:Гавин Дегро fi:Gavin DeGraw sv:Gavin DeGraw th:เกวิน เดอกรอว์

Name	Marsha Ambrosius
Background	solo_singer
Birth name	Marsha Ambrosius
Alias	The Songtress
Birth date	August 08, 1977
Origin	Liverpool, England
Genre	Soul, R&B;
Years active	2000–present
Label	Aftermath, J, RCA
Website	}}

Marsha Ambrosius or Marsha is an English singer/songwriter. A former member of the English Soul/R&B; duo Floetry, she released her first solo album ''Late Nights & Early Mornings'' on March 1, 2011.

Early career with Floetry

Original Floetry members Marsha Ambrosius and Natalie Stewart met through their love of basketball and formed a friendship. Both Natalie and Marsha attended the Brit School for Performing Arts & Technology where Marsha studied business and finance and Natalie majored in Performing Arts, Media and Art. For college Ambrosius planned to attend the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, Georgia but could not due to an injury. Stewart attended Middlesex University in London and later transferred to North London University. During these years, both women continued to keep in touch. Stewart was a founding member of the performance poetry group 3 Plus 1 which was rising to critical acclaim throughout London, Birmingham, and Manchester. After inviting Ambrosius to join her on stage to perform at a spoken word night, where they debuted a piece that they had written together called "Fantasize", combining spoken word and singing, it seemed to make sense to combine the two and Floetry was born.

Group success

In 2000, the duo travelled to the United States to perform on the poetry circuit. After frequenting spoken word/poetry spots in Atlanta, GA such as Yin Yang Poets' Cafe (to rave reviews), they moved on to Philadelphia. There they met Darren 'Limitless' Henson and Keith 'Keshon' Pelzer of DJ Jazzy Jeff's Touch Of Jazz studio and began recording. In 2002, they signed with DreamWorks Records and released their debut album ''Floetic'', which featured the singles "Floetic", "Say Yes", and "Getting Late". The album was also released in the UK with additional tracks, one of which features British singer/songwriter and producer Sebastian Rogers.

Solo career

Ambrosius has been featured on many songs including Styles P's "I'm Black"; The Game's "Start from Scratch" and "Why You Hate The Game" (also featuring Nas); Busta Rhymes' "Get You Some" and "Cocaina"; Nas' "Hustlers" (also featuring The Game); and Hi-Tek's "Music for Life" and Jamie Foxx's "Freak'in Me". The group has also collaborated with Earth, Wind & Fire on their most recent album, ''Illumination'', on the track "Elevated". She collaborated once again with Nas on his song "If I Ruled The World '09" & has also done a track with Slum Village called "Cloud 9". In 2009, she guested on Wale's "Diary".

Ambrosius was signed to Dr. Dre's record label, Aftermath Entertainment, as a solo musician/song-writer/producer. Parting ways with the label in early 2009, Ambrosius pursued her song-writing/production career landing her placements with R&B; and hip hop artists ranging from Alicia Keys, Jamie Foxx and Mario to Fabolous, Slum Village and Wale. In summer 2009, Ambrosius was approached by numerous record labels offering her a solo deal after a long awaited performance at NYC's SOB's where a sold out crowd gathered to a show accompanied by The Roots and DJ Aktive. In December 2009, Ambrosius signed to J Records and her solo debut ''Late Nights & Early Mornings'' was released on March 1, 2011. "Hope She Cheats On You (With A Basketball Player)" was released as the album's first single on August 13, 2010. The song charted on the U.S. ''Billboard''Hot R&B;/Hip-Hop Songs chart and peaked at number twenty-two. "Far Away" was released as the album's second single on December 7, 2010.

In an interview with ''XXL'' magazine Tech N9ne mentions a possible collaboration with Ambrosius, Lil Wayne, and Eminem on a track titled "This is Hip-hop" for his upcoming solo album ''All 6's And 7's''.

She won the Centric Award at the BET Awards of 2011. She is also being nominated for Best Female R&B; Artist.

On October 7, RCA Music Group announced it was disbanding J Records along with Arista Records and Jive Records. With the shutdown, Ambrosius (and all other artists previously signed to these three labels) will release her future material on the RCA Records brand.

Discography

Studio albums

{|class="wikitable" |- !rowspan="2"|Year !rowspan="2"|Album details !colspan="2"|Peak chart positions ! rowspan="2"|Sales |- style="font-size:smaller;" ! style="vertical-align:top; width:40px;"|US ! style="vertical-align:top; width:40px;"|US R&B; |- | style="text-align:center;"|2011 |''Late Nights & Early Mornings''

First studio album

Release date: March 1, 2011

Label: J Records

| style="text-align:center;"|2 | style="text-align:center;"|1 | US: 420.000 |}

Singles

For discography of singles as a part of duo Floetry, see Floetry Discography

{|class="wikitable" |- ! style="width:28px;" rowspan="2"|Year ! style="width:343px;" rowspan="2"|Title !colspan="2"|Peakchart positions ! style="width:200px;" rowspan="2"|Album |- !width="86"|US !width="86"|USR&B; |- | style="text-align:center;" rowspan="2"|2010 |"Hope She Cheats on You (With a Basketball Player)" | style="text-align:center;"|88 | style="text-align:center;"|22 | style="text-align:left;" rowspan="3"|''Late Nights & Early Mornings'' |- |"Far Away" | style="text-align:center;"|74 | style="text-align:center;"|3 |- | style="text-align:center;" rowspan="1"|2011 |"Late Nights & Early Mornings" | style="text-align:center;"|— | style="text-align:center;"|30 |}

