ISO basic Latin alphabet
Aa	Bb	Cc	Dd
Ee	Ff	Gg	Hh
Ii	Jj	Kk	Ll
Mm	Nn	Oo	Pp
Qq	Rr	Ss	Tt
Uu	Vv	Ww	Xx
Yy	Zz

S (named ess /ˈɛs/, spelled es- in compound words; plural esses)^[1] is the nineteenth (19th) letter in the ISO basic Latin alphabet.

History[link]

Phoenician shin	Etruscan S	Greek Sigma

Semitic Šîn ("teeth") represented a voiceless postalveolar fricative /ʃ/ (as in ship). Greek did not have this sound, so the Greek sigma (Σ) came to represent /s/. In Etruscan and Latin, the /s/ value was maintained, and only in modern languages has the letter been used to represent other sounds.

The minuscule form of s was ſ, called the long s, up to the fifteenth century or so, and the form 'S' was used then only as upper case in the same manner that the forms 'G' and 'A' are only upper case. With the introduction of printing the modern form s began to be used at the end of words by some printers. Later, it was used everywhere in print and eventually spread to manuscript letters as well. For example, "sinfulness" would be rendered as "ſinfulneſſ" in all medieval hands, and later it was "ſinfulneſs" in some blackletter hands and in print. The modern usage "sinfulness" did not become widespread in print until the beginning of the 19th century, largely to prevent confusion of 'ſ' with the lower case f in typefaces which had a very short horizontal stroke in their lowercase 'f'. The ligature of ſs (or ſz) became the German ess-tsett, ß.

Usage[link]

The letter S represents the voiceless alveolar sibilant /s/ in most languages and the IPA. It also commonly represents the voiced alveolar fricative /z/, as in Portuguese mesa or English rose and bands, or may represent the voiceless palato-alveolar fricative [ʃ], as in most Portuguese dialects when syllable-finally, in Hungarian, in German (before ⟨p⟩, ⟨t⟩) and some English words as sugar since yod-coalescence became a dominant feature, and [ʒ], as in English measure (also because of yod-coalescence), European Portuguese Islão or, in many sociolects of Brazilian Portuguese, esdrúxulo, while in some Andalusian dialects, it is merged with Peninsular Spanish ⟨c⟩ and ⟨z⟩ and pronounced [θ].

The letter S is the seventh most common letter in English and the third-most common consonant (after t and n). In English and many other languages, primarily European ones, final ⟨s⟩ is the usual mark of plural nouns. It also usually indicates English third person present tense verbs.

Related letters and other similar characters[link]

Computing codes[link]

¹ and all encodings based on ASCII, including the DOS, Windows, ISO-8859 and Macintosh families of encodings.

Other representations[link]

NATO phonetic	Morse code
Sierra	···

Signal flag	Flag semaphore	Braille

References[link]

External links[link]

• Media related to S at Wikimedia Commons
• The Wiktionary entry for S
• The Wiktionary entry for s

Jessie J
Jessie J at the O2 Arena in London in 2011.
Background information
Birth name	Jessica Ellen Cornish
Also known as	Jessie J
Born	(1988-03-27) 27 March 1988 (age 24) Chadwell Heath, London, England, United Kingdom
Genres	pop, hip hop, R&B, dance-pop, soul
Years active	2005–present
Labels	Lava, Universal Republic, Island, Gut
Website	jessiejofficial.com

Jessica Ellen Cornish (born 27 March 1988), better known by her stage name Jessie J, is an English singer and songwriter. Born and raised in London, she studied at the BRIT School before signing with Gut Records and striking a songwriting deal with Sony/ATV Music Publishing where she wrote for artists such as Chris Brown and Miley Cyrus.

Signed with Universal, Jessie J came to prominence following the release of her debut single "Do It Like a Dude" which peaked at number two on the UK Singles Charts. After scoring her first number one in the United Kingdom, France, Ireland and New Zealand with the song "Price Tag", she released her debut album Who You Are (2011) which charted at number two in the UK. Other releases from the album include "Nobody's Perfect", "Who's Laughing Now" and "Who You Are" which charted within the top 20 in the UK but the release of fifth single "Domino" spawned international chart success, peaking at number 6 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the US, and becoming her second UK number one. Aside from her musical career, Jessie J is currently a coach and mentor on television show The Voice UK.

Citing various influences, Jessie J is recognized for an unconventional musical and performance style^[1][2] that mixes her soul voice with contemporary R&B, pop, and hip-hop influences. Jessie J has garnered various awards and nominations for her contributions to the music industry, including the 2011 Critics' Choice BRIT Award and the BBC's Sound of 2011. As of April 2012, Jessie has sold over 11 million singles and 2.5 million records worldwide.^[3][4]

Early life[link]

Jessie J was born Jessica Ellen Cornish in Chadwell Heath, London,^[5] daughter of Stephen Cornish and Rose Cornish (née Archer). She was educated at Mayfield High School in the London Borough of Redbridge. She attended Colin's Performing Arts School and as an 11-year old-was cast in Andrew Lloyd Webber's West End production of Whistle Down the Wind.^[6][7][8] Jessie has two sisters, who are five and seven years older than her, who were both head girls at school. Unlike her academic sisters, Cornish has stated she was "never really that good at anything". She said, "At school they were like 'oh, you're a Cornish girl' and they kind of expected me to be the same as my sisters. Give me something to draw or an outfit to pick for someone, or hair, make-up, acting, write a song, I'm fine with it, but anything to do with sums – it was never my thing." She also said she never based her intelligence on her exam results.^[9] She also said she was always good at singing and it was her "thing". At the age of 16 she began studying at the BRIT School and at 17 she joined a girl group named Soul Deep.^[10] She graduated in the class of 2006 along with singers Adele and Leona Lewis.^[11] At 18 she suffered a stroke.^[12]

Music career[link]

2006–2010: Career beginnings[link]

Jessie J was signed to Gut Records, recording an album for the label, but the company went bankrupt before any material was released.^[8][10] She then found success as a songwriter, gaining a Sony ATV publishing contract.^[13] She was also the support act for Cyndi Lauper during Lauper's UK dates of her 2008 Bring Ya To The Brink tour (Lauper invited J to join her on stage for the performances of "Girls Just Want To Have Fun"). Jessie has also written lyrics for artists such as Chris Brown and Miley Cyrus, including "Party in the U.S.A.".^[14][15] Jessie J was also part of a girl band, called Soul Deep, for two years, however she left due to thoughts that "it wasn't going anywhere". Despite people thinking that her first notoriety was through YouTube, Jessie was signed for four years before her first video was posted. Jessie first came to the attention of Lava Records when her publisher at Sony/ATV, Rich Christina, sent Lava president Jason Flom a link to her MySpace page, which the record executive loved.^[16] After seeing an impressive U.S. showcase, Lava was, along with several other labels, keen to sign the artist but progress was hampered by her management's insistence on, what Flom called, a "crazy deal", and their refusal to let Jessie speak to any labels directly.^[16] Despite this, Senior Director of A&R at Lava, Harinder Rana, made surreptitious efforts to meet Jessie on her own in winter of 2008. Later in the year a change in management to Sarah Stennett and Nadia Khan of Crown Music allowed record deal negotiations to take place. Jessie eventually signed with Lava as part of a joint venture with Universal Republic.^[16]

[edit] 2010–2012: Who You Are

Jessie J performing at a concert in New York City in 2011.

Jessie J began recording her debut studio album in 2006 and it was completed on 19 January 2011.^[17][18] She revealed that "Big White Room" would be on the album and was written from an experience she had when she was 11 years old, although she wrote the song at age 17, in hospital, where a ward mate, a little boy, died.^[19] Jessie J says the album's title track, "Who You Are", is one of her proudest creations, she said the song is a "positive role model for young people" and "I always say that I'm half-artist, half-therapist".^[19] In late 2010 Jessie J released her first single, "Do It Like a Dude" which was co-written with George Astasio, Tj Normandin, Jason Pebworth, Jon Shave, Kyle Abrahams and Peter Ighile. Originally, she wrote the song with Rihanna in mind because "Rude Boy" was released at the time, partly inspiring the song. She then sent the song to her label, Island Records, before sending it to Rihanna's management. Island insisted the song become Jessie J's first single.^[20] She wishes to perform the song with Rihanna at one point.^[21] The single gained positive reception from critics.^[22] The single charted at number two on the UK Singles Charts. Her follow-up single "Price Tag" was released in late January 2011. This was written by Jessie J, Lukasz Gottwald, Claude Kelly, and Bobby Ray Simmons, Jr. and charted at number one in the top of the charts. "Price Tag" was released in the United States on 1 February 2011 and peaked at 23 on the Billboard Hot 100.^[23] "Price Tag" also charted at number-one in New Zealand and Ireland and is the most successful online video J has released. As of October 2011, the video has generated over 148 million views on Youtube and Vevo, making it the 22nd most viewed music video of all time.^[24][25] Her first American television appearance was as the musical guest on the 12 March 2011 episode of NBC's Saturday Night Live.^[26]