Appearances

2001: "Butterflies" (Michael Jackson; Marsha on background vocals) (''Invincible'') 2002: "Cry Me A River" (Justin Timberlake; Marsha on background vocals) (''Justified'') 2002: "Take You High" (Glenn Lewis; Marsha on background vocals) (''World Outside My Window'') 2003: "Come Together"; "My Fondest Childhood Memories" (Macy Gray; Marsha on background vocals)(''The Trouble With Being Myself'')

2004: "Elevated" (Earth, Wind & Fire featuring Floetry) (''Illumination'')

2004: "Hear Me Cry" (Patti LaBelle featuring Floetry) (''Timeless Journey'')

2005: "Automatique" (Blackalicious featuring Floetry) (''The Craft'')

2005: "Im Black" (Styles P featuring Marsha) (''Time is Money'') 2005: "Start from Scratch" (The Game featuring Marsha) (''The Documentary'') 2006: "Get You Some" (Busta Rhymes featuring Q-Tip & Marsha) (''The Big Bang'') 2006: "Cocaina" (Busta Rhymes featuring Marsha) (''The Big Bang'') 2006: "Music For Life" (Hi-Tek featuring Marsha, Nas, J Dilla, Busta Rhymes & Common) (''Hi-Teknology 2'') 2006: "Hustlers" (Nas featuring The Game & Marsha) (''Hip Hop Is Dead'') 2006: "Why You Hate The Game" (The Game featuring Marsha & Nas) (''Doctor's Advocate'') 2007: "This Can't Be Real" (Freeway featuring Marsha Ambrosius) (''Free at Last'') 2007: "The Art Of Storytellin' Part 4" (DJ Drama featuring Outkast & Marsha Ambrosius) (''Gangsta Grillz: The Album'')

2007: "Reunion" (Ya Boy featuring Marsha Ambrosius) (''Optimus Rime Mixtape'')

2008: "What's Going On" (Marsha Ambrosius featuring The Game) (Single) / (Before L.A.X)

2008: "Wanna Go Back" (Solange featuring Marsha Ambrosius and Q-Tip) (''SoL-AngeL and the Hadley St. Dreams'')

2008: "The Light '08" (Common featuring Marsha Ambrosius)

2008: "Freak’in Me" Jamie Foxx feat. Marsha Ambrosius (''Intuition'')

2009: "If I Ruled the World '09" Nas feat. Marsha Ambrosius (''Smirnoff: Signature Series'')

2009: "Still Hurts" Macy Gray feat. Marsha Ambrosius (''The Sellout'')

2009: "Stay" Fabolous feat. Marsha Ambrosius (''Loso's Way'') 2009: "Take Me Away (With You)" Queen Latifah feat. Marsha Ambrosius (''Persona'') 2009: *Diary Wale Feat Marsha Ambrosius (''Attention: Deficit'') 2009 “A's & E's" Masta Ace & Ed O.G. Feat. Marsha Ambrosius (''Arts & Entertainment'')

2010: ''Be With You'' David Banner feat. Ludacris & Marsha Ambrosius

2010: ''All I Got To Give'' John Regan feat. Marsha Ambrosius (''Sorry I'm Late'') 2011: ''It's Alright'' Saigon feat. Marsha Ambrosius (''The Greatest Story Never Told'')

2012: ''Streets Gone Love Me'' Saint Nick feat. Marsha Ambrosius

2012: "Light Dreams" Tyga feat. Marsha Ambrosius ("Careless World: Rise of the Last King")

;Note All the above written or co-written by Marsha Ambrosius.

Writing credits

2001: "Butterflies" - Michael Jackson (''Invincible'') 2002: "Simple Things", "Beautiful Eyes", "Lonely", "This Love", "Take You High" - Glenn Lewis (''World Outside My Window'') 2004: "My Man" - Angie Stone (''Stone Love'')

2006: "Circus" - Kelis (''Kelis Was Here'')

2007: "Go Ahead" - Alicia Keys (''As I Am'')

2008: "Wanna Go Back" - Solange featuring Marsha Ambrosius and Q-Tip (''SoL-AngeL and the Hadley St. Dreams'')

2008: "Love Me Or Leave Me" - Raven-Symoné (''Raven-Symoné'') 2008: "Welcome To The Alesha Show" - Alesha Dixon (''The Alesha Show'') 2008: "Do About It", "Mirror" - Girlicious (''Girlicious'')

2008: "Music (All I Need)" - Jazmine Sullivan

2009: "Matter" - Letoya - ''Lady Love''

2009: "25 To Life" - JoJo - ''Jumping Trains''

References

External links

Official Website

Marsha Ambrosius on Twitter

Marsha Ambrosius on Facebook

Interview With YouKnowIGotSoul 3/12/10

Category:1977 births Category:Living people Category:Musicians from Liverpool Category:Neo soul singers Category:Spoken word soul Category:Black British musicians Category:British soul musicians Category:British singer-songwriters Category:People educated at the BRIT School Category:RCA Records artists

de:Marsha Ambrosius es:Floetry nl:Floetry