On 25 February 2011 her debut album, Who You Are, was released.^[27] The album first entered the charts on 6 March 2011 where it charted on the UK Album Charts at number two. The album charted into the top ten in a number of countries and number 11 in the United States.^[28] After the release she went on to release a third single from the album, "Nobody's Perfect".^[29] MTV reported that the single is, so far, only confirmed for release in the United Kingdom.^[30] The album's fourth single was "Who's Laughing Now". "Domino" was her second US single.^[31] The Dr. Luke-produced track was sent to mainstream radio on 6 September 2011.^[32] With the success of Who You Are in North America, Jessie was chosen to tour as the opening act for American pop artist Katy Perry's California Dreams Tour in 2011 but after she was unable to fully recover from her injuries during rehearsals she was forced to pull out under the doctor's orders.^[33] Jessie J served as the house artist at the 2011 MTV Video Music Awards, performing several of her original songs along with covers around commercial breaks.^[34]

James Morrison's third studio album, The Awakening features a collaboration with Jessie J called "Up", the song was released as a single on 4 December 2011. Jessie J re-released "Who You Are" on 9 November 2011, featuring the regular tracks plus "Domino" and two new songs. "Domino" became her first top 10 hit in the U.S., following the success of "Price Tag". The song also peaked at number 1 in January 2012 in the UK, before it was even officially released there.

[edit] 2012–present: Second studio album and The Voice

On 4 October 2011, Jessie announced that she will be one of four coaches for new BBC program, The Voice UK.^[35] The show was announced after the success of the US version, The Voice. It premiered in March 2012 on BBC One. It will be presented by Holly Willoughby and Reggie Yates, with will.i.am (of The Black Eyed Peas), Tom Jones and Danny O'Donoghue (of The Script) joining Jessie on the coaching panel.^[36] The first stage of the competition, The Blind auditions, began in London on 18 January 2012 at the BBC Television Centre and finished filming on 22 January 2012. The winner will receive £100,000 and a record deal with Universal Republic. It was also reported that the 4 coaches recorded a cover of the Black Eyed Peas song, "I Gotta Feeling", and will release an accompanying music video to help promote the show.^[37]

On 31 January 2012, Jessie announced that she had begun recording for her second studio album.^[38] She also stated that she hopes to collaborate with many artists this year, possibly including some of her fellow coaches on The Voice.^[39] It was revealed that she has worked in the studio with Cee-Lo Green after he tweeted her on twitter. Jessie has also revealed on twitter that she has worked with Diane Warren as well as reuniting in the studio with her 'Price Tag' co-writer Claude Kelly.

Jessie will embark on her first arena tour in March 2013. Via microblogging website, Twitter, Jessie J confirmed the tour will be called Nice to Meet You Tour.^[40]

Personal life[link]

Jessie J performing at the 2011 The Big Chill, sitting on the "gilded throne" she used for performances while her foot was broken.

In early 2011 she suffered a panic attack on stage after she was forced to perform in the dark. "I did a gig recently and had a panic attack on stage," she told NOW. "The night was called 'Black Out' and I had to perform in the dark. I asked them to turn on the lights and they didn't. I was onstage in pitch black and, because I couldn't see anything, I started to panic. It was awful."^[41]

Jessie J is bisexual and stated in an interview on the "In Demand" radio show on 3 March 2011, "I've never denied it. Whoopie doo guys, yes, I've dated girls and I've dated boys – get over it."^[42][43] However, in April 2012 The Sun outed her as homosexual which she denied via Twitter, calling it a "yet another boring untrue story".^[44] According to The Guardian, Jessie J's sexuality is valuable to young teens, especially for young girls unsure of themselves because of their sexuality and identity, to feel "that this does happen and this is normal."^[45]

On 12 June 2011 at the Capital Radio Summertime Ball, Jessie ruptured several tendons in her foot during rehearsals, and performed her set the following day while sitting on a gilded throne.^[46] For her appearance at Glastonbury Festival 2011 on 25 June 2011, she performed on the throne again, claiming her physician had told her not to perform with her broken foot which would take six weeks to heal.^[47] Jessie J was scheduled to play at several festivals throughout the summer, however it was reported on 1 July 2011 that she would not be able to attend T in the Park, T4 On The Beach, Wembley:Orange, iTunes Festival, Lovebox and Oxegen due to the injuries to her foot. Jessie J personally tweeted before surgery; "Keep making nervous jokes with the doctor and he keeps looking at me blankly. Which is making me laugh even more. It's getting serious. I just took my nose stud out." Tweeting after the surgery, she wrote: "Can't keep tweeting. Still very dizzy and being sick. But I'm OK, I got through it." Her record label released an official statement on 30 June 2011 that under strict orders from her doctor, she will not be able to perform for a number of weeks so she can heal and recuperate properly.^[48] She returned to the concert circuit in late August, including sets at the V Festival^[49] and The Big Chill. For the 2011 VMA's she was still in a cast and using the throne to keep off it.

Jessie J confirmed on 2 August 2011 that she would be shaving her hair off for charity in 2012. Speaking via her official Twitter account she said: "It’s hair, It will grow back. Even if it takes 2 years, if it saves lives it’s worth it. Even if its 1 life that’s something."^[50]

‎Artistry and voice[link]

Jessie J performing at the Bournemouth International Centre in 2011.

Although she was first identified as a soul singer, she primarily records songs of contemporary R&B and pop music with hip-hop influences.

Music critic Matthew Perpetua of Pitchfork Media compared Jessie J to her peers Adele and Amy Winehouse, but suggested she was missing something: "Whereas Adele and Winehouse also have powerhouse voices, they fit into clear aesthetic niches and invest their songs with depth and humanity. Jessie J doesn't have even a fraction of their restraint." Perpetua added: "Her idea of showcasing her gift is to shoot for a blaring melisma on "Mamma Knows Best" that makes Christina Aguilera seem as subtle as Joni Mitchell by comparison."^[51]

Ailbhe Malone of the music magazine NME also recognized Cornish's "undeniably potent voice". However, she pointed out the possible "identity crisis" that might have been caused by Jessie's songwriter past: "This is an album of singles for other artists. There’s Rihanna Jessie (‘Do It...’), Perry Jessie (‘Abracadabra’), Pixie Jessie (‘Mamma Knows Best’), Ellie Jessie ('Big White Room')."^[52]

Caroline Sullivan of The Guardian shared her positive opinion about the singer, saying that "if any singer has the potential to be the British Katy Perry or Pink, with the accompanying millions of sales, it's her". Sullivan also complimented Cornish's attitude: "[Her songs] are delivered with a confidence that money can't buy."^[53]

Entertainment Weekly's music critic Adam Markovitz said of Jessie: "The 23-year-old Brit has all the tools, from a monster voice to an ear for hooks — she co-wrote Miley Cyrus' 'Party in the U.S.A.' — and a manic persona that's equal parts Katy Perry, Kristin Chenoweth, and Alice Cooper."^[54]

Discography[link]

• Who You Are (2011)

Concert tours[link]

Headlining

• Stand Up Tour (2011)
• Heartbeat Tour (2011-12)
• Nice To Meet You Tour (2013)

Filmography[link]

Awards and nominations[link]

References[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Jessie J

External links[link]

• Official website
• Jessie J discography at Discogs
• Jessie J's channel on YouTube
• Jessie J's BBC Sound of 2011 page at BBC Online

Adam Brody
at the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival
Born	Adam Jared Brody (1979-12-15) December 15, 1979 (age 32) San Diego, California, US
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1995–present

Adam Jared Brody (born December 15, 1979) is an American film and television actor and part time musician. He began his career in 1995, appearing on Gilmore Girls and other series, and subsequently came to fame for his role as Seth Cohen on The O.C.^[1] Brody later appeared in several film roles, including Mr. & Mrs. Smith, Thank You for Smoking, Jennifer's Body, In the Land of Women, Cop Out, and Scream 4.^[2]

Early life[link]

Brody was born in Carlsbad, San Diego County, California, the oldest son of Valerie (née Siefman), a graphic artist, and Mark Brody, a lawyer.^[3][4] His parents, both Jewish, were originally from Detroit, Michigan.^[5] He has younger twin brothers, Sean and Matt. Brody attended Wangenheim Middle School and Scripps Ranch High School, receiving "poor grades",^[6] and grew up in suburban San Diego, spending time surfing.^[7] He has said that while he was not a "Casanova", he had "cute girlfriends" and "pretty much lived at the beach".^[6] Brody attended community college for one year and dropped out at the age of nineteen, moving to Hollywood in order to become an actor.^[1] He subsequently hired an acting coach and signed with a manager.^[8]

Career[link]

At the 2005 Toronto International Film Festival

After a year of training and auditioning, Brody landed the role of Barry Williams in the 2000 TV movie Growing Up Brady. He also was in the Canadian comedy television series The Sausage Factory. In 2001, he played a small role in American Pie 2, named as "high school guy". He was one of two high school guys who get chased away from Steve Stifler's party. He was cast in recurring roles on Gilmore Girls in 2002–2003 as Dave Rygalski, Lane's bandmate and love interest before his character left to go to California, or in this case, The O.C.. In 2003, Brody wrote "Home Security" (a short film),^[7] appeared in the feature film Grind and also in a music video of a song called "Too Bad About Your Girl" by The Donnas. Still in 2003, he began playing his most famous role to date, Seth Cohen, a slightly awkward teenager, on the television show The O.C.. Brody improvised some of the character's comic dialogue.^[7] The role turned him into a teen idol, with the character having been described by the Los Angeles Times as "TV's sexiest geek"^[7] and by Time as having "redefined" the screen persona of "unapologetic" nerdiness;^[1] his character (defined by director Jon Kasdan as the "new kind of nerdy Jewish guy: both self-deprecating and self-obsessed")^[1] has since inspired scripts to describe particular characters as "Adam Brody types".^[1] The role also developed Brody a female fan following and as a result, Brody was ranked No. 17 in Independent Online's "100 Sexiest Men Alive" of 2006^[9], was twice placed on Teen People's annual list of "25 Sexiest Stars under 25", and was the first male on the cover of Elle Girl.^[1][10][10] He also appeared thrice -2003, 2004, 2005- in People's Magazine "50 Hottest Bachelors".^[11][12][13]

During the show's run, Brody appeared alongside Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt in 2005's film Mr. & Mrs. Smith and played a Hollywood studio assistant in the 2006 film adaptation of Thank You for Smoking. Brody was signed to a seven-year contract for The O.C., playing the role of Seth Cohen, where he acted much like himself. The show was eventually canceled in 2007 and ended its run in February of that year; Brody has said that he is "not unhappy" with the show's cancellation^[10] and that although he was "fortunate" to be on a successful series, he was also glad to "not be on it for 10 years".^[1] After the end of The O.C.'s run, Brody turned to a full-time film career.^[7]

Brody with Greta Gerwig and Analeigh Tipton at the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival

His next film was In the Land of Women, a romantic comedy co-starring Meg Ryan and Kristen Stewart and released on April 20, 2007. In the film, Brody plays the lead role, a writer who returns to his mother's Michigan hometown in order to take care of his sick grandmother. Brody did not have to audition for the part, but was almost unable to appear in the film because of scheduling conflicts with the second season of The O.C.; the film's director pushed filming back eight months because he wanted Brody to star.^[7][10] The same year, Brody also appeared in supporting roles in the lower budget films Smiley Face, playing a pot dealer, and The Ten, as a skydiver.^[7] He also guest appeared in the Smallville episode "Crush".

Brody, along with actor Zac Efron, was in consideration for the lead part in the film Speed Racer, a role which was eventually given to Emile Hirsch.^[1] Brody was also set to produce a remake of Revenge of the Nerds, which was canceled early during filming.^[14]

In 2009, he co-starred with Josh Lucas in Boaz Yakin's drama, Death in Love, and in Academy Award-winner Diablo Cody's new horror film Jennifer's Body, co-starring Megan Fox.

In 2010, he appeared in Kevin Smith's film Cop Out, which was shot in NYC and co-starred Bruce Willis and Tracy Morgan and then in The Romantics alongside Katie Holmes and Josh Duhamel. It was announced on July 1, 2010 that Brody landed the role of Detective Hoss in Scream 4,^[2] released in April 2011.

Brody currently voices "Woodie" in the MTV animated series Good Vibes.^[15] In January 2012, it was announced he had joined the cast of Lovelace, a biopic about the late '70s porn star Linda Lovelace which will be directed by Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman and star Amanda Seyfried and Demi Moore. Brody will portray Harry Reems.^[16]

Personal life[link]

Brody lives in Los Angeles. He dated The O.C. co-star Rachel Bilson for three years.^[7] The relationship ended in December 2006.^[17] He dated Lorene Scafaria - a screenwriter - a little bit after their meeting on the set of The Romantics^[18] although the relationship has recently ended.

Brody plays drums for the band Big Japan^[7] with actor Bret Harrison. He writes screenplays and songs during his spare time^[1] and has co-written, along with Danny Bilson and Paul DiMeo, a comic book miniseries for Wildstorm Comics called Red Menace. Brody has also volunteered as an actor with the Young Storytellers Program, which is dedicated to developing literacy, self-expression and self-esteem in elementary school children.

Brody has described himself as a "fake intellectual" and his sense of humor as sarcastic.^[1] He is a secular Jew^[19] and has stated that he "couldn't be less religious".^[3] Brody has said that when he moved to Hollywood he became "more nerdy" and embraced his "neurotic side".^[6]

Filmography[link]

Film[link]

Television[link]

Accolades[link]

References[link